- DC Circulator
-
DC Circulator 
Founded 2005 Service area Downtown Washington Service type Downtown circulator Routes Georgetown-Union Station
Woodley Park–Adams Morgan–McPherson Square Metro
Convention Center-SW Waterfront
Union Station-Navy Yard via Capitol Hill
Rosslyn-Georgetown-Dupont CircleFleet 49 Van Hool A330 buses Daily ridership 4 million (yearly)[1] Fuel type Diesel Operator First Transit Partners DC Dept. of Transportation
WMATA
DC Surface Transit, Inc.Web site http://www.dccirculator.com/ The DC Circulator is a circulator bus system in Washington, D.C., U.S.A.. It is owned by a partnership among the District of Columbia Department of Transportation, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (which also operates the Metrobus system in the capital and its suburbs), and DC Surface Transit, Inc., and operated by First Transit.
The concept came out of a 1997 report by the National Capital Planning Commission, which was initially championed by the Downtown Business Improvement District, and now has support from Georgetown Business Improvement District, Golden Triangle Business Improvement District, Capitol Hill Business Improvement District, Capitol Riverfront BID, Washington Convention Center Authority and Washington, DC Convention & Tourism Corporation.
Contents
Routes
The DC Circulator has five lines operating at 10 minute intervals.
Georgetown - Union Station
The east-west line connects Georgetown with Union Station and operates primarily along Wisconsin Avenue, K Street, and Massachusetts Avenue. Eastbound, the bus starts on Wisconsin Avenue at Whitehaven Street in Georgetown. Westbound, the route starts in the bus level of the Union Station parking garage.
This line operates every day from 7:00AM to 9:00PM with additional night service between Whitehaven Street and 17th and K (Farragut North Station St Sunday through Thursday 9:00PM to 12:00AM and Friday and Saturdays 9:00PM to 2:00AM.
DC Circulator routes, excluding the Dupont Circle to Rosslyn line
The third line, which connects Union Station and Navy Yard by way of Capitol Hill, operates weekdays only between 6:00AM and 7:00PM, with extended service on Washington Nationals’ games days. This route replaced the discontinued Metrobus N22 line. Originally the line was going from the inside of Union Station via Louisiana Avenue and Constitution Avenue; on September 26, 2011 the line was adjusted to the 2nd St NE and F St NE.
Woodley Park - Adams Morgan - McPherson Square Metro
The fourth line operates between Woodley Park, Adams Morgan, and McPherson Square via the 14th St corridor. Service operates from 7:00AM – 12:00AM Sunday through Thursday and 7:00AM – 3:30AM Friday and Saturday. Part of this route replaced the discontinued WMATA 98 line.[2][3]
Rosslyn - Georgetown - Dupont
This line was opened on August 27, 2011; it runs from Dupont Circle primarily via M Street through Georgetown and travels over the Key Bridge to Rosslyn. This services operates from 7:00AM to 12:00AM Sunday through Thursday, and from 7:00AM to 2:00AM Friday and Saturday. This route replaced the former Georgetown Metro Connection "blue bus." [4]
Former Routes
Smithsonian-National Gallery of Art
Until 2011 a line ran only on summer weekends, serving the National Mall in a loop along Constitution Avenue, 1st Street NE/SE, Independence Avenue, and 17th Street NW/SW. [4]
Convention Center - SW Waterfront
A north-south line connected the Washington Convention Center with the Southwest Waterfront and operated primarily along 7th and 9th streets, which have bus lanes. This line operated everyday from 7:00AM to 9:00PM. The sevice was eliminated on September 25, 2011 due to low ridership. A new Metrobus Route 74 was opened on September 26, 2011 along the 7th Street corridor between the Washington Convention Center and the Waterfront neighborhood, replacing the Circulator line and the eliminated portion of Metrobus Routes 70 and 71 from Pennsylvania Avenue to the South. The 74 bus costs more to ride and offers less frequent service, but the District officials said the ridership on the Circulator was too low to continue it. Earlier in 2011 DDOT discussed suspending this line until the redevelopment of the Southwest Waterfront is completed. [4]
Fares
The current DC Circulator fare structure is as follows:
- Regular Fare: $1.00
- Senior and Disabled: $0.50
- DC Elementary through High School Students: Free (with Student farecard)
- Children Under Five: Free
The fare may be paid in a variety of ways, including cash, SmarTrip, or a ticket purchased at an on-street multi-space parking meter.[5] The DC Circulator no longer issues or accepts paper transfers as of January 4, 2009. Riders must use a SmarTrip card to get a rail-to-bus discount or to transfer free from bus to bus.
Fleet
- 2004 Van Hool A330 (1101–1129)
- 2009 Van Hool A300K (1130–1143)
- 2010 Van Hool A300L (1144–1149)
The Van Hool A330 buses that the Circulator runs were part of an order by AC Transit of Oakland. These buses are built to their specifications, but had air conditioning added for use during DC's hot summers. The second set of buses, the 14 Van Hool A300K buses, went into service in April 2009. The third and most recent set of buses, the 6 Van Hool A300 buses (identical in size to the 2003-04 models), went into service in September 2010.
Accidents
On April 18, 2007, a driver of a bus was off-duty and had left the bus to attend to other business. While he was out of the bus, the bus rolled back and crashed into a Georgetown University building. One woman was injured.[6]
Extension east of the Anacostia River
The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) has announced that it plans to expand service to neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River in 2011. DDOT is determining the best route for a new line and is in the process of purchasing new buses for the service.[4]
References
- ^ "Costs outpacing ridership gains for most local transit". Washington Examiner. 2010-07-08. http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/Report_-Costs-outpacing-ridership-gains-for-most-local-transit-97967219.html. Retrieved 2010-07-09.
- ^ "Metrobus Routes 98, N22 being replaced by DC Circulator" (Press release). Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority. 2009-03-27. http://wmata.com/about_metro/news/PressReleaseDetail.cfm?ReleaseID=2518. Retrieved 2009-12-20.
- ^ "DC Circulator". DC Circulator. http://www.dccirculator.com/. Retrieved 2009-12-20.
- ^ a b c d "DC Circulator Expansion Continues". DDOT. http://ddot.dc.gov/DC/DDOT/About+DDOT/News+Room/ci.DC+Circulator+Expansion+Continues.print. Retrieved 2010-08-30.
- ^ "DC Circulator Ticket Information". DC Circulator. http://www.dccirculator.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=10&Itemid=72. Retrieved 2009-12-20.
- ^ "Bus Crashes Into Office Building". April 18, 2007. http://www.wusa9.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=57694&provider=gnews. Retrieved 2007-05-03.[dead link]
External links
Transit in Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Agencies Metrorail Commuter Rail Bus Arlington Transit • Connect-a-Ride • CUE Bus • DASH • DC Circulator • Fairfax Connector • GEORGE (suspended) • Loudoun County Commuter Bus • Metrobus (list of routes) • MTA Maryland Commuter Bus • OmniRide • Ride On • Shuttle-UM • TheBus • MetroAccess Paratransit serviceFuture projects Silver Line • Purple Line • Corridor Cities Transitway • DC Streetcar • Pike Transit Initiative • Crystal City - Potomac Yard TransitwayCategories:- Bus transportation in Washington, D.C.
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