Alexandria DASH fares to rise July 1

Mar 11, 2010 — Washington Post

Christy Goodman

Alexandria DASH fares will go up 25 cents July 1, and Arlington ART bus fares might not be far behind.

The Alexandria Transit Co.'s board of directors recently approved the fare increase and have at the ready possible service cuts on two routes if the City Council doesn't budget more for the local bus service, said Sandy Modell, general manager of the city's transit company.

City Manager James K. Hartmann proposed a $7.7 million subsidy for DASH in the fiscal 2011 budget, the same amount as in the fiscal 2010 budget. The transit service, however, also received a $200,000 infusion from the city for fiscal 2010, Modell said.

"In order to maintain the level of service we have today, we have to have the 25-cent fare increase," Modell said. "If we were to receive the same amount of subsidy from the city this year, then we would not have to make reductions in service."

If the City Council does not put the $200,000 into the DASH budget, the AT4 line, which runs between City Hall, Slaters Lane and the Braddock Road Metro station, would lose its off-peak weekday and Saturday service. The AT7 line, which runs between Lee Center to Landmark Mall by way of Eisenhower Avenue, would be restructured, Modell said.

"Our hope is that we don't have to do that, because we are in a position of really needing to expand service and not reduce service in the city," Modell said.

DASH ridership decreased by about 200,000 riders, or 5 percent, compared with the same period last year, when the system had more than 4 million riders. Many popular routes, however, are crowded. In addition, the city has projects such as the Base Realignment and Closure developments in the Beauregard corridor and Potomac Yard that will increase the need for transit options, Modell said.

During transit hearings, about a dozen people protested service cuts and the proposal to raise the $1.25 base fare. They said DASH buses and regional transit options are their primary mode of transportation, city officials said.

"We need to be in a position to meet the transportation needs not only of today but also over the course of the next couple of years," Modell said.

The transit company has long-range plans for more frequent service, new routes and cross-city connections, Modell said. The plans follow the city's policies for a more transit-oriented community, but there is no funding to begin the services.

Arlington County has similar policies to promote transit-oriented communities. Acting County Manager Barbara M. Donnellan proposed an 11 percent increase for Arlington's transit operations, totaling more than $11 million in operational costs to cover the second year of a plan to expand transit services.

The new ART Route 77, for example, takes riders from Shirlington to the courthouse area. Also, ART took over two former Metro routes to the Pentagon, one starting in Ballston, the other in Shirlington. Because of budget constraints, however, some of the new services will not roll out as soon as the county had planned.

The local takeover of those routes increases ridership and saves the county money in its required Metro subsidy, helping to cover the budget increase, said Arlington Transit Bureau Chief Stephen Del Giudice.

ART system ridership has grown by about 300,000 riders from the same period last year, he said, totaling about 1.2 million riders.

ART will not increase its fares to match the temporary Metro fare increase that is in place until June 26, Del Giudice said. If the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority adopts a fare increase for the start of fiscal 2011, July 1, ART will reexamine its $1.35 base fare. SmarTrip card users receive a 10-cent discount.

"Historically, we would follow suit, but that is obviously subject to the board's approval," Del Giudice said. If Arlington does consider fare increases, public hearings would be advertised in the spring, he said.

Fares for Alexandria and Arlington's paratransit services, which offer curb-to-curb transportation for the elderly and disabled, are usually adjusted when DASH and ART bus fares change.

The City Council is scheduled to approve its final budget by May and the Arlington County Board by next month.