If Metrobus service is cut back, as WMATA has threatened, several Alexandria lines could be on the chopping block.
General Manager Randy Clarke warned that bus service cuts and job cuts are imminent if the transit agency doesn’t close its $750 million budget gap, adding that he said it’s time for a regional tax to permanently fund WMATA.
What makes a good bus stop?
Though Alexandrians probably shouldn’t expect Arlington’s $1 million bus stop, the city is looking for feedback on what kind of amenities should be included on the new West End Transitway.
Currently, in Alexandria, drivers have to yield to pedestrians, but a new state-level change has given Alexandria the authority to tell drivers to stop.
According to a memo from Hillary Orr, deputy director of Transportation and Environmental Services, a change to City Code requiring drivers to stop for pedestrians crossing the street is heading to City Council in December.
There’s not a speck of snow on the forecast, but Alexandrians might see snow plows making the rounds across the city today.
The city’s Department of Transportation & Environmental Services (T&ES) is doing a practice run today for potential wintery conditions.
The Virginia Dept. of Transportation is mulling expanding the Express Lanes system to a section of I-495 from Fairfax County across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and into Maryland.
The city of Alexandria, however, is skeptical of the current plans, as many of the alternatives come down to adding traffic lanes. Staff say these changes could hamper attempts to get people out of their cars and onto public transportation, including future transit across the bridge.
The Alexandria Planning Commission unanimously endorsed a sweeping overhaul of the city’s zoning ordinances on Wednesday night, giving City Council the green light to vote on it later this month.
There were more than 100 attendees and 51 speakers at the Planning Commission’s five hour public hearing, which ran after midnight. The speakers were a mixed bunch, with about half supporting the legislation and the other half opposing it.
Improvements to the pedestrian experience at Duke Street and Dulany Street aren’t just surface level: the entrances to the nearby Duke Street Tunnel are also getting a minor makeover.
The Carlyle Council said construction is ongoing today (Tuesday) on new gates for the tunnel.
As Metro stares down potentially devastating cuts, City Council member Sarah Bagley said the Virginia Railway Express (VRE) is grappling with similar funding struggles as it tries to redefine itself.
Bagley, who serves on the VRE Operations Board, said the rail service’s new plans to add weekend service represent an effort to broaden the ridership beyond commuter traffic.
A particularly bleak budget prediction is forcing the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) to consider plans involving longer train waits, Metro station closures, and eliminating many bus routes, the Washington Post reported.
WMATA’s worst-case scenario plans, built on an assumption of no increase in funding from D.C., Maryland and Virginia, include layoffs of nearly 5,000 employees, closing 20-25 rail stations either permanently or on weekends, and closing stations at 9 p.m. WMATA said all but 37 Metrobus routes are also on the cutting board.
While the City of Alexandria is eyeing major changes to Duke Street west of Old Town, one change could be coming to the street right as it passes the Carlyle neighborhood.
The city could be swapping out one of the left turn lanes at the intersection with Dulany Street with a pedestrian refuge.
With the reopening of the Dash Transit Center at the future WestEnd development years away, Alexandria is looking to ask Richmond to help pay for $800,000 in temporary bus bays, benches and real-time signage.
