Guest post by Gavin Baker

More trains could soon serve Fort Totten metro station, if approved by the Metro board.

In October 2018, Metro’s General Manager released the proposed budget for fiscal year 2020, which includes service improvements. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) board is expected to approve a final budget within the next few weeks. WMATA’s Finance and Capital Committee is scheduled to consider the budget proposal on March 14.

The proposed budget would benefit Fort Totten by adding Yellow Line service during rush hour and increasing direct connections on the Yellow and Red Lines.

Currently, Yellow Line trains end at Mt. Vernon Square during rush hours and at Fort Totten at all other times. Under the proposed budget, all Yellow Line trains instead would run to Greenbelt – to and through Fort Totten.

From 2012 to 2017, Yellow Line trains ran to Greenbelt under Metro’s “Rush Plus” program. The FY 2020 budget proposal would restore that service at all times.

For Fort Totten, the proposed budget would add new service during rush hour to downtown DC, Arlington, and Alexandria (toward Huntington) and to Prince George’s County (toward Greenbelt). Outside of rush hour, there would be additional trains toward Greenbelt.

The proposal would also add more direct connections on the Red Line. Currently, some Red Line trains turn back at Silver Spring. Under the proposed budget, all Red Line trains instead would run to Glenmont, providing more trains from Fort Totten to Forest Glen, Wheaton, and Glenmont.

WMATA estimates these changes would benefit 12.4 million Yellow Line and 3.4 million Red Line trips overall next year.

For now, this is only a proposal. The WMATA board has to give final approval, and board members have criticized some aspects of the proposed budget. However, the Yellow and Red Line changes seem to have broad support among the board, according to the latest reports. If approved, these service improvements could be significant for our neighborhood, and not only in terms of more convenient transit service. In addition to adding more service generally, it would also offer a one-seat ride from Fort Totten to the future Amazon “HQ2” in Arlington and Alexandria. Amazon’s expected 25,000 jobs in Northern Virginia will make it the largest private employer in the DC area, and those employees will have to live somewhere. With direct Yellow Line service from Fort Totten to “National Landing,” maybe some of them will choose to call Riggs Park home – or at least check out Meow Wolf.