News

Regional transportation news stories compiled by CommuterPage.com. Subscribe to a daily email with the most recent news, recent ACCS blog posts, and upcoming events. Every CommuterPage.com News email includes an "unsubscribe" link.

Metro touting big changes to real-time data feed

The update will allow customers to see detailed transit schedules, live departure and arrival times, and the current location of buses and trains in a wider selection of apps, Metro says. Read more...
Elliot C. Williams, January 24, 2020, dcist

DDOT installing corrals for all those errantly parked dockless scooters

The corrals will be installed over the next several months, and they’ll be placed across all eight wards, per DDOT. Read more...
Natalie Delgadillo, January 24, 2020, dcist

Md. lawmaker proposes tax credit for those with long commutes, no access to transit

A Maryland lawmaker has introduced a plan aimed at appeasing commuters forced to drive to work because they lack access to public transit. Read more...
John Domen, January 23, 2020, WTOP

Capital Bikeshare trips slide as rides on dockless scooters, bikes grow

Thousands of people appear to be using shared dockless scooters or bikes in place of Capital Bikeshare, posing a challenge to the publicly-owned system that remains popular with regular users. Read more...
Max Smith, January 23, 2020, WTOP

D.C. has some of the longest commutes in the country

While the average American commutes about 27 minutes (a record high), the average D.C.-area worker spends 43 minutes getting to and from work. Read more...
Eliza Berkon, January 24, 2020, WAMU

House committee members decry FCC plans to open vehicle safety-restricted radio frequency for general use

The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure recently denounced a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) plan to open more than half of the 5.9 GHz spectrum band to unlicensed operations. Read more...
Chris Galford, January 24, 2020, Transportation Today

Metro used outdated D.C. emergency number for years

Metro was consistently calling an outdated number for 911 in D.C., and at peak times, emergency calls from the transit agency were put on hold. Read more...
Megan Cloherty, January 23, 2020, WTOP

On-time delivery of new Acela train sets at risk, Amtrak inspector general says

Amtrak’s plan to roll out new high-speed trains on its Acela line in early 2021 may be derailed, according to an audit by the railroad’s inspector general, citing delays in the delivery of the trains, testing and training. Read more...
Luz Lazo, January 23, 2020, Washington Post

Self-driving Ubers arrive in DC, but they won't pick up rides

Uber is bringing self-driving cars to the streets of D.C. starting Friday, but the vehicles won’t be driving themselves, and they won’t be picking up passengers either. Read more...
Michelle Basch, January 23, 2020, WTOP

Traffic safety group ranks D.C., Md., Va. efforts to prevent deadly crashes

At a news conference Thursday, the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety released its annual report evaluating progress being made by 50 states and D.C. in implementing 16 laws related to child passenger safety, teen drivers, impaired and distracted drivers, motorcycle helmet requirements, and primary enforcement of front and rear seat belt laws. Read more...
Kristi King, January 23, 2020, WTOP

New Acela fleet to enter service in 2021

New Amtrak state-of-the-art, high-speed trainsets are scheduled to enter service on the Northeast Corridor (NEC) in 2021, as Amtrak and Alstom have partnered to introduce the new Acela fleet. Read more...
Andrew Corselli, January 23, 2020, Railway Age

In Montgomery County, students are taking advantage of free public buses

Kids are riding public buses more in Montgomery County after officials made Ride On and Metrobus service free at all times of the day for people under 18. Read more...
Margaret Barthel, January 23, 2020, WAMU

Caucus of 48 Md. legislators will push transit funding, pedestrian safety, more

A new caucus of legislators plans to work together this year to advance priorities around funding more and better transit, ensuring oversight of highway widening projects, and much more. Read more...
Alex Holt, January 23, 2020, GGWash

Silver Spring will get a bunch of bike projects

Silver Spring has seen a big expansion of bike lanes in recent years, but it may only be the beginning. Read more...
Dan Reed, January 23, 2020, GGWash

Prince George's Co. lawmakers want more speed camera exceptions

This year, the county delegation has put forth bills that would allow for speed cameras along Church Road between Old Stage Road and Dunwood Valley Drive in Bowie. Read more...
John Domen, January 23, 2020, WTOP

Why the streetcar from Union Station to Georgetown died (mostly)

The once-proposed DC Streetcar extension in dedicated lanes from Union Station to Georgetown didn’t just die. It basically died years ago. Read more...
David Alpert, January 23, 2020, GGWash

Air bag woes force Honda, Toyota to recall 6M vehicles

Two different air bag glitches have forced Toyota and Honda to recall over 6 million vehicles worldwide, and both problems present different dangers to motorists. Read more...
Tom Kriser, January 23, 2020, Frederick News-Post

