![]() As Metro’s blog pointed out in July, the capitol and its suburbs once had 60 miles of bus lanes, with the first installed on 16th Street NW in 1962. But they were actually borrowing from decades-old blueprints. They need dedicated right-of-ways, preferably near the center of the street instead of the curb where pedestrians and right-turning vehicles slow everyone down.ĭ.C.-area planners identified the need for dedicated rights-of-way in 2004, according to the agency’s Head of Bus Planning James Hamre. True BRT systems are a train-like cousin of the sluggish city bus and, like protected bike lanes, their success depends on the often-controversial re-allocation of street space. Eventually, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority ( WMATA) plans bus-only lanes for nearly the whole trip, which, along with off-board fare collection, will speed things up. The blue buses, which run from Pentagon City to Alexandria on the west side of the Potomac, travel a dedicated bus lane for part of their route. ![]() Their eventual disappearance shows just how difficult that proved to be. First constructed around 1962, bus-only lanes were once an integral part of the capitol’s infrastructure - a first attempt to prioritize the humble bus. ![]() But Virginia’s new BRT Metroway borrows from the region’s past. A quick, cheap and relatively equitable mover of the masses, bus rapid transit is increasingly hailed as the unlikely future of city transportation.
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