Help Shape WMATA’s Future Goals

Tell Metro: bikes love transit

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which operates Metrorail and Metrobus, is taking input on the agency’s “draft multi-year strategic transformation plan.” You can provide comments in a survey until Feb. 14, or testify at a public hearing on Feb. 9.

Take the Survey

Transit loves biking, and vice versa! A strong transit system can deliver the middle leg of long bike commutes, provide access to trails and recreational rides, and offer an alternative option for bike commuters on bad weather days. In the other direction, bikes, including bikeshare, and other micromobility options, support transit ridership by providing a key last-mile connection. And notably, both transit and bikes — often in combination — are crucial transportation services for vulnerable communities such as lower-income residents.

Thankfully, Metro’s draft plan includes some ideas to foster the win-win relationship between bikes and transit. The draft sets a goal to increase the percentage of Metro riders using a bicycle as their primary mode of access to transit. And it includes some plans for how to get there: by improving safe bicycle access to Metro facilities and expanding amenities for bicyclists, such as secured parking and more bikeshare stations on Metro property.

That’s a great first step. As bike advocates, we can encourage Metro to turn those ideas into priorities by commenting about the importance of aggressively pursuing those improvements.

You can read the full plan here.

Suggested comments

The survey asks a few simple questions about the draft plan. We suggest responding to the questions below with these points; you can skip the other questions if you like.

What do you like MOST about the Strategic Plan?

• Initiative to expand last-mile connectivity options and amenities for bicyclists
• Goal to increase the percentage of Metro riders using a bicycle as their primary mode of access to transit

In your opinion, what initiatives should Metro prioritize to achieve the goals and objectives in the Strategic Plan?

• Provide safe and comfortable routes for bicyclists on Metrorail station grounds, with connections and wayfinding to nearby bike facilities
• Expand free and paid bike parking (e.g. a sufficient number of covered, clean, well-lit, secure bike racks and lockers)
• Partner with Capital Bikeshare and other micromobility providers to expand offerings at Metrorail stations
• Regularly consult with bike users and advocates such as WABA about the best ways to achieve Metro’s goals to improve access to transit for bike users

Please share with us any final thoughts or comments you may have about the Strategic Plan

This is a great place to share your personal story about biking and transit!

• Do you bring your bike on Metrorail or Metrobus?
• Do you take bikeshare to or from Metro?
• Do you rent a bike locker at a Metro station — or wish you could?
• Does your Metro station have enough bike racks, or could they be improved?
• Do you feel comfortable biking at your Metro station?

Take the Survey

Author: Gavin Baker is a community advocate in DC’s Ward 4.