Traffic & Transit
$2.1M In State Grants Expected For Alexandria Metro Shutdown
The grant money will fund mitigation strategies when Metro stations are closed, including water taxi subsidies and additional DASH service.
ALEXANDRIA, VA—Alexandria City Council will vote Tuesday to request over $2 million in state grant funds to mitigate the impact of the summer Metro shutdown.
According to a city memo, the Commonwealth Transportation Board has authorized the Virginia
Department of Rail and Public Transportation to give a grant up to $2,182,960 for Metro shutdown-related expenses. The City Council's vote will authorize officials to formally apply for the grant.
In addition to the state grant money, the city will pitch in $545,740, providing a total of $2,728,700 for mitigation strategies. These include:
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- $666,000 for supplemental DASH service, mobile ticketing
- $656,000 for water taxi fare subsidies, accessibility improvement, Capital Bikeshare operations
- $564,700 for employer and public outreach, vanpool formation, Mobile commute store and street team outreach
- $842,000 temporary modification to city streets, CCTV equipment, Alexandria Police Department presence
The city developed a mitigation plan after gathering feedback from a public survey. This includes traffic mitigation, funding for the water taxi and formation of carpools, extended DASH and King Street Trolley service and employer outreach. On the traffic side, the city will also alter HOV restrictions on Washington Street and Transit Signal Priority technology for buses on Route 1 dedicated bus lanes. Both changes are aimed at keeping buses on schedule.
SEE ALSO: Alexandria Summer Metro Shutdown Extended To Sept. 8
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Metro recently announced the project would be extended by a few days. Metro said the change provides additional time to fix the Braddock Road platform, which is not even with the train floor.
The Braddock Road, King St-Old Town, Van Dorn Street, Eisenhower Avenue, Huntington and Franconia-Springfield stations will be closed from Memorial Day weekend (Saturday, May 25) to Sunday, Sept. 8 for platform rehabilitation.
Plan for the Metro shutdown
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