BRADDOCKROAD

Rocket Bar
WHEN THE TOURISTS come — and if you've missed them, you've probably been living in the bunker underneath the Washington Monument. Oops. We've said too much — D.C.'s smugness shows its ugly face.

"Look at all these stupid people from Kansas," we say, waving our arms dramatically. "What are they doing standing on our Metro escalator? And on the wrong side! Morons!"

OK, hotshot. Time to prove how smart you are. Or rather, how good you are at taking a random collection of seven letters and configuring it into an awe-inspiring single word. Or at buying up fake properties using fake money and represented by a tiny dog.

It's time for board games.

Continue Reading "For the Love of the Game: Drinks and Board Games Galore" »

Map courtesy WMATA
EVENING COMMUTERS on the Blue and Yellow lines faced big delays in Alexandria and Fairfax County yesterday as Metro investigated reports of a person being hit by a Blue Line train at the Van Dorn Street station around 5:45 p.m. A search for the victim lasted for about two hours but personnel could not locate the individual. Metro Transit Police asks that any witnesses to the alleged incident call 202-962-1792.

Blue Line trains heading to and from the Franconia-Springfield terminal had to share the same track between the Braddock Road station in Alexandria and Franconia-Springfield in Fairfax County — a stretch that boasts Metrorail's longest sections of track between stations. Because the single-track zone started at the Braddock Road and included the King Street station, Yellow Line trains were also impacted by the Blue Line delays.

Metro set up shuttle buses to ferry passengers around the mess. The situation was resolved by 7:45 p.m.

Map courtesy WMATA

METRORAIL RIDERS who head through Alexandria might someday have to stop at two new stations being proposed for the Blue and Yellow lines at Potomac Yard and in the Eisenhower Avenue corridor. The city council has given approval to a plan that would have developers near the proposed sites help finance the construction of the two stations, as the Examiner reported on Monday:

City Council members have instructed staff to add language to Alexandria's draft master transportation plan that would bar the city from approving development ... unless the development clearly contributes to the funding and building of a Metro station.
Blue and Yellow Line trains run through stretches of track where stations can be miles apart, as is the case with Eisenhower Avenue, King Street, Braddock Road and Reagan National Airport.

But don't expect stations to materialize in the near term: They cost about $100 million a piece and would take years of planning to make a reality.

Continue Reading "On Alexandria's Wish List: 2 New Metro Stations" »

Rendering courtesy Potomac Yard Development LLCPART OF THE NEW MONROE AVENUE bridge for Route 1 in Alexandria is now open to traffic, and the shift means two Metrobus routes will be changing with it.

The two routes in question, 9E and 10E, will now use the new bridge and service the Braddock Road Metrorail station as their southern terminus. Previously, both routes terminated at Monroe and Leslie streets in Alexandria's Del Ray neighborhood. The northern terminus for both routes will remain at the Pentagon station.

» "Metrobus Routes 9E and 10E Extended to Braddock Road Metrorail Station" [WMATA]
» EARLIER: "Route 1 to Shift to New Alexandria Bridge" [Free Ride/Express]

Rendering courtesy Potomac Yard Development LLC

IF YOU'RE PLANNING to travel on Route 1 between Crystal City and Old Town Alexandria this weekend, prepare for a traffic shift at the Monroe Avenue bridge construction site. The roadway, which makes two tight turns while crossing over railroad tracks, is being realigned as part of a redevelopment project at Potomac Yards.

Rendering courtesy Potomac Yard Development LLCAt mid-day on Sunday, a new three-lane bridge will open at the Monroe Avenue site. The structure's completion will allow the demolition of the old bridge and the construction of a second span. To accommodate rush-hour traffic, the center lane on the new bridge will be reversible during the second phase of construction, the bulk of which is supposed to be completed by July.

For complete details, click here.

» "First Span of New Route 1 Monroe Avenue Bridge Set to Open" [City of Alexandria]

Rendering courtesy Potomac Yard Development LLC

AFTER ANOTHER SERIES of smoky eruptions shut down another batch of Metrorail stations during Monday's evening rush, Metro officials are considering the possibility that the incidents could have been caused intentionally.

"This is not normal," Metro General Manager John Catoe said, according to The Post's Lena H. Sun and Martin Weil. "This is highly, highly irregular."

Report Sun and Weil:

Asked whether he thought the incidents might be intentional, [Catoe] said: "Could it be something else [other than an accident]? Everything now is suspicious."

A spokesman for the D.C. fire department said that the department was "very concerned" about the large number of incidents in a brief period and that the department would try to assist Metro in determining whether they were more than accidental.

Monday's delays began at around 7 p.m. after several trains lost power between the Pentagon City and Braddock Road stations on the Blue and Yellow lines, according to a Metro press statement. A track fire was reported at the Pentagon City station. A fire was also reported at the U Street-Cardozo station, which shut down both that station and the stop at Columbia Heights from 7:20 p.m. to 8:40 p.m., the statement said.