Man killed after he was hit by train in Germantown

A man was struck and killed by a CSX freight train in Germantown Wednesday evening, according to Montgomery County Fire & Rescue. Read more...
Dan Schere, January 22, 2020, Bethesda Magazine

Electric buses in Md. could make Va., D.C. go green, too

Montgomery County says electric RideOn buses will start running routes in Takoma Park and Silver Spring in March. Read more...
Pete Muntean, January 22, 2020, WUSA9

DC Streetcar to Georgetown is dead

Plans to extend the DC Streetcar to Georgetown have been effectively scrapped. Read more...
Max Smith, January 22, 2020, WTOP

Md. Transit Caucus unveils package of bills designed to offer transportation options

“Our state functions better for every single person — drivers included — when people have safe, reliable and efficient transit options” said Del. Brooke Lierman, whose district is in Baltimore City, and who is one of the leaders of the Maryland Transit Caucus. Read more...
Kate Ryan, January 22, 2020, WTOP

Bill aims to make Md. roads safer for pedestrians

One of the bills getting support from a group of Maryland lawmakers in Annapolis would increase minimum fines for traffic offenses involving pedestrians, but it’s not enough for proponents who want a broader approach to making roads safer. Read more...
Kate Ryan, January 23, 2020, WTOP

Amtrak ends policy resulting in $25,000 bill for activists

Amtrak announced Wednesday the suspension of a pricing policy that resulted in a $25,000 travel bill for a group of wheelchair-bound activists heading to Bloomington-Normal, Illinois from Chicago for a conference and rally on disability rights. Read more...
January 22, 2020, WTOP

New bill would repeal Montgomery's mandatory bike registration

After a viral video and a social media campaign by state Del. David Moon, five Montgomery County council members proposed changes to a mandatory bike registration law. Read more...
Kate Masters, January 21, 2020, Bethesda Magazine

Small business owners along Purple Line worry they won't reap light rail's benefits

“There’s a general anxiety that this will be the project that forces them to shut down,” says Javier Rivas, manager of the Resilient Commercial Corridors program at the Latino Economic Development Center. Read more...
Sasha-Ann Simons, January 21, 2020, dcist

This app pays you for commuting. Here's what happened when I used it.

For the last few months, I’ve been getting paid to commute to work. Read more...
Jon Steingart, January 21, 2020, GGWash

Potential Metrobus route cuts concern D.C. communities (video)

People living in parts of Northwest D.C. say they feel blindsided by Metro because some of their bus lines may be cut to save money. Read more...
January 20, 2020, NBC Washington

Under new bill, more Md. counties would gain veto power over toll roads, bridges

A new bill introduced in Maryland’s General Assembly would require the state to get the “express consent” from any county where it wants to build a toll road or bridge, which has been the case in the nine counties on the Eastern Shore since the late 1970s. Read more...
Martin Austermuhle, January 20, 2020, WAMU

Criticism mounts over proposed parking in Union Station's $8 billion overhaul

It may be years, if not a decade, before construction begins on a proposed multibillion-dollar redevelopment of Union Station. But debate has already been heating up over a parking garage planned as part of the overhaul. Read more...
Luz Lazo, January 18, 2020, Washington Post

Metro moving forward with naming rights deals

Metro plans to reach a deal to sell naming rights or similar sponsorships, despite a false start in November that happened when the transit agency failed to communicate with key officials. Read more...
Max Smith, January 18, 2020, WTOP

New electric Capital Bikeshare bikes may be semi-dockless

Electric bikes are returning to Capital Bikeshare sometime early this year, and they will likely include the option to leave them anywhere riders choose rather than only at a dock. Read more...
Max Smith, January 19, 2020, WTOP

Bankrupt contractor blamed for delayed escalator canopy at Dupont Circle station

A spokesperson for Metro said the project encountered a "non-Metro delay" when the company contracted to provide glass panels declared bankruptcy. Read more...
Heather Graf, January 17, 2020, WJLA

Metro puts 22 bus lines up for 'elimination.' Will your route be cut?

Metrobus riders are telling the transit agency not to cut or change dozens of bus lines in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia by this summer. But WMATA says it needs to save money by getting rid of routes it calls inefficient. Read more...
Pete Muntean, Jordan Fischer, January 17, 2020, WUSA9

D.C. rule overhaul could cut some regulations for taxis

The regulation changes set for public comment in coming months would take the taxi rules from about 400 pages to about 200 pages, and would lift requirements that cabdrivers get medical physicals, meet dress codes and get rid of cars that are over eight years old. Read more...
Max Smith, January 17, 2020, WTOP

Montgomery County leaders plan road safety town hall after recent pedestrian deaths

Despite Montgomery County, Maryland, being one of the first county governments in the U.S. to create a “Vision Zero” plan, a recent spate of pedestrian deaths involved two just this week on Rockville Pike. Read more...
Kristi King, January 17, 2020, WTOP

