WASHINGTON — People who typically ride Metro Rail to work have myriad options on Wednesday. Metro will be shutdown until 5 a.m. Thursday for emergency inspections — spurred by Monday’s tunnel fire.
High Occupancy Vehicle restrictions remain in effect in both Maryland and Virginia.
Here are your options for Wednesday:
WMATA
Metrobus will operate as normal but additional buses will be provided for D.C. Public Schools. D.C. Public Schools will be open Wednesday however students who are late or absent will be excused.
Parking will be free on Wednesday at all Metro-owned lots and garages for those taking the bus or carpooling.
Uber/Lyft
Uber D.C. has announced its plans for Wednesday service, including a surge-pricing cap of 3.9 times the regular rate. UberPool is also being extended to the entire metropolitan area; pool service allows users to share rides over common routes and split the cost.
For new customers, Uber is offering $25 off a rider’s first trip by using the promo code METRODC.
LYFT is offering $20 off for new riders, using METRO HELP as the promo code.
D.C. transit
D.C.’s Department of Transportation says alternatives within the District include the D.C. Streetcar and the D.C. Circulator, which is working to increase capacity on three routes that serve Union Station.
The D.C. Taxicab Commission is authorizing the “Emergency Expansion of Shared Riding” on Wednesday, allowing multiple passengers to be picked up together and dropped off at different locations. It will allow rides to be taken from any of the 57 taxicab stands, and within one mile of any Metrorail station.
DDOT Deputy Director Greer Gillis tells WTOP they will open their traffic management center at 4 a.m. Wednesday to monitor traffic cameras around the city. If congestion gets bad at a particular location, the timing of traffic signals will be adjusted to improve the flow.
Other changes planned in D.C.:
- Starting at 4 a.m., traffic control officers will be positioned at key locations;
- All construction activity will be suspended during morning and evening rush hours;
- All residential street sweeping will be called off for the day.
Capital Bikeshare
Capital Bikeshare will offer free 24-hour memberships at all of its stations Wednesday, however usage fees will apply for trips that last longer than 30 minutes. Bikeshare will also offer corral services at three locations from 8 to 11 a.m. to ensure open docks to park the bikes:
- 21st and I Street Northwest in Foggy Bottom
- 13th Street and New York Avenue near Metro Center and Franklin Square
- Columbus Circle next to Union Station
Maryland regional transit
MARC train service includes extra cars being added to three morning (870, 876, 880) and two evening (877, 856) trains on the Brunswick Line.
Camden Line trains 849 and 956 also will have extra cars. All Camden Line trains will stop at Greenbelt on Wednesday.
On the Penn Line, riders can bring bicycles on the 511 and 413 morning trains and the 634 and 742 evening trains.
Montgomery County
Montgomery County’s RideOn will run regular weekday service Wednesday, but additional buses will be provided where possible.
Prince George’s County
In Prince George’s County, TheBus will run operate on a normal schedule.
Northern Virginia
Arlington Transit (ART) will increase bus service Wednesday on Routes 41, 42, 43 and 45. Specifically, ART intends to beef up bus service between Ballston Mall and Courthouse to connect with the Metrobus bridge from Courthouse to the District. Some mid-day busses will have more frequent service. Peak service on the ART 45 line will end 60 minutes later in the morning and begin 60 minutes earlier in the afternoon. Find full details at arlingtontransit.com.
Commuter Connections
Loudoun County Transit has canceled its Metro-Connection and some local bus services. However, all commuter bus services into Rosslyn, the Pentagon, Crystal City and D.C. will operate on a regular schedule.
The following commuter bus routes to and from Wiehle-Reston East Station have been canceled: 901/902, 925/926, 921/922, 923/924, and 990/991/992/993.
Commuters can also visit CommuterConnections.org for information about carpooling, vanpooling, commuter rail and teleworking.
DASH
The Alexandria Transit Company (DASH) will operate off-peak service from the Braddock Road Metro Station to the Pentagon Metro Station on the DASH AT3 and AT4 routes, in 30-minute intervals, in addition to its regular weekday service. The DASH AT3 off-peak service will start from Braddock Road Metro at 9:30 a.m.; the DASH AT4 will start from Braddock Metro at 9:45 a.m.
This service will be operating to provide an off-peak connection to Metrobuses at the Pentagon Metro Station that continue into D.C.
Fairfax County Connector
Fairfax County Connector bus service will be operating on a regular schedule, with limited emergency shuttle service to and from the Pentagon.
OmniRide and Metro Direct
People coming up the Interstate 95 corridor into Northern Virginia and D.C. who use the OmniRide commuter bus or Metro Direct buses to connect with Metrorail stations should consider riding an OmniRide bus with direct service or transferring to a different OmniRide route.
Virginia Railway Express (VRE)
Virginia Railway Express plans to operate normal service Wednesday and Thursday. No additional trains will be added.
Parking Panda
Parking Panda says it has seen an uptick in parking reservations, with some garages selling out.
WTOP’s Amanda Iacone, Tiffany Arnold, Ginger Whitaker, Dick Uliano, Neal Augenstein, Michelle Basch and Colleen Kelleher contributed to this report.
