Metro seeks public input on bus service

By: Cheryl Chumley | Inside NoVA
Published: August 29, 2010

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. - Metro is holding five public meetings between Aug. 31 and Sept. 23 as part of an in-depth study to improve service along four lines.

Called the Service Evaluation Study, the review actually began in June and will run through the end of 2010.

“The purpose of the study,” Metro reports in a written release, “is to review the productivity, travel time and reliability of certain bus lines and make recommendations for more efficient bus operations. Information from the public, bus operators and planners is being used to examine ridership, trip frequency, travel time, reliability and other quality-of-service indicators for [four] bus lines.”

The bus lines are: B2, Bladensburg Road-Anacostia; D12, D13 and D14, Oxen Hill-Suitland; 23A, 23C, McLean-Crystal City; and 25A, 25C, 25D, Ballston-Bradlee-Pentagon.

To date, eight Metrobus lines have already been studies. After the public input segment is completed, Metro hosts a series of public meetings to “further identify issues and possible improvements,” the agency reports. Following interviews with drivers and supervisors, Metro will then analyze the routes and frequency of runs, study traffic operations and the number of missed or late trips, look at the roadway conditions and review the current bus stop amenities.

In part two of the study process, Metro will actually suggest new routes and stops, and present long-term ridership forecasts that will then be used to develop a long-range strategy for additional routes, fare increases and passenger boarding policies.

Those who want to participate in the current public meeting process may attend an Aug. 31 session at Oxon Public Library in Maryland; a Sept. 1 session at Eliot-Hine Middles School in Washington; a Sept. 21, session at Shirlington Library in Arlington; a Sept. 22, session at Franklin Sherman Elementary in McLean; or a Sept. 23, session at the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association Building in Arlington.

All meetings run from 6:30 through 8:30 p.m.