Shuttle buses ferried passengers between L'Enfant Plaza and Huntington and also between the Georgia Avenue-Petworth and Shaw-Howard University stations.

Continue Reading "Smoke, Fire Cause Another Messy Metro Commute" »

SEVERAL METRORAIL LINES WILL experience delays this weekend for scheduled track maintenance. Only the Orange Line will escape scheduled delays. Trains will run share a single track in the following locations:

» RED LINE: Expect a 15-minute delay when traveling between the Grosvenor and Medical Center stations. (7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday and Sunday)

» BLUE AND YELLOW LINES: There will be delays of up to 30 minutes between the Van Dorn Street, King Street and Braddock Road stations. (10 p.m. Friday to 10 a.m. Saturday; 10 p.m. Saturday to 10 a.m., Sunday)

» GREEN LINE: Give yourself an extra 15 minutes when traveling between the Greenbelt and College Park stations from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.

» "Weekend Track Maintenance and Rail Car Testing to Affect Metro's Red, Blue, Yellow and Green Lines" [WMATA]

UNLESS THERE ARE DELAYS or track work on the Blue and Yellow lines, travel between the Braddock Road station in Alexandria and the Pentagon City or Crystal City areas of Arlington County is usually pretty speedy. But if you're relying on public transit to get to points in between, like the Potomac Yard shopping center off Route 1, it's not so easy.

Image courtesy CC/PYTIPAlthough there had once been plans to construct a new Metrorail station at the big-box shopping complex, the idea hasn't been revisited in years. But one effort to create better transit access along the Route 1 corridor between Alexandria and Arlington is on a short list for government attention.

On Monday, the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority released a list of transit projects that would be funded through a set of proposed taxes and fees that would raise about $300 million for projects that otherwise wouldn't be funded by the state Department of Transportation, The Post's Eric M. Weiss reports. The NVTA is scheduled to meet July 12 to vote on whether to implement the proposal.

Like other projects on the list, a bus rapid transit link through Crystal City and Potomac Yard has been on the drawing board for quite some time and is essentially ready to go — except for the funding. But that is likely to change in the near future.

Continue Reading "Alexandria-Arlington Link Poised to Get Funding" »

IF YOU PLAN on traveling on the Orange, Blue, Yellow or Green lines this weekend, be prepared for delays due to scheduled track maintenance and rail car testing. But if you're heading out for Sunday's 12th Annual Columbia Pike Blues Festival in Arlington, you've hit the transit jackpot: Metro will be providing free rides.

Those attending the festival will not be charged for fares on routes 16B, 16G and 16J, between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. The bus routes runs along Columbia Pike and connect to either the Pentagon or Pentagon City Metrorail stations.

Riders heading through Prince George's County on the Orange Line can expect 20 minute delays between the Cheverly and New Carrollton stations due to track maintenance. Trains between those stations will share a track from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Alternating Orange Line trains will terminate at the Cheverly station and return to the District and Virginia.

Continue Reading "Weekend Track Work, Free Bus Ride for Blues Fest" »

ScreengrabTRAVELING ON the Red, Blue, Yellow or Green lines this weekend? Be prepared for delays due to scheduled track maintenance and rail car testing.

Riders traveling on the Blue and Yellow lines to and from Reagan National Airport and Alexandria will experience major delays of up to 30 minutes between the Pentagon City and Braddock Road stations because of track maintenance. Trains between those stations will share a track from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday.

Alternating Blue Line trains traveling to Franconia-Springfield station will terminate at Pentagon City and return to Largo Town Center, and alternating Yellow Line trains traveling to Huntington will terminate at Pentagon City and return to Fort Totten. Those traveling south of Pentagon City should plan accordingly, and build extra time into their schedules.

Those heading through Bethesda on the Red Line can expect 15 minute delays between the Friendship Heights and Medical Center stations due to track maintenance. Trains between those stations will share a track starting around 10 p.m. today through 10 a.m. Saturday, and again from 10 p.m. Saturday until 10 a.m. Sunday.

Riders on the Blue Line between the District and Prince George's County may face 15 minute delays between the Stadium Armory and Addison Road-Seat Pleasant stations for track maintenance. Trains between those stations will share the same track starting today at 10 p.m. until 10 a.m. Saturday, and from 10 p.m. Saturday until 10 a.m. Sunday.

Those traveling on the Green Line in Southeast D.C. between Navy Yard and Southern Avenue stations should add 20 minutes to trips for scheduled track maintenance. Trains between those stations will share one track from 7 a.m. to midnight on Sunday.

Also on the Green Line in Prince George's County, riders should expect 10-15 minute delays between the Greenbelt and College Park stations for regular rail car testing. Trains will share a track during testing, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.