PlanItMetro

The Silver Line is coming soon, so Metro and original Metrorail map designer Lance Wyman are updating the current map.  Based on extensive customer feedback from the last map revision, we made some general improvements such as making street abbreviations consistent and improving the geographic accuracy of the stations where possible.  Cross streets will remain on the large version of the maps in stations and on trains, where it is most useful for customers as they are traveling on Metro. But in the interest of readability and streamlining, we will keep cross streets off smaller versions of the map often found online and in printed materials.

The first draft of the map (Map 1) also featured 14 percent thinner lines to help readability, now that the Silver Line will travel through DC, and a new station icon with lines that extended across all three rail colors.  This version also included the new Silver Line station names for Phase 1.

When we asked for feedback on the draft earlier this year, here’s what you told us: try even thinner lines, explore other station dot options, and “Center” and “Heights” should not be abbreviated.

So here are two new maps for your review.  In both maps, “Center” and “Heights” are no longer abbreviated.  Map 1 below is an update of the previous draft, with slightly longer “whiskers”.  Map 2 incorporates some additional changes:

• 24 percent thinner lines, and
• the use of a capsule-shaped station icon.

Please compare the two maps, visible below, and let us know which one you prefer.

To compare the maps, slide the vertical bar across the image to show the differences between Map 1  and Map 2.  Further below you will find a zoom-in of both maps, also with the vertical slider bar for easy comparison.

All comments welcome!  Please comment below or on our  MindMixer site.  Also, check out Greater Greater Washington’s coverage of the updated map.  Thank you for your input.

Read more…

Some bus routes will change when the Silver Line arrives late this year.

When the Silver Line opens, many bus lines will be reorganized – to serve the five new Metrorail stations, change routes that will become redundant, and to ensure an integrated approach to the overall bus and rail network.

The Metro Board of Directors approved the Metrobus service changes in December (details). Exact schedules are not yet  finalized but will become available as we get closer to the Silver Line opening at the end of the year.

60 bus routes serve the areas affected by the Silver Line, 13 of which are Metrobus routes. Metro has been working closely with Fairfax Connector, Loudoun County, and other operators to be sure all the changes work together and make sense. Generally, here’s what to expect:

• All 5 new Silver Line stations will have bus service
• Many Metrobus routes will be re-routed to serve the Tysons Corner area. Affected routes include the 1C, 2A, 2B, 2C, 2G, 2T, 3A-E, 3T, 15K, 15L, 15M, 23A, 23C, 24T, 28A, 28T, and 28X.  (See the more detailed Metrobus proposal).
• A circulator bus system will serve the Tysons area, including the new Silver Line stations in Tysons
• Many Fairfax Connector buses connecting Reston and Herndon to West Falls Church station will now serve the Wiehle Avenue Silver Line station
• 7 Loudoun County buses will move from West Falls Church to Wiehle Avenue station
• 3 Prince William County buses will move to Tysons Corner station
• Going to Dulles Airport? Metrobus 5A will remain unchanged, and the express Washington Flyer buses will move from West Falls Church to Wiehle Avenue station.

When does all this happen? All bus changes will need to take effect by the first day of Silver Line operations!

For more information on Fairfax County bus changes in particular, visit their extensive website on the Silver Line changes.

When the Silver Line opens, Metro will adjust the rail schedule to accommodate increased service. What will change, and how will it affect you?

The Silver Line, which will run from Reston and Tyson’s Corner to Largo Town Center, will bring a net increase in rail service. But exactly how will it affect you? That depends on when you travel.

At peak times, Metro will need to make a few adjustments to make room for the Silver Line. The map below shows where the number of trains goes up, down, or stays the same. Metro’s main constraint is at Rosslyn, where three lines – Orange, Blue, and Silver – come together. At Rosslyn and into downtown, Metro can handle a maximum of 26 trains per hour, or a train every 2 minutes and 20 seconds or so.  (To keep things simple, this blog post uses the AM peak hour to illustrate peak rail changes).  In a nutshell, the Silver Line rail operating plan will:

• Add Silver Line trains every 6 minutes,
• Redirect 2 more Blue Line trains per hour onto the Yellow Line,
• Convert some Orange Line trains from Vienna to Silver Line trains,
• Discontinue some one-way Orange Line trains we currently run (called “trippers”) because they will be replaced by Silver Line trains.

As a result, service will increase in several places, shown in green below: Read more…

New Silver Line stations (Click for full map)

You may have heard about the Silver Line – but what is it, and where will it go? What’s nearby the new stations? To go along with the open houses on the Silver Line this week, here’s a primer on some Silver Line basics:

What is the Silver Line? A new Metrorail extension in Virginia serving Tysons Corner and Reston.  Phase 1 is nearing completion now and will open around December 2013. Phase 2 is just beginning construction, and will serve Dulles International Airport and beyond. Because the line serves the Dulles corridor and will eventually serve the Airport, the Silver Line is sometimes called the “Dulles Corridor Metrorail Extension.”

Where will the Silver Line go? The new tracks will branch off from the Orange Line between East Falls Church and West Falls Church. There will be five new stations in Phase 1 – four clustered around Tysons Corner, and one farther west at Wiehle Avenue in Reston. Phase 2 will reach Dulles Airport and beyond in several years.

Read more…

Come learn about the new Silver Line this week and next

Join us for a series of community events to learn about service improvements to bus and rail coming along with the new Silver Line service to Tysons Corner and Reston.  We will be on-hand to discuss what the new service means to you, including changes to the Orange and Blue Lines, and local buses.

The “main event” will be three Open Houses which will feature informational exhibits on rail and bus service, a table where we will be collecting public feedback, a section for children’s activities as well as a “WMATA tools section” where folks can learn about Next Bus, sign-up for e-Alerts and get other useful information. Here’s the schedule and locations:

–      Tuesday, March 12, 5-8p at Faith Temple #2 Baptist Church, 211 Maryland Park Drive, Capitol Hgts., MD 20743 (walk from Capitol Heights Metrorail station, Metrobus 96 or 97)

–      Thursday, March 14, 5-8p at the Reston Community Center Hunters Woods, 2310 Colts Neck Road, Reston, VA 20191 (Fairfax Connector: RIBS 1/3, RIBS 2 & Route 551)

–      Saturday, March 16, 11a-4p at the Sheraton Crystal City, 1800 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA  22202 (walk from Crystal City Metrorail station, Metrobus 9A, 9E, 9S, 10A, 10E)

Prior to the Open Houses, we will host a series of smaller events or “Pop-Ups” this week in the community.   At each of these, we’ll be stationed at a table to answer your questions, provide information and give you a chance to provide us your feedback.  Here’s the schedule and locations for these events:

–      March 5, 4-6p at Largo Town Center Metro

–      March 7, 4-6p at West Falls Church Metro

–      March 8, 10a-2p at Tysons Corner Center Mall I (on the first floor near Barnes & Noble)

–      March  8, 4-6p at Pentagon City Metro

–      March 9, 10a-2p at the Eden Center (6751 Wilson Blvd, Falls Church, VA 22044)

The public comment period will run from February 28 through March 18, 2013.  You may submit your comments at the events or online on the project’s website, wmata.com/silverline.