Is this the end of the streetcar as we know it?
The streetcar experiment in D.C. is all but over as Mayor Bowser announces that the “next generation of street cars” is, as the Washington Post puts it, really just an electric bus.
The DC Streetcar was in operation for less than a decade after launching in 2016 with a renewed promise of efficiency. But years of delays and a huge budget showed that the efforts weren’t as fruitful as the Mayor hoped, which is why it’s being reported by the Washington Post that funding for the D.C. streetcar will end, and the “next generation” development has been proposed.
The new streetcar will be an electrical bus that uses the street car’s electrical wiring, but there’s no word yet on whether or not it will still be free for passengers, and limited information as of yet. But the proposal was just announced on Tuesday, so there should be more information coming out later this year.
For now, we’re optimistic about what this could mean for riders.
Additional news in transportation:
In a recent press release, Bowser detailed 2026’s budget, allocating $76 million in funds for WMATA to support bus and rail services, among other things.
The Metro Bus Line is already getting a major overhaul this June, the first in 50 years. Updates have been made to the District of Colombia, Maryland, and Virginia maps, all bus routes will be renamed on the maps, and more. They recommend using their trip planner to see if your route has changed. The changes will take place starting from June 29th.
Most recently, there’s a new way to ride with the “Tap. Ride. Go.” initiative. Riders can now use their contactless cards to ride, and can avoid fare machines and SmarTrip cards all together. Some quick things to note about it:
- The same card has to be used
- It can’t be used for multiple people
- Free transfers from rail to bus will not be available until Tap. Ride. Go. launches on Metrobus fareboxes in the future.
With all that being said, here’s hoping all of these changes can help make for a more seamless and efficient transportation system for D.C. riders.