MetroNow Dispatch 6.2021
This month, the Dispatch highlights the WMATA board’s critical vote on Thursday that will define the regional recovery and applauds several transit champions, as we couldn’t pick just one this month.
WMATA & the Regional Recovery
On Thursday, June 10, the WMATA Board will have an opportunity to define the role WMATA, and transit writ-large, will play in the regional economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. After 15 months of uncertainty, loss, and economic hardship, we can see the future at hand with hundreds of millions of vaccines in arms around the country and case numbers dropping.
In March, after the American Rescue Plan was passed, we asked the Board to consider three principles and ten actions in drafting their FY 2022 budget. The three principles were: (1) Make Equity the Cornerstone of Transit Recovery; (2) Recognize WMATA’s Essential Role in the Region’s Economic Recovery; and (3) Innovate. Read our 10 recommended actions here.
We were heartened to see many of our recommendations presented by WMATA staff and discussed by the Board at the June 2 Finance and Capital Committee. As the Board prepares to vote on service and fare changes for this fall, when most of the region should be fully reopened and we are emerging into a post-pandemic world, we are now asking the Board to consider a more targeted list of two principles and four specific actions around service and fare opportunities for this fall:
Principles to Consider
Make Equity the Cornerstone of Transit Recovery: Eliminating the transfer penalty, implementing a network of high-frequency all day and weekend bus routes, and restoring some late-night rail service, but supplementing with late-night bus service, are three concrete actions WMATA can take to improve transportation equity and enable a stronger, more inclusive recovery.
Think Regionally Instead of Parochially: What is good for transit riders in Maryland is good for transit riders in the District is good for transit riders in Virginia. Residents do not care about jurisdictional borders when looking for work or seeing family, they care whether they can access their destination safely and in a reasonable amount of time. Creating a network of high-frequency bus routes, expanding late-night service, opening the Silver Line extension, and committing to and funding a regional bus network redesign are concrete actions WMATA can take to recognize their essential role in the entire region's economy.
Service and Fare Opportunities
Eliminate the Transfer Penalty: Riders who transfer between bus and rail only receive a $0.50 discount, which can be a burden for low-income riders who must choose between the fastest bus-rail route or the cheapest multiple-bus route. Increasing the discount to $1 was adopted in the original pre-pandemic FY21 budget but the transfer penalty should be eliminated entirely to remove barriers to moving around the region quickly and efficiently.
Implement a Network of High-Frequency Bus Routes: Improving the frequency of high-ridership bus routes can greatly increase transportation equity, the customer experience, and create a more reliable network that attracts more riders. The proposed 12 & 20 minute bus networks are a great start and we encourage the Board to adopt and encourage this service concept.
Restore Rail Service to 12am, 1am on Fri/Sat; Supplement with Late-Night Bus Service: The lack of late-night transit options hurts workers and businesses that operate outside of the traditional 9-to-5 schedule. This is especially critical as we look to support economic recovery for businesses that were hardest hit by COVID -- restaurants and entertainment venues -- and support their ability to bring employees back to jobs. Late-night service is an equity issue. We understand the need for overnight maintenance hours on Metrorail, but the bus does not have the same constraints. A late-night bus service that compliments and supplements that lack of late-night rail service can expand opportunities for late-night and overnight workers and businesses. The restoration of 346 bus routes to 2am is a great start, but that still leaves a gap for overnight workers, 24-hour businesses, and hospitality workers who may not shut the doors until 2am. Even if no service improvements can be made in the near-term, a clear, understandable, and iconic map (similar to the WMATA Metrorail) of the existing late-night bus service (known as Night Owl Service in some other regions) would be a step in the right direction.
Accelerate a Bus Network Redesign: In 2019, WMATA concluded the Bus Transformation Project (BTP), a multi-year effort to assess regional bus service which resulted in twenty-six recommendations, including a transit equity framework and a regional bus network redesign. We applaud the Metro Board’s adoption of the Transit Equity Framework in FY21 -- a critical first step to reexamine how we prioritize service and transit investment. The WMATA Board should commit to funding and launching a regionally coordinated bus network redesign to ensure that WMATA and local bus services can best meet the region’s demands. This should include late-night bus service as well. The timing is right to start this project. A bus network redesign is typically a two to three year process which will allow the creation of a regionally coordinated bus network that better reflects our post-pandemic travel patterns.
