An upcoming zoning change could both cut through some development red tape and make funding for transportation projects more accessible after years of noncompliance from developers.
The city is looking at reshaping Transportation Management Plans (TMP), one of the core pieces of any new development that’s remained basically unchanged since 1987. The goal of a TMP is to ensure new development promotes public transportation, walking, biking or rideshares rather than driving to work alone.
Alexandria is planning for a transit-oriented overhaul of Duke Street, and city staff connected to the project told an advisory group earlier this month that rumors about eminent domain being used for the project are inaccurate.
Yon Lambert, the director of the Department of Transportation and Environmental Services (T&ES), told the Duke Street in Motion Advisory Group that public concerns about eminent domain being invoked to acquire right of way for the Duke Street changes is at least premature if not unfounded.
City staff said changes to the DASH bus network over the last year have been a monumental success, but one with a high cost only likely to increase over time.
Over the last two years, Alexandria’s DASH bus system has gone through a series of dramatic changes, from a complete overhaul of the route system to changes to strollers and how the buses are boarded. But at a City Council retreat last week, city staff made it very clear the current balance of costs and revenue spells trouble in the near term.
Alexandria planning staff say there’s no preferred option for the Duke Street transitway, but the three choices offer varying impacts on drivers.
This month, city staff have conducted meetings in a public engagement process to talk about the project and gather input on the three options before a plan is finalized for City Council to consider. City staff will conduct a final open house to discuss the entire project on Wednesday, October 26, at 5:30 p.m. at Patrick Henry Recreation Center (4653 Taney Avenue).
A new bus rapid transit (BRT) system could connect Alexandria’s Mark Center with Tysons along the second-busiest corridor in Northern Virginia.
BRT systems are a way of potentially redesigning a roadway to favor fast and accessible bus travel, sometimes separating the bus into its own lane as in the Potomac Yard Transitway. The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) has scheduled a community discussion tomorrow to look at the planned Route 7 BRT system.
Alexandria City Public Schools is entering a tricky budget season.
As student enrollment and expenditure increases outpace revenue, ACPS faces a $12 million deficit in the run up to the fiscal year 2024 budget, according to a budget presentation to the School Board on Thursday, September 22.
One of the many frustrations facing Alexandria commuters during the Metro shutdown has been buses stuck in traffic next to dedicated bus lanes, but WMATA says adding shuttles would overload the existing transitway.
Among the many frustrations, which included long lines for shuttles, commuters were left wondering why their buses traveling up Route 1 were stuck in mixed traffic next to the mostly empty bus lanes.
The City of Alexandria is eyeing three basic concepts for a Duke Street transitway to help boost bus service along the arterial road.
The three options presented at a meeting of the Duke Street Transitway Advisory Group last month ranged from the buses in the center of the street to mixed in with traffic. The options are:
Like waiting for a Yellow Line train to Huntington, Alexandria’s Metrorail riders are bracing for a ride to disappointment.
Early next month, the first of two Metro shutdowns affecting Alexandria is scheduled to hit the city. All told, the city will have some level of suspended service until next spring.
The City of Alexandria could be rolling out a new kind of bus stop with some substantial improvements over the current one.
It’s no hoity-toity $1 million Arlington bus stop, but the new shelters have modifications designed to make them more durable.
A 27-year-old Washington, D.C. man is being held without bond after allegedly crashing his car into a Metro Bus in the Braddock area and ditching a “ghost gun.”
The incident occurred at around 4:45 p.m. on July 29 (Friday) in the area of N. Patrick and Montgomery Streets — just a few blocks from the Braddock Road Metro station. No one was injured in the crash.
