Poll: Would transit improvements in Alexandria make you more likely to take the bus?

A new Duke Street overhaul that aims to make the street more transit-friendly is starting its community outreach phrase.

The Duke Street in Motion plan aims to create a corridor of more reliable and frequent bus service along Duke Street between the King Street Metro station and Landmark Mall — where developers is in the early phases of redeveloping the site into a mixed-use corridor and hospital.

Other potential changes could include the addition of dedicated transit lanes along Duke Street and additional bus stations. Some local residents are concerned the project won’t tackle one of Duke Street’s biggest issues, but the city said a separate project going forward later this year should help with those.

The project is the latest in a series of Alexandria transportation projects that aim boost the reliability of the city’s bus network, from a West End Transitway to an overall reshaping of the city’s routes.

Part of the city’s approved budget for this year will also include making ridership on DASH buses free starting later this year, part of a move to increase ridership.

Has your ridership of DASH or Metrobus changed throughout the pandemic? Sound off in the comments below the poll.