Bus Champions

Transforming bus service around the Washington metro area will require sustained political will as well as adequate operational and capital funding. Our region needs more Bus Champions who stand up for buses and the needs of bus riders. The MetroNow Coalition asks that you add your voice to the growing number of residents and stakeholders saying, “Now is the time for better transit!”

In 2022, the MetroNow Coalition hosted a series of educational webinars to build awareness of key strategies the region can use to accelerate regional bus transformation. Missed a webinar? Find descriptions and recordings below.

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Bus Champion Webinar Summaries

Bus Champions Kickoff: February 2

On February 2, the MetroNow Coalition hosted the first Bus Champions briefing to discuss the Bus Transformation Project (BTP) Progress Report. The report measures progress against the BTP strategy’s recommendations and highlights regional calls to action. By prioritizing better bus service we can improve the lives of hundreds of thousands of people who use the bus today – increasing access to opportunity, strengthening the regional economy, and creating a regionally coordinated bus network that will grow ridership and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation.

Nearly 100 stakeholders joined the briefing to hear from business and civic leaders about the importance of regional bus transformation, including JB Holston, CEO of the Greater Washington Partnership, Stewart Schwartz, Executive Director of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, David Harrington, President and CEO of the Prince George’s Chamber of Commerce, Jack McDougle, President and CEO of the Greater Washington Board of Trade, and Bob Buchanan, President of The 2030 Group.

Kate Mattice, Executive Director of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC), opened the conversation sharing why the bus is important for Northern Virginia residents and how NVTC works to support the locally operated bus operators and liaise with WMATA, the region’s largest provider of transit service. John Hillegass from the Greater Washington Partnership and Laura Miller Brooks from the Federal City Council briefed the audience on the key findings of MetroNow BTP Progress Report, including lessons learned during the study process and the six key initiatives the region should focus on in 2022. The MetroNow leaders than asked the audience to join MetroNow by becoming bus champions in their jurisdictions, agree to support bus transformation, dedicated bus lanes, bus funding, and join MetroNow’s Bus Champions series where the Coalition will dive deeper into the six key initiatives the region should focus on in 2022 to accelerate bus transformation. The briefing and discussion amongst the principals was followed by a robust discussion among audience members about the importance of bus, who will be key to engage with in 2022 to see real progress, and suggestions for how MetroNow can strengthen our advocacy work around the bus.

Watch the Bus Champions Kickoff

Bus Network Redesigns: February 15

On Tuesday, February 15, the Coalition for Smarter Growth and Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce hosted a lunchtime talk to learn about how we can design a better regional bus network for frequency, speed, reliability, and improved access to jobs and daily needs. Presenters included City of Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson who discussed the new DASH Bus network, and two two top transit consultants – Lora Byala (Foursquare ITP) and Scudder Wagg (Jarrett Walker and Associates) who shared about their successful projects redesigning bus networks.

More than 100 stakeholders joined the forum to hear from Mayor Wilson and two of the top practitioners in the field – Lora and Scudder – and their experience leading major bus network redesign projects including in Baltimore, Alexandria, and Richmond. With WMATA set to begin a study of the entire regional bus network soon, this forum was an opportunity to learn about best practices for improving bus service. You can read more by checking out these stories in the Virginia Mercury and in Fairfax Now.

Watch the Bus Network Redesigns webinar

The Business of Better Buses: May 16

On May 16, Federal City Council and the Greater Washington Board of Trade co-hosted a discussion between two leaders in the world of rapid bus transit—Megan Kanagy from the District’s own DDOT and her counterpart in New York City, Kyle Gebhart.

One way to amp up the bus experience is to give buses higher priority on roadways. If buses can move faster and bypass traffic, then ride times and reliability will improve. Riders will be able to spend less time on transportation and more time for themselves. Maybe it means they can apply for a job that is further away from home or their child can go to a better school. The average bus rider is more likely to be low-income, minority and car-less, especially compared to the average Metro rider. Better buses is a great transportation tool to tackle unequal access to opportunity.

Not all bus priority projects are just dedicated lanes painted red. Sometimes it’s a “queue jump” that’s needed, which is like a pull-out at an intersection that allows the bus to go first when the light turns green. It could also be an offset bus lane away from the curb, physical barriers separating the bus lane, two bus lanes (where volumes justify it) or maybe even a whole street that becomes bus/truck only. Enforcement here is important; fixed cameras and cameras on the front of buses should help catch parked and moving cars that are in the way.

