New in NoVA Transit

Northern Virginia is committed to transportation innovation. The region continues to invest in high-quality transit projects that will serve its citizens and businesses, strengthening the economy. Expansion of Metro’s Silver Line and Metroway Bus Rapid Transit and plans for new transit service in the I-66 and Route 7 corridors are among projects that will extend the reach of transit throughout the region by maximizing the use of roadways and tapping new sources of funding.

Silver Line

With Phase 1 having celebrated its first anniversary this summer, the Silver Line’s five stations handle 35,000+ trips each weekday. Nearly 11,000 riders — about double the normal weekday volume — entered/exited the Tysons Corner Station on Black Friday 2014, the busiest shopping day of the year. The Wiehle-Reston East station, the current end of the Silver Line, surpassed first-year ridership projections with 18,400+ weekday entries and exits in June 2015. This transit line is changing the fabric of Fairfax County, spurring $18 billion in private investment, of which $1 billion is at Wiehle-Reston East Station.

The Silver Line is the largest expansion of Metro by route mileage since the system’s inception in 1976. Phase 2, which will add another six stations, will bring Metrorail to Dulles Airport and communities in Loudoun County in 2020.

Multimodal Transit Facility

The Wiehle-Reston East Transportation Center, a multimodal facility, is located underground at the Wiehle-Reston Metro location. Its amenities allow people using any mode – cars, buses, and pedestrians – to access the Silver Line easily. The center includes the first secured bike parking facility in Fairfax County; the only onsite car parking garage among the first five Silver Line stations, and a bus terminal that offers connections to the Fairfax County Connector, Loudoun County Transit, PRTC Omni and Dulles Flyer bus systems. The facility, financed through a public-private partnership, anchors new transit-oriented development above the parking garage.

Potomac Yard Metro Station – First Transit Infrastructure Bank Loan

A $50 million loan from the Virginia Transportation Infrastructure Bank has allowed conceptual work on the Potomac Yard Metrorail Station to proceed. It is the first such loan approved by the Commonwealth Transportation Board for a transit project. The $268 million station will serve Metro’s Blue and Yellow lines between the Braddock Road and Reagan National Airport stations, breaking up a 3.1-mile stretch of track, the longest inside the Beltway without a station. Potomac Yard, slated to open in 2020, is projected to generate $2.4 billion in new tax revenue over the next 35 years, support up to 26,000 new jobs and 13,000 new residents.

Bus Rapid Transit

Ridership for Metroway, which opened in August 2014, has exceeded expectations. The new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service along a five-mile stretch of Route 1 in Alexandria and Arlington averages close to 1,400 riders each weekday, about 30 percent higher than the traditional bus service it replaced. Connecting Crystal City, Potomac Yard and Braddock Road, Metroway features bold, blue buses that travel in their own dedicated lane, or transitway. Metroway incorporates the best components of rail and bus, providing premium-quality public transit at a fraction of the cost of rail. The BRT service gives passengers access to shopping, restaurants, businesses and the Metrorail system for $1.75 per ride. The next phase of Metroway will open in 2016.

The proposal for a West End Transitway, a $140 million BRT system, is spurring development in Alexandria. Branded, high-capacity buses will run along Van Dorn and Beauregard streets, connecting the Van Dorn Metro station to both the Shirlington Transit Center and the Pentagon. The transitway, currently the focus of an alternatives study, will feature high-amenity stops with real-time passenger information.

New Commuter Rail Stations

The Virginia Railway Express will open its new Spotsylvania Station in late 2015. The opening will mark the first extension of VRE’s Fredericksburg Line since it began service in the mid-1990s. Another new station, Potomac Shores in south Woodbridge, is a $15 million facility projected to open in 2017. This station overlooks the Potomac River from atop a hilly bluff facing a riverfront boardwalk and will bring new economic growth to Prince William County. The commuter rail service is exploring an 11-mile extension of its Manassas Line through Gainesville to the general vicinity of Route 15 near Haymarket.

I-66 Multimodal Corridor Project

Two new projects will improve travel in the I-66 corridor. Inside the Beltway, HOT lanes will provide more reliable travel times for cars and transit when they open in 2017. Multimodal improvements – to be planned and selected by NVTC – will come online at the same time as the HOT lanes. NVTC will coordinate with local agencies to ensure the efficient delivery of selected projects and will monitor project effectiveness in increasing the number of people moving through the corridor.

Outside the Beltway, I-66 will be reconfigured to accommodate three regular lanes and two HOT lanes in each direction. Multimodal improvements will feature high-frequency bus service with predictable travel times and provide direct access between the express lanes and new or expanded commuter lots. This project uses an innovative approach that matches the existing infrastructure and environment, which will allow the maximum of number of people to move more quickly to their destinations.

Envision Route 7

Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) are options to enhance regional mobility along a 14-mile stretch of Route 7 between Tysons and Alexandria. With both population and employment expected to grow by more than a third by 2040, high-capacity transit would accommodate that growth, connecting people and businesses to economic opportunity. The preferred transit mode, to be determined by spring 2016, would cut travel time along the corridor in half. Read more about this project.