Go Montgomery Transportation Update

• New Ride On Service Begins
• InterCounty Connector
• More Trains for Metro's Red Line
• Silver Spring News: Pedestrian Congress, Bike to Work Day, and the Wayne Avenue Garage

New Ride On Service Begins — back to top

As part of the Go Montgomery! transportation initiative, Ride On launched new bus service earlier this month between Clarksburg and the Shady Grove Metro Station, and made changes that will improve schedules on nine other routes. The new Clarksburg service is designed to increase transit opportunities for this growing community. Ride On added 18 new Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses. Fifteen more CNG buses will be delivered this fall, increasing the total number of Ride On’s clean-fuel natural gas buses to 57, or 16 percent of the entire fleet.

InterCounty Connector — back to top

The Washington Metropolitan Council of Government's Transportation Planning Board (TPB) voted on April 21 to include the InterCounty Connector (ICC) in the regional Conformance Analysis model, which will assess the ICC’s impact on the region’s air quality.

Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan, who lobbied the TPB, noted that, “commuters in the Washington metropolitan area have some of the longest commute times in the nation, and critical projects like the ICC hold much promise for improving our quality of life.” Duncan went on to say that, “construction of this road will significantly reduce the impact of traffic congestion on local County roads.” For more information on the ICC, go to the State's website at www.iccstudy.org.

More Trains for Metro’s Red Line — back to top

On April 26, Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan joined the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro) and Maryland officials in celebrating the addition of new rail cars to Metro’s Red Line. The additional cars will help relieve overcrowding and allow rush hour trains to run more frequently. The new cars are also a first step in Duncan’s goal for all Red Line trains to run to the Shady Grove and Glenmont stations rather than the current practice of turning half of the trains back at Grosvenor and Silver Spring.

Silver Spring News:
Pedestrian Congress, Bike to Work Day, and the Wayne Avenue Garage — back to top

On May 6-8, America Walks, a national coalition of local advocacy groups dedicated to promoting walkable communities, held their annual conference in downtown Silver Spring – the first time the group has met on the east coast. Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan delivered the welcoming remarks to attendees and highlighted the opportunities Silver Spring’s redevelopment has provided to transform the central business district into a pedestrian-oriented town center.

On May 7, Duncan joined thousands of bike commuters around the region in celebrating clean transportation at both the Silver Spring and Bethesda Bike to Work Day ‘pit stops,’ where bicyclists gathered before commuting to work in convoys. This annual celebration recognizes the health and environmental benefits of biking to work. Montgomery County has an active bikeway program, and Duncan updated riders on the County’s actions to expand the bike trail network.

The Wayne Avenue Parking Garage officially opened on May 7, providing more than 1,700 additional parking spaces to the new Downtown area of Silver Spring. The garage uses the "Pay On Foot" parking system that allows patrons to pay at automated machines before reclaiming their cars. The machines will accept any denomination of coin or dollar bills. The well lit garage also features electronic signs on each ramp that inform drivers of the number of empty spaces available on the next level as well as upper levels. Approximately 7,000 square feet of office space in the garage will be occupied by the Round House Theater School within the coming months.

Please click here to go to the unsubscribe page.