We know from other cities that when you build a better bus experience, ridership goes up. This happened in Seattle, where now 75 percent of the city is accessible by all-day ten minute-or-better service. In New York City, there’s been an average 10 percent increase in ridership after each bus rapid service improvement. Faster-moving buses can lead to cost-savings throughout the system. Gas and time aren’t wasted stuck in traffic. Expensive assets are being used efficiently. More riders will use buses, paying into the system and signaling to public officials they value the service. More people will be able to get around the city, to work, spend money at local businesses or go to school. It’s a win-win for everyone.

eBus | Toward Zero Emissions Transit: June 30

On June 30, the Greater Washington Partnership and Tysons Partnership hosted MetroNow’s fourth Bus Champions webinar, this time focused on progress and challenges in the move toward zero emissions transit. By converting our fleets to operate with zero emissions vehicles, public transit operators, including cities and school districts can reduce air pollution and improve health outcomes for riders of all ages. A shift to zero emission bus fleets presents key benefits to operators and riders: chiefly, improved reliability and reduced tailpipe emissions. Less time in the shop means more time in service, transporting riders where they need to go. These benefits can only be realized with the continued support of skilled maintenance staff.

Participants heard from agency and industry experts about progress in bus fleet electrification. Panelists included Karina Ricks, Assistant Administrator for Research, Innovation, and Demonstration at Federal Transit Authority (FTA), Circe Torruellas, Deputy Assistant Director for Bus Operations at District Department of Transportation (DDOT), Kate Staples, Manager of Electrification at Dominion Energy, and John Schiavone, Program Director at the International Transportation Learning Center.

Karina opened the seminar by sharing progress on efforts across the country for operators to electrify their fleets. John emphasized that skilled maintenance staff members who can support the reliable operations of zero emissions fleets are key to the transition. Training for both the current and future workforce is central to the Transit Workforce Center’s programming. Kate pointed to the contribution electrified bus fleets can make toward climate goals and discussed Dominion’s support for the electrification of school buses in Virginia. Circe connected DDOT’s current efforts to the broader social and environmental goals described in the 2018 Clean Energy DC Act, which establishes a requirement that 50% of the bus fleet be comprised of zero emissions vehicles by 2030. Circe shared that DDOT expects to reach this goal as soon as 2024.

Circe, John, and Kate all noted that the need for a growing pool of skilled maintenance staff and planning adequate charging and service infrastructure present some of the biggest barriers to fleet conversion. The panelists agreed that transit operators have much to gain from collaborating with other agencies on their electrification efforts, and that coming together to share best practices, in forums such as the Bus Champions webinar series, can help to hasten progress to zero emission bus fleets.

Watch the eBus webinar

The Transit Workforce: September 21

For the past three years, WMATA and the region’s nine jurisdictional bus operators have been working to implement the Bus Transformation Project (BTP), with the goal of making the region’s bus system the mode of choice by the 2030s. So far, our region has made important progress on the ground, and the BTP is set to gain critical momentum as we embark on a Bus Network Redesign process over the next 18 months. But even the best bus network can’t deliver service if there are not enough bus drivers and mechanics on staff.

On September 21, District Strong hosted a conversation with Chris Van Eyken, Program Manager of Transit Center, Brian Wivell, Political & Communications Director of Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689, and Efon Epanty, Chief of Transit Planning & Innovation at PG County’s Department of Public Works & Transportation. The conversation was moderated by former WMATA Board member Stephanie Gidigbi Jenkins and brought together perspectives from a national transit advocate, regional labor union, and a local transit agency to discuss how transit agencies can more effectively recruit and retain bus operators, and how our region can work together to create an effective transit workforce strategy.

Watch the Transit Workforce Webinar

The Future of Bus Data: October 7

On Friday October 7, the Greater Washington Board of Trade hosted a webinar with transportation experts and business leaders to talk about the benefits of collecting and using bus data to strengthen transportation growth for the region. The webinar is part of MetroNow’s Bus Champions Webinar Series that promotes bus transit in the region so it can evolve alongside rail transit and is not left behind, as the area is projected to grow by 1.5 million people in the next 20 years.

The webinar’s moderator, Jack McDougle, president & CEO of the Greater Washington Board of Trade, opened the webinar by speaking about how buses are vital to the Greater Washington area. He expressed that people like himself, who use buses to get to work, need more efficient bus systems that work together to create better transportation experiences and allow for better economic growth across the region. Panelists Allison Davis of Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), Allan Fye of the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC), Robert Puentes of the Eno Center of Transportation, and Michael Helta of Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) and Maryland Transit Authority (MTA), spoke directly on how new federal efforts to streamline data sharing between transit organizations and agencies can help the Greater Washington area meet its busing needs.

Watch the Future of Bus Data webinar