Read more:
Metro considers service increases and lower fares (Washington Post 6.1.21)
“Metro is considering increasing bus service, extending Metrorail hours to midnight and reducing fares to serve lower-income workers and recruit riders back to public transit. The proposed changes are meant to address both the decline in riders who have signaled they plan to cut back on commuting even as pandemic restrictions ease, and the economic impact on lower-income workers who rely on mass transit.”Hospitality Workers Struggle to Find Reliable, Affordable Ways Home (Washington City Paper 5.24.21)
“While District residents may be reconsidering staying out past when Metrorail closes because of high ride-sharing costs, the people who make up the hospitality industry are rethinking whether they want to continue working in bars and restaurants at all.”Biden administration moves toward making the pandemic work-from-home experiment permanent for many federal workers (Washington Post 5.24.21)
“As the Biden administration contemplates how to return the massive federal workforce to the office, government officials are moving to make a pandemic experiment permanent by allowing more employees than ever to work from home — a sweeping cultural change that would have been unthinkable a year ago.”Fairfax Connector could reduce or potentially eliminate fares with state grant (Reston Now 5.24.21)
“The Fairfax County Department of Transportation is one of 12 transit agencies in Virginia that have expressed interest in the Department of Rail and Public Transportation’s new Transit Ridership Incentive Program (TRIP), which will fund projects that increase connectivity in highly populated areas or remove barriers for low-income individuals by reducing or eliminating fares.”
Transit Champions of the Month
While we don’t have any favorites when it comes to jurisdictions or transit agencies, as we love them all equally, we do like to acknowledge credit where credits are due, and this month, we couldn’t just applaud one actor.
Montgomery County Council
Thank you to Councilmember Evan Glass and the entire Montgomery County Council for extending the Ride On “fare holiday” until September and extending the Seniors Ride Free program to all hours of operation when the “fare holiday” ends. Free fares can reduce barriers to opportunity, not to mention speeding up buses by reducing the time it takes passengers to board and pay. From the opening of the FLASH BRT to returning to pre-pandemic service levels to planning for expanded BRT routes to free fares, Montgomery County is really innovating the transit experience.
Mayor Bowser
Your FY 2022 budget includes $63M for bus priority programs, including Bus-Only Lanes and other initiatives to improve bus speeds and reliability on 50+ priority bus corridors throughout the city. Not to mention the $116M for the K Street Transitway, providing protected bus and bike lanes through downtown. Prioritizing bus service in, around, and through DC is not just good for the District, it’s good for the hundreds of thousands of residents who come into DC to work or play, especially as the region reopens.
Congresswoman Norton, Congressman Brown, Congressman Connelly and the Entire House Delegation
Through a strong showing of force by the entire region’s House delegation, the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee has included a 10-year reauthorization of funding for WMATA in the Invest in America Act (H.R. 2), which will steadily increase funding for the agency from $150 million to $200 million in FY2031. This funding is critical for WMATA and the nation’s recovery. We have a sneaking suspicion that the Senate delegation will see similar success when they finalize their transportation bill in the coming weeks, helping to ensure the region’s largest transit system has the funding it needs to adequately maintain and expand the system.
Thank you to our exceptional leaders working to champion transit around the region!
A Newfound Regionalism in the Nation’s Capital
Check out Accelerator for America’s new report, “Accelerating Transportation: A Tale of Five Cities,” which includes a case study of the MetroNow Coalition’s role in securing a combined $500 million in 2018 from DC, Maryland, and Virginia in additional dedicated capital funding for WMATA. Check out the report to read about MetroNow’s dedicated funding campaign, four more distinct campaigns to improve transportation in Cincinnati, Nashville, Phoenix, and Tampa, and lessons learned for leaders and advocates around the country.
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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 theMetroNow 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.