• WMATA is on track for a budget compromise that achieves some key rider asks (but not all)

      By David Alpert     March 30th, 2020

      Most but not all of Metro's proposed cuts to bus service are off the table, under a draft budget proposal the WMATA Board will vote on Thursday. So is an extra charge for riders using cash on buses, which advocates had opposed. Unfortunately, a plan to make transfers between buses and trains free was a casualty of the budget process. 

    • The good, the bad and the unexplained: what you need to know about the WMATA budget

      By David Alpert     January 29th, 2020

      Soon, WMATA will formally be asking riders and other members of the public to weigh in on its next budget. There's a lot riders should understand, and weigh in on, in addition to proposed cuts or changes to bus service which have rightly attracted a lot of attention — some of which transit advocates have been requesting for years, and other items which are worrisome.

    • What the heck is going on with the WMATA budget?

      By David Alpert     December 16th, 2019

      Up to 68 Washington-area bus routes could face cuts in 2020 (and some could see increases), under a draft budget document presented to the WMATA board Thursday. At the meeting, various board members then proposed numerous of amendments, and the board ultimately put off any action for a month. What's going on, and what should riders take from this?

    • A letter from DC Council chairman Phil Mendelson and five colleagues could imperil the Metro funding deal

      By David Alpert     March 15th, 2018

      A letter, released yesterday from DC Council chairman Phil Mendelson and five other council members, argues DC shouldn't pay what Virginia expects. That could lead Virginia or Maryland to pull back on their own contributions, leaving Metro with not enough money for needed repairs and upgrades.