King Street Metro Project Begins In Fall, Travel Changes Coming

UPDATE: After delays, work has been pushed back to Nov. 18, 2018. Read more here.

Work outside the King Street Metro will kick off this fall and bring numerous transportation disruptions to the area. Beginning Sept. 9, the existing parking lot and bus area will be under construction, relocating several vehicular transportation options and pedestrian paths. Train services will run regularly.

The City of Alexandria and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's project will replace the existing short-term parking lot with an safer pedestrian walking area, add three additional bus bays and create designated areas for kiss and ride, shuttles, bicycle parking, ride sharing and taxi.

The first phase of construction will last about 17 months. During that time, bus bays will be relocated to surrounding streets, while locations for kiss and ride, car share and shuttles will be closed. The Metered parking lot and shuttle area within the station will be removed.

Drivers should expect extra congestion and limited street parking on surrounding streets during the construction. Those using the King Street Metro should plan for additional travel time.

Here's a breakdown of what the project means for different transportation services. All apply to both phases of the project unless otherwise noted.

Buses: Bus bays will be temporarily relocated to Diagonal Road, Daingerfield Road, Cameron Street and King Street. Work to build these temporary bays will begin in early August and will affect on-street parking. Wayfinding signs will direct bus riders to their temporary bay. The bus bays will be moved back to the station after the first phase of construction is finished. The new bus loop area could open in winter 2020.

Pedestrians: A temporary pedestrian path will run from the main entrance of the station to the mid-block crosswalk and the bus waiting area at Diagonal Road through the construction area. An additional pedestrian path will be parallel to the Metrorail tracks, near the station, between the main entrance and King Street.

During phase one, pedestrians using the Carlyle pedestrian tunnel must cross Diagonal Road at Duke Street and again at the mid-block crossing.

Bicycles: Bicycle parking remains open at the station, and the Capital Bikeshare stations on Diagonal Road and Commonwealth Avenue will remain open throughout the duration of the project.

Kiss and ride: There will be no kiss and ride or shuttles during construction. Alternatives are the Braddock Road or Eisenhower Avenue Stations.

Taxis: Taxi pick up and drop off will be temporarily relocated to the north side of Cameron Street just east of the north entrance to the King Street-Old Town Metrorail station entrance at Commonwealth Avenue. Taxis may use the zone in front of the Embassy Suites Hotel or Alexandria Union Station as well.

Shuttles: All local shuttle services must use the Eisenhower Avenue or Braddock Road Metro stations.

MetroAccess: The MetroAccess van and taxi pick-up and drop-off area will be temporarily relocated to the north side of Cameron Street just east of the north entrance to the King Street-Old Town Metrorail Station entrance at Commonwealth Avenue.

Ahead of construction, metered parking in the station and the shuttle area will close on Aug. 6. On-street parking on the north side of Diagonal Road, south side of King Street (between Daingerfield and Diagonal Roads) and east side of Daingerfield (between Diagonal and Dechantal) will also be closed.

The project is expected to be completed in summer 2020. A separate WMATA track work project will shut down train service in summer 2019.

For more information, visit the King Street-Old Town Metro Access Improvement Project website.

Images via City of Alexandria