H St. NE May Get New Shuttle Bus by End of Spring
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SINCE A SLATE OF NEW NIGHTSPOTS opened up on H Street NE in the past year and a half, there's been an important element missing from the neighborhood mix: a dedicated H Street mass-transit link. The heart of Near Northeast's commercial corridor lies more than 10 blocks to the east of the Union Station rail yards and further still from Union Station's Red Line stop. A streetcar line has been proposed, but it'll be many years until it becomes a reality. A new shuttle bus, however, might fill that gap in the interim.
Just as the H Street NE corridor is getting $50 million for a major streetscaping project, which includes laying the groundwork for the future streetcar line, and $25 million in special tax increment financing to help boost commercial and community development, there's also $225,000 in the mix to launch special shuttle bus service linking Union Station with the Blue Line's Benning Road station via H Street.
But those dollars won't become available until after D.C.'s chief financial officer releases the Comprehensive Annual Financial Review later this winter. At that point, the funds go to the D.C. Department of Transportation to administer, according to Charles Allen, chief of staff to D.C. Council member Tommy Wells. And while a timeline to make the shuttle service a reality is not set in stone, Allen said service wouldn't start "until at least late spring" at the earliest.
Still, the transit development is a welcome sign for those hoping for easier access to the neighborhood. Currently, Metro's X2 bus route offers regular and late-night service on H Street and a few bars offer a private shuttle service on weekends.
EARLIER:
» "Fenty Announces Tax Incentives for 'Great Streets'" [Free Ride/Express]
» "To H Street NE ... and Back" [Free Ride/Express]
File photo by Preston Keres/The Washington Post
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Addison Road
see, this is nuts. the X2 runs that route just fine. put up a few more signs to make that obvious to the wanna-be hipsters who are going out that way from virginia, but other than that, don't waste my tax dollars. if people can't take the two minutes to look at a bus map and figure out what goes there, then maybe they shouldn't go there in the first place.
By IMGoph , Posted January 31, 2008 10:36 PM2 minutes?!? Not likely. Give me about an hour (pdf) and then we'll talk.
By AUA , Posted February 1, 2008 9:13 AMAnyone who actually rides the X2 knows that they are jam packed all hours of the day. Another bus line would be very welcome.
By sharonc , Posted February 1, 2008 9:54 AMwe don't need another line, just run more buses on the X2 then.
the s2, s4, etc, 50s on 14th, 70s on 7th/georgia are all packed too. it would be wonderful if wmata put more focus on the bus system like catoe said they would. the fact is, the system is run for the suburbanites, and they don't make a stink about buses, so nothing much happens.
By IMGoph , Posted February 2, 2008 6:43 PM