Dr. Gridlock | Labor Day weekend travel guide - Washington Post (blog)
[This post has been updated.]
It's Labor Day, which marks the end of summer and the beginning of a long, long wait for your next trip to the beach. Fewer people in the Washington area are planning on traveling this weekend than traveled over the same weekend last year, according to a survey done by the American Automobile Association.
Of course, that doesn't mean the roads will be empty. The survey found that 87 percent of the people who do plan to travel are going to drive. And if you're hanging around this weekend, you can look forward to lots of Metro track work. Everybody wins!
Here are some things to keep in mind for this weekend and beyond:
Labor Day Getaway Guide
Back in May, Dr. Gridlock posted a summer getaway guide. Since this is your last chance to really get away this summer, we recommend you check out his tips before heading out.
Major Metro track work planned
Major Metro track work is scheduled for the Orange and Blue Lines over the holiday weekend, though not on the stretch where the lines service the same stations.
Orange Line: From Friday at 8 p.m. through closing time on Monday night, free shuttle buses will replace trains between the East Falls Church and West Falls Church stations. Both stations will remain open, but add extra time to your trip (at least half an hour, if not more). The work will involve a switch installation for the Dulles Metro extension, tie replacement work and replacement of rail.The last train will depart Vienna 20 minutes earlier than usual during this work, while trains will share one track and operate every 24 minutes between the Vienna and West Falls Church stations.
Blue Line: From Friday at 10 p.m. through closing time on Monday, the Franconia-Springfield and Van Dorn Street stations will be closed as Metro installs new track switches between the Van Dorn Street and King Street stations. Free shuttle buses will operate between the Franconia-Springfield and Eisenhower Avenue stations via the Van Dorn Street station. Blue Line trains will operate to and from the Huntington station every 20 minutes, according to Metro. Again, add at least half an hour to your trip (and preferably more).
Labor Day Transit Changes
If you're going to be bouncing around the region this weekend, here are some transit service changes to keep in mind:
— Metrorail and Metrobus will be operating on a Sunday schedule on Monday.
— There will be no MARC service on Monday, according to the Maryland Transit Administration. Penn Line riders: They also report that Amtrak will not honor weekly and monthly MARC tickets on Monday.
(And there's been one MARC service change for Friday: Camden Line train 852, which normally departs D.C. at 5:51 p.m., is departing at 2 p.m. instead. It will still make all of the stops.)
— The Virginia Railway Express will not operate on Monday.
(Another note for VRE riders: If you're taking off early on Friday, the rail agency recommends you take one of these eight-car trains: Fredericksburg Line train 303, which leaves Union Station heading south at 3:35 p.m.; Manassas Line train 327, which leaves Union Station heading south at 3:45 p.m.; and Manassas Line train 329, which leaves Union Station heading south at 3:45 p.m.)
— Montgomery County's Ride On service will be running a Sunday schedule on Monday.
— Alexandria's DASH system will run a Sunday schedule on Monday.
— The Fairfax Connector is also running a Sunday schedule on Monday.
— Arlington Transit will run ART routes 41 and 51 on a Sunday schedule. No other ART route will operate. STAR riders: All standing ride orders are canceled. Call 703-892-TRIP (8747) to schedule a ride.
— There will be no OmniRide service on Monday.
— TheBus and Call-A-Bus in Prince George's County will not run on Monday.
Parking enforcement on Monday
D.C.: No parking tickets will be issued for expired meters, rush hour violations or residential parking violations. The District's Department of Public Works will also suspend towing abandoned vehicles. However: Parking restrictions will be enforced in the area around Nationals Park, since the Nats are playing at home all weekend.
Alexandria, Va.: Parking enforcement is lifted.
Arlington, Va.: Parking meters are not enforced.
Montgomery County: Parking meters are not enforced.
D.C. DMV closing due to holiday
All of the Department of Motor Vehicles locations in the District will be closed from Saturday through Monday.
No Labor Day weekend roadwork in Maryland
According to the State Highway Administration, there will be no lane closures over the holiday weekend (from Friday, Sept. 2, through Monday, Sept. 5) unless emergency roadway repairs are needed.
Virginia lane closures lifted over the weekend; H.O.V. restrictions lifted on Monday
H.O.V. restrictions will be lifted on I-66, I-395 and I-95 for Labor Day, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation. Normal H.O.V. restrictions will remain on Friday and again on Tuesday.
Lane closures for temporary work zones were lifted at noon on Friday and will remain lifted until noon on Tuesday.
The I-95/I-395 reversible lanes will be southbound until 2 p.m. on Saturday; they will become northbound at 4 p.m. Saturday and remain that way through the rest of the weekend.
Metrobus detours
Metrobus route B2 will detour from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday around Good Hope Road between 13th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue in Southeast Washington. This is due to heavy crane lifting operations, according to Metro.
Metrobus route G2 will detour from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday around P Street between 17th and 18th streets in Northwest Washington, also due to heavy crane lifting operations.
Monday night football
The University of Maryland Terrapins kick off their football season by hosting the embattled Unitersity of Miami Hurricanes on Monday night at 8 p.m. Metro is not running extended or additional service for Monday's game, so if you're going remember that Metro stops running at midnight.
Bay Bridge Stop-In CenterThe Maryland Transportation Authority's trial period of extended hours at its Bay-Bridge Stop-In Center continues. It began on Monday, Aug. 29, and runs through Oct. 1.
The trial hours are Mondays through Fridays: 7 a.m.-6 p.m.; and Saturday: 7 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
State officials said they are trying to gauge the best hours for the center to operate.
The address of the center is 850 Revell Hwy., Annapolis.
04 Sep, 2011--
Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNE4xbFb19jHEvqFHOy2SsifVmHJJQ&url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dr-gridlock/post/this-weekend-and-beyond-labor-day-edition/2011/08/31/gIQAvkW1wJ_blog.html
~
Manage subscription | Powered by rssforward.com
