I originally became interested in urban geography through public transportation, so it is not really surprising that I have written a large number of articles on public transportation in the DC area and how it could be improved. Along with four longer series of articles on Washington Metrorail cuts and the resulting ridership issues, on Prince George’s County’s “TheBus” network, on the DC-area regional Metrobus network, and on the potential for circumferential transit in the DC area, I have written a number of one-off articles.
Two of these articles discuss facets of the Metrorail system that make it different from other American rapid transit systems: the lack of timed transfers between lines and the absence of express tracks. In these articles, I explain why these features are not present in Metro and would not provide significant benefit, given how the system is structured:
- “Express trains wouldn’t be of much help to Metro riders” (June 2016)
- “Ask GGWash: Why doesn’t Metro have timed transfers?” (February 2019)
Two other articles present a map of the Metrorail system scaled by travel times that I created and propose an interim bus line along the route of the under-construction Purple Line to improve transit while the line is under construction.
- “See how long it takes to get from each Metro station to the downtown core” (January 2017)
- “GGWash Sandbox: Could an interim bus mirror the Purple Line route?” (June 2018)
My other four non-series articles on public transportation deal with public transit service for low-income communities and bus riders.
- “This map shows where the most bus riders live and how close they are to Metro” (November 2016)
- “In Washington, not all commuting distances are created equal” (April 2017)
- “Half of Prince George’s County residents can’t take transit to jury duty” (January 2018)
- “How does access to frequent transit correlate with property values in Baltimore?” (November 2018)
Metrorail Cuts and Ridership Issues
Between March and May 2017, I wrote a series of five articles for the D.C. Policy Center on WMATA‘s Metrorail service cuts and fare increases, comparing Metrorail’s fares and service to those on other US rapid transit systems, as well as DC commuter rail fares to fares on other US commuter rail systems.
In addition, in February 2018, I wrote a follow-up post noting that Metrorail’s ridership had dropped enough—in part due to reduced service and increased fares—that it was no longer the second-busiest rapid transit system in the country.
- “WMATA plans to raise rates, but Metrorail’s fares already among highest in the country”
- “Lowering fares on MARC and VRE could increase commuter rail ridership and decrease Metrorail overcrowding” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
- “Metro should carefully consider the costs of further off-peak service cuts“
- “Metrorail changes mean even shorter hours than other transit systems” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
- “D.C. could roll back the coming Metrorail fare increase for residents at a relatively low cost“
- “Metrorail is no longer the second-busiest rapid transit system in the country” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
Improving Prince George’s County’s “TheBus”
In April and May 2018, Tracy Hadden Loh and I wrote a seven-article series for Greater Greater Washington discussing Prince George’s County’s “TheBus” transit network, its many problems, and improvements that we hoped would be included in the county’s then-under-development proposal to improve bus service:
- “TheBetterBus: Prince George’s County is working on a plan to improve ‘TheBus’ service“
- “TheBus needs weekend and evening service, but there are no plans to introduce it soon“
- “Prince George’s “TheBus” needs better branding and communication“
- “Why does Prince George’s spend less on transit than Montgomery?“
- “Low ridership, not low fares, is responsible for TheBus’s meager revenue“
- “Do TheBus’s long headways and indirect routes reduce ridership?“
- “Low local bus ridership in Prince George’s: it’s the system, not the land use“
I later followed up on the series with a pair of posts. First, in June 2018, I summarized the results of the County’s “Transit Vision Plan” and compared them to our proposals. Then, in November 2019, I wrote a short note discussing progress on the implementation of the Transit Vision Plan:
- “Prince George’s might make many improvements to TheBus that we suggested“
- “We outlined ways to improve Prince George’s The Bus. Now the county is taking some of our advice.“
WMATA Metrobus “Transformation” Proposals
In September and October 2018, David Alpert and I wrote a six-article series for Greater Greater Washington, discussing WMATA’s “Bus Transformation Project” study, which had just been announced, and our proposals for how bus servie in the DC region could be improved. Our proposals focused on simplifying fares and passes, improving the quality of service, and integrating the region’s bus systems and simplifying it’s bus route numbering:
- “WMATA is looking to “transform” bus service in our region. Here are 7 ways to do it (and one not to)“
- “Bus transformation #1: Improve the service“
- “Bus transformation #2: Integrate the region’s bus systems“
- “Bus transformation #3: Simplify bus numbering and information“
- “Bus transformation #4: Make bus+rail transfer fares more fair“
- “Bus Transformation #5: Expand and improve unlimited passes“
I also wrote an article on the history of the Metrobus route numbering system as a spin-off piece to this series. This article is part of a broader collection of articles on the history of DC-area streetcar service.
Suburb-to-Suburb Transit in DC
In February and March 2019, I wrote a seven-article series for the D.C. Policy Center making extensive proposals for circumferential transit in the DC area, including Purple Line extensions to Tysons Corner and Largo and a number of bus rapid transit lines:
- “Why the Washington region needs better suburb-to-suburb transit” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
- “Our region needs better suburb-to-suburb transit, but a Metro loop isn’t the best option” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
- “The best way to build a Purple Line link between Bethesda and Tysons Corner” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
- “Why it makes sense to extend the Purple Line to Largo, but not National Harbor” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
- “Northern Virginia needs better suburb-to-suburb transit. Here’s where rapid bus service could help.” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
- “Here’s where rapid bus service could best connect Maryland’s suburbs” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
- “For circumferential transit in the District, try crosstown bus lanes” (cross-posted at Greater Greater Washington)
My analyses included estimates of construction cost for the Purple Line extensions and maps of activity density along the proposed routes, and I discussed both projects currently in the planning phase—largely bus rapid transit lines in Northern Virginia—and projects that I think deserve more serious consideration than they have so far.