An estimated 18,000 Metrobus riders along the Georgia Avenue corridor can expect a much shorter commute this fall as Metro plans to unveil a new limited-stop express bus service by September.
The $1.6 million plan, which received initial approval by a Metro committee Thursday, is a joint venture between the transit agency and the D.C. Department of Transportation. The District is funding $1.1 million of the project.
“One of our top goals … is to provide residents and commuters with a range of traveling options,” said Michelle Pourciau, acting director of DDOT. “Rapid busservice will not only provide customers with additional transit options when traveling to destinations along the corridor, it will also get them to their destinations faster, with a reduced travel time.
The new service, Route 79, will complement the existing Metrobus routes 70 and 71, two of the top lines in the system for ridership, officials said.
The new route 79 will operate every 10 minutes in both directions between the Silver Spring and Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter Metrorail stations during morning and afternoon weekday rush hour periods using new, low-floor, clean-fuel Compressed Natural Gas buses. The route will serve 15 Metrobus stops in each direction with a stop spacing of one-half mile.
Metro officials estimate travel times will be reduced by up to 25 percent compared with the current Route 70 and 71 service. The average commute time between the two locations is currently about one hour, officials said.
“We welcome this new service for residents along Georgia Avenue,” said D.C. Council and Metro Board member Jim Graham. “It will make a real difference.”
Metro officials expect 2,500 daily riders will switch to the faster line. The regular $1.25 fare will apply to the route.
