MetroNow Dispatch 1.2023
This month, we check in on regional bus transformation, dish out the ScuttleBus, and celebrate some big news on the northern frontier.
Status Check: Regional Bus Transformation Project
The Bus Transformation Project (BTP) was the result of a two year process of expansive public engagement and technical analysis to develop a living strategy to transform regional bus service. Published in 2019, the BTP put forth four overarching strategies and twenty-six recommendations to help the region transform bus service.
The BTP’s vision was that, “the bus will be the mode of choice on the region’s roads by 2030, serving as the backbone of a strong and inclusive regional mobility system.” Even before the pandemic made the essential nature of bus service crystal clear, the BTP strategy recognized that the bus is critical to the economic and social health of our region.
Last year, the MetroNow Coalition produced our first Bus Transformation Project Progress Report to measure progress against the BTP's twenty-six recommendations. That first report highlighted how the region's transit agencies were making progress to implement the vision, despite the pandemic, but there was more work to do.
MetroNow also encouraged the region to collaborate on six key priorities in 2022 to advance the goals of bus transformation and hosted a series of bus champion webinars to dive deeper into each recommendation. The six recommendations were:
Launch the regional bus network redesign.
Build & enforce 10 new miles of bus lanes.
Collaborate to retain & recruit bus operators.
Expand electric infrastructure & the transit workforce.
Share regional bus data & best practices.
Address the transit funding fiscal cliff.
How do you think the region did on these six priorities? Comment or let us know on Twitter. MetroNow is finalizing its 2023 regional bus transformation progress report in the coming weeks and we’d love to know your thoughts on what is going well, and what’s… not.
The ScuttleBus: January 2023
Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and read the MetroNow Dispatch once in a while, you could miss it. Here are MetroNow’s top transit picks this month:
👍 WMATA’s draft strategic plan says it’s ‘Your Metro’: you’ve got until February 14 to provide comments on WMATA’s five-year draft strategic transformation plan. It’s your Metro, so make your voice heard.
😔 The Purple Line opening pushed back to mid-2027: the latest delay is blamed on protracted utility relocation work. We can’t wait for the Purple Line’s tell all memoir.
🎉 Governor Wes Moore ready for major transportation projects: in his draft budget, the Governor set aside $500 million for strategic priority transportation projects that “that align with the governor's economic competitiveness goals.”
👋 Paul Wiedefeld is back at WMATA, sorta: Governor Moore nominated Wiedefeld for Maryland Secretary of Transportation. If confirmed by the Senate, Paul would fill one of Maryland’s seats on the WMATA Board.
🚇 More frequent Metrorail service coming February 7: WMATA is adding trains to shorten wait times on four of Metro’s six lines during the busiest days of the week.
Transit Champions of the Month: President Biden, Amtrak, MDOT, & Baltimore City
On Monday, January 30, President Biden, along with leaders from Amtrak, MDOT, & Baltimore City, announced a funding agreement for the construction of the new Frederick Douglass Tunnel. This approximately $6 billion project will generate tens of thousands of jobs, including 20,000 direct construction jobs, over the course of the nine year project
But that’s not in the DMV! Why should you care? Well, if you’ve ever ridden an Amtrak or MARC Train up to Baltimore Penn Station, Philadelphia, or New York and beyond, you’ve passed through (and lost cell phone reception) in the B&P Tunnel, built shortly after the Civil War. Amtrak trains heading north or south through DC pass through this major bottleneck, whose sharp turns require modern trains to slow to a crawl, limits train frequencies, and prevents MARC trip time quicker than 30-minutes between Baltimore and DC.
This project is not just a boon for Baltimore, but will make the entire region more rail and transit accessible. Coupled with the Transforming Rail in Virginia program to the south, the next generation of Washingtonians won’t know how lucky they have it.
Mr. President, is there a Union Station redevelopment funding agreement next?
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The MetroNow Coalition is made up of regional leaders from the business, non-profit, and advocacy communities who believe that transit is designed to bring us together —at work, school, and play. Today, we believe our collective advocacy for better transit for the Washington DC region is more important than ever.
We launched the MetroNow Dispatch to bring residents, leaders, and transit agencies together to think about how we can make better transit today, during the pandemic, and “tomorrow,” as we look beyond recovery to how we can build a more equitable, sustainable, and accessible transportation system for our region.