Foursquare ITP led the development of the short- and long-term Metrobus service upon implementation of the Purple Line light rail. The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) is constructing a light rail line connecting Bethesda to College Park, with anticipated opening in 2026. During the planning stage the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) hired Foursquare ITP to develop feeder bus plans for Metrobus service in the corridor to support ridership projections and set up the Authority to plan for these changes to their bus operations.
Building on a robust market and service assessment, Foursquare ITP led the development of the short- and long-term Metrobus service to be implemented about opening of the Purple Line light rail and further into the future. The corridor-wide study created a bus transit feeder plan that responded to service commencement, associated growth and changing land use patterns, and shifting demographics and travel expectations.
Foursquare ITP created both cost constrained and visionary recommendations for Metrobus service to feed the light rail; the resulting recommendations supported funding requests as well as provided the baseline for capital investments along the corridor, such as bus bays and other station area needs related to bus operations.
Solutions and Outcomes
- Created short- and long-term feeder bus plans for a new light rail corridor in the Maryland suburbs of DC.
- Developed constrained and visionary plans that created options and set the stage for capital investments in the corridor related to bus operations needs.