Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Three stations will be closed along the Green Line in Prince George's County the weekend of May 17-19, according to WMATA.
If you were hoping to avoid some of the traffic along Route 1 this weekend, when thousands of University of Maryland students and their families will be on campus for commencement, take note that three Metro stations will be closed along the Green Line. According to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, College Park metro station will be closed this weekend along with the Greenbelt and Prince George's Plaza stations while crews perform track upgrades—"including tie and insulator renewal, interlocking maintenance and work associated with construction of a new test track for 7000-series railcars." The stations will be closed from 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday and will reopen Monday morning. However, if you must use metro to …
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Metro's map is set to see big changes.
The Maryland Transit Authority has scheduled a series of open houses to update citizens on the status of the much-discussed Purple Line, the Washington Post reports. The Purple Line is a proposed light rail link between the Red, Orange and Green Lines of the Washington Metro. Once completed, it's set to 16 miles between Bethesda and New Carrollton. Among the areas of concern is how construction of the line will be funded. In order for Maryland to receive federal funding, the state must demonstrate that it can pay its half ($2.15 billion) of the cost. The state's gas tax and various public-private partnerships have been discussed as possible sources of funding, but no decisions have been made. Learn more about the current state of the …
Thursday, May 9, 2013
The meeting, hosted by M-NCPPC, will start at 7 p.m.
Want to know what area transit will look like in the future? Have feedback on College Park's metro station or area transit now? Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission will be hosting a meeting tonight to discuss an update on the 1997 College Park-Riverdale Transit District Development Plan. The planning staff will be available to hear residents' ideas and give updates on the future plans for area transit. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. to 9 p.m in College Park City Hall at 4500 Knox Road, College Park, MD 20740.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Metrorail to go to OT if Caps do.
Metrorail, which has a station near Verizon Center (Gallery Place/Chinatown), will stay open an hour later if any Washington Capitals hockey playoff games run late or go into overtime, according to The Washington Post. The Capitals open their quest for the Stanley Cup against the New York Rangers on at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Last year, Game 3 of the Capitals’ playoff series against the Rangers went to triple overtime, ending well after midnight—when Metro typically closes on weekdays. The Post reports that an announcement will be made inside the Verizon Center by 11 p.m. Metro riders will be able to exit the transit system at any station, but will only be able to enter at Gallery Place (all entrances), Judiciary Square (only on F Street) and …
Friday, March 29, 2013
The work will cause a 10 minute delay between the Greenbelt and College Park stations.
Although no track work is scheduled for this weekend on the Green Line, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority said that starting Sunday night there would be late night repairs that could affect some commuters in Prince George's County. According to WMATA's website, Metro riders should expect a 10-minute delay between the Greenbelt and College Park stations starting at 10 p.m. until closing every day Sunday, March 31 to Thursday, April 4. Tell Us: Does weekend track work affect your plans?
Friday, March 8, 2013
New Metrorail line will connect Largo with Reston when opened later this year.
The Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority will be hosting three open houses across the DC region, including one in Prince George's County, next week to share information about Metrorail's soon-to-open Silver Line. When it opens later this year, the new Metro line will initially provide commuters with a transfer-free link between Largo Town Center Metro station and the new Wiehle Reston East Metro station in Reston Va. Phase 1 of the Silver Line using 11 miles of new track to reach up Virginia's Route 267 corridor, passing through Tysons Corner before reaching Reston. Eventually, the line will go all the way to Dulles Airport. Once completed, College Park residents will be able to make it to Dulles Airport, a trip which can take hours…
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Metro is aiming to give two hours advance warning should bus service be suspended.
Metro is operating on a normal weekday schedule Wednesday as the Washington region braces for a potentially major snowstorm. MetroAccess service and certain Metro commuter bus routes have been canceled. Metrorail customers are advised to plan extra time for their commute. “You may encounter minor delays due to snow and ice clearing efforts, as equipment that removes snow and ice from the third rail operates between regularly scheduled trains,” Wmata said in a statement. Some Metrobus routes may be detoured and bus service may be reduced or suspended as conditions deteriorate, according to Metro. Metro is aiming to notify Metrobus riders two hours in advance if service is suspended. Metro is advising checking your route online ahead of time…
Thursday, February 7, 2013
BusTrack DC went live on the Apple app store at 9 a.m. Wednesday.
DC resident Jason Rosenbaum created his own metro bus tracking app after the Nextbus app stopped working in December. BusTrack DC is now available for free download in the Apple iTunes store. "I was looking for a replacement for the app that stopped working," Rosenbaum told Patch. "I built this because I use this app every day," he added. The new app relies on a public feed of GPS data that WMATA publishes. It acts as an interface to allow your phone to use that data in a meaningful way. Rosenbaum described the key features in an email: The app is free and open source, so other programmers can help create copies for Android and Blackberry and improve on what Rosenbaum created. "I’m not an app developer. This is my first app," he said. "I …
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Metro has awarded a $151.1 million contract to upgrade or replace 128 escalators in its system, The Washington Post reports.
Metro has awarded a $151.1 million contract to escalator company KONE Corp. to upgrade or replace 128 of its escalators, The Washington Post reports. Prince George's stations on the list for escalator improvements under the contract include College Park, Branch Avenue, Capitol Heights and Naylor Road Escalators that break down during busy rush periods have long been a source of frustration for Metro riders. In College Park, one escalators is slated to be replaced in 2014. Community leaders lauded the pending project following outcry about the escalators’ unreliability, Patch reported. According to The Post report, 88 escalator units will be complete by 2018, and the rest will be done in 2019 and 2020. Sarles told The Post the repairs would…
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Metro riders won't see a break in weekend track work delays anytime soon, The Washington Examiner reports.
Intensive track work on the Metrorail system could last four more years, The Washington Examiner reports. Metro is working to complete an "extensive backlog" of work, said Metro General Manager Richard Sarles, according to the report. "In looking at the forecast of work we have to do to just get us back to where we were 10 years ago, it will take us about another four more years of that intense work," Sarles said Monday on the Kojo Nnamdi radio show on WAMU, The Examiner reported. The track work often leads to delays during off-peak periods as Metro single-tracks trains through work zones and occasionally closes stations on weekends. Read the full story at The Washington Examiner.
Pachacutec
2:31 pm on Thursday, May 16, 2013
OK, Metro has to do their work, but really - who at Metro figured that closing the College Park station on the same weekend that commencement activities were due to take place was a good idea? I mean, it's not like this doesn't happen every year around the same time, right? Nobody at Metro - nobody? - said "hey, maybe we should check on this" before scheduling the work? Unbelievable. Or maybe … more ›