DOT Transportation Engineering Projects
Transit Project
The Veirs Mill Road BRT (VMR Flash) will be a 7-mile, limited-stop, branded bus service with twelve stations planned along Veirs Mill Road and MD 355. The project will transform mobility options by connecting riders to activity and employment centers. This new service will improve transit travel time and increase opportunity for users, including a significant number of minority and low-income riders living along a highly congested corridor. The project will improve passenger transit mobility by connecting riders to high density housing and employment centers and both branches of the Metrorail Red Line. The Veirs Mill Road corridor has some of the highest existing transit volumes in Montgomery County and for that reason has long been considered for upgraded transit.
Where possible, VMR Flash will run in its own lanes to bypass the existing traffic congestion. VMR Flash will use queue jumps and transit signal priority to avoid traffic at select intersections to provide faster and more reliable service. The 12 BRT stations are designed to make boarding buses easier, improving travel time and increasing transit equity. The unique modern stations will provide weather protection, pre-payment stations, and real-time transit information. Bicycle and pedestrian improvements along the corridor will make it easier and safer to get to the VMR Flash stations.
Continuous pedestrian facilities, including sidewalks and shared use paths, will be provided on both sides of Veirs Mill Road from Robindale Drive to Galt Avenue, and along Randolph Road between Veirs Mill Road and Bushey Drive. The VMR Flash project includes additional protected crossings of Veirs Mill Road to reduce the distance between locations where it is safe for pedestrians to cross. These new and upgraded facilities will increase access to the Flash stations and enhance safety along the corridor. More information about the preliminary design of these facilities can be found on the Veirs Mill Road Bicycle & Pedestrian Improvements page.
Rendering of Twinbrook Prkwy & Veirs Mill Road Station
Rendering of Randolph Rd & Veirs Mill Road Station
New and upgraded bicycle and pedestrian facilities are being designed and will be constructed as part of the VMR Flash project. These sidewalks and shared use paths are located within the Bicycle and Pedestrian Priority Area along Veirs Mill Road between Robindale Drive and Galt Avenue, and along Randolph Road between Veirs Mill Road and Bushey Drive. A goal of the project is to provide continuous pedestrian facilities between Wheaton and Aspen Hill Road.
New, protected crossings of Veirs Mill Road are proposed at the following locations to provide opportunities to safely cross the road and reduce the distance between locations where it is safe to cross:
Check out the webmap below that shows the proposed bus rapid transit elements and pedestrian and bicycle improvements along the Veirs Mill Road (VMR Flash) corridor. On the map you can view the locations of the recommended enhancements, Flash stations, and dedicated bus lanes. You can also view the webmap here.
Flash Stations The new, comfortable Flash stations include weather protection, real-time transit information, seating, and lighting. Protected Pedestrian Crossing Protected crossings are locations with a crosswalk and traffic signal where pedestrians and bicyclists can safely cross the road between major signalized intersections. Queue Jumps Queue jumps are short lanes at an intersection that buses are permitted to use to bypass congestion.
Transit Signal Priority Transit signal priority (TSP) is a tool that advances or extends the green light at a signal by a few seconds to allow a bus to continue through an intersection.
Sidewalk Sidewalks are paved facilities parallel to the road designed for use by pedestrians, including pedestrians with disabilities.
Shared Use Path Shared use paths are paved, off-road facilities designed for two-way travel of bicyclists and pedestrians, including pedestrians with disabilities. Dedicated Bus Lanes Dedicated bus lanes are travel lanes designated to be used exclusively by buses or by buses and right-turning vehicles. Where possible, VMR Flash will run in its own lanes to bypass existing traffic congestion. Along select segments of Veirs Mill Road, Flash vehicles will be permitted to travel in the outside shoulder as a dedicated lane.
The Montgomery County Department of Transportation completed preliminary engineering of the VMR Flash design in 2021. The project is now in Final Design, which will be completed in 2024.
MCDOT will hold a public open house (virtual or in person) in Fall 2023 to share updates on the final design progress.
A public information meeting virtual presentation for the City of Rockville was held on Wednesday, November 9th, 2022.
On Wednesday Nov. 10, 2021, Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) held a virtual Corridor Advisory Committee (CAC) meeting to present an update on the Veirs Mill Road Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project and solicit feedback on station access and design.
In June 2021 we surveyed the public and asked how you would use the VMR Flash and what improvements you would like to see. Here is what you told us:
We showed you pictures of the US 29 Flash stations and asked how the stations could be improved. The comments we heard most often were requests for more seating and more weather protection. We heard you! The VMR Flash stations will include bigger benches and bigger shelters to protect riders from sun and rain.
We asked you how you would get to the stations and whether your station would be easy to get to. Many of you stated that there are locations with no sidewalks and that the pedestrian crosswalks are either missing or feel unsafe. We heard you! The VMR Flash project is exploring opportunities to add more pedestrian and bike improvements to the corridor, building new or wider sidewalks and shared use paths, installing signalized crosswalks, and redesigning some intersections to make them easier to cross. MCDOT is also studying the need for more lighting on sidewalks and shared use paths.
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The Project is funded for Final Design in the County Budget. MCDOT is pursuing a Federal Small Starts grant to partially fund the project costs.