WMATA Inspector General finds $87,000 worth of lapel pins in storage closet

A new report from the WMATA Office of the Inspector General found $87,000 worth of unclaimed lapel pins in a Metro storeroom, marking the second unfavorable report on the transit agency this week. Read more...
Colleen Grablick, January 17, 2020, dcist

Metro signs digital ad contract it says will be worth hundreds of millions of dollars

Metro has signed a contract with a digital advertising network that the transit authority says will add hundreds of new LCD screens across the system and pay the agency at least $325 million over the next decade. Read more...
Justin George, January 17, 2020, Washington Post

Purple Line is chugging along

Now, an eastern portion of the 16-mile line, from New Carrollton to College Park, is expected to open in late 2022. The other section, from College Park to Bethesda, won’t be carrying riders until June 2023, according to state officials. Read more...
Margaret Barthel, January 17, 2020, WAMU

CDC to begin airport screenings for cases of new Chinese virus

Public health officials are implementing enhanced health screenings to detect ill travelers traveling to the United States from Wuhan, China, in response to an outbreak of a new type of coronavirus. Read more...
Nathaniel Weixel, January 17, 2020, The Hill

Funding to build trail tunnel at Bethesda Purple Line station dropped from county budget proposal

Montgomery Executive Marc Elrich (D) has included no money in his capital budget proposal for the county’s long-promised plan to build a tunnel to carry cyclists and runners on the Capital Crescent Trail beneath busy Wisconsin Avenue in downtown Bethesda. Read more...
Katherine Shaver, January 17, 2020, Washington Post

MLK Day of Service trail cleanups

Join in a Day of Service for Martin Luther King Jr Day on the Capital Trails Network. Read more...
Ursula Sandstrom, January 16, 2020, WABA

Union votes overwhelmingly for worker contract, ending strike at Metrobus garage

Members of a transit union have approved a worker contract at a Metrobus garage in Northern Virginia, formally ending an 82-day strike and setting the stage for the return of regular service on several bus routes that had been canceled by the work stoppage. Read more...
Justin George, January 16, 2020, Washington Post

Metro board weighs fare increases, service changes in proposed budget

The Metro Board met today to review the transit agency’s proposed 2021 budget, which includes possible fare hikes and bus and train service changes. Read more...
Margaret Barthel, January 16, 2020, WAMU

Greenbelt mayor: Maglev train is all pain and no gain, except for rich people

The high-speed project is in the final stages of its approval process. Read more...
Mke Valerio, January 16, 2020, WUSA9

Metro ridership continues to rise, statistics show

The transit authority’s latest data shows steady passenger growth after years of decline. Read more...
Justin George, January 15, 2020, Washington Post

Union Station future plans have too much parking, leaders say

A number of local leaders including DC Councilmember Charles Allen and the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission say that the station is on track to have too much parking, a move which would stifle its function and role in a larger city. Read more...
George Kevin Jordan, January 15, 2020, GGWash

Police investigating death on Yellow Line train

Police are conducting a death investigation after a person died on a Yellow Line train Tuesday evening. Read more...
January 14, 2020, ARLnow

Metro details proposed fare hikes, bus cuts

Metro is providing additional detail and estimates on its plans to cut or reduce service on more than 40 bus lines and to eliminate some early-morning weekday trains, but add some bus service on other lines and restore some late-night hours cut a few years ago. Read more...
Max Smith, January 14, 2020, WTOP

D.C. will extend shared moped permit program through fall 2020

The District Department of Transportation on Tuesday announced that it’s extending the pilot program for what it calls “motor-driven cycles,” otherwise known as mopeds. Read more...
Natalie Delgadillo, January 14, 2020, dcist

Former cleaning contractor blames Metro for 'unsafe and filthy' conditions

She said problems arose because Metro didn’t provide effective supervision for the company’s staff. Read more...
Margaret Barthel, January 14, 2020, WAMU

Audit finds contractor did not provide daily cleaning services to Metro parking garages

Overall, WMATA spent more than $2.2 million for cleaning services that weren’t performed over a two-year period, according to the audit. Read more...
Josh Rosenthal, January 13, 2020, Fox5

Va. to object to some Metro fare hikes, service cuts

Virginia is joining Maryland to push back on proposed Metro fare increases for long-distance commuters. Read more...
Max Smith, January 13, 2020, WTOP

Metro station garages are 'unsafe and filthy'

WMATA’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) studied garage conditions over a 20-month period, and the results aren’t pretty. Read more...
January 13, 2020, WAMU

Electric scooters and urban space

They’re cheap. They’re easy. And for many -- they are in the way. In the past two years, electric scooters have caught many cities off-balance. Read more...
January 13, 2020, WAMU