More than $1 million a year is being spent on a free lunchtime shuttle in Tysons Corner that averages fewer than one passenger per run, prompting Fairfax County officials to examine the necessity of the often empty buses.
Republican Supervisor Pat Herrity, Springfield District, called the shuttle “well ahead of its time,” saying the bus will remain nearly empty until planned HOT lanes and Metro stations are completed.
“There is no time advantage to taking the shuttle,” Herrity said. “There’s not a significant enough population in Tysons that doesn’t use a car. And until rail comes in or we get more people living in Tysons there won’t be.”
County supervisors Tuesday instructed transportation staff to study the effectiveness of the shuttle. Upon completion, Herrity said he would like the county to find another use for the nearly $1.2 million each year.
The shuttle is funded as part of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority’s Dulles Corridor Metro project, in which four Metro stations are slated for the area by 2013.
Started in November, the Tysons Connector was billed as a way to unclog the roads when drivers swarm the streets for lunch. The shuttle buses run every 10 minutes around lunchtime on weekdays, making more than 100 loops through the area. Many of the runs are empty. Only 75 passengers use the service each day, transportation officials said.
But those officials aren’t ready to throw dirt on the project.
“Keep in mind it’s early in the process,” said Rollo Axton, the county’s chief of transit services. “Weather has not been conducive to getting out.”
In the coming months, Axton said he hoped for around five passengers at a time — the bus seats 26.
According to the Virginia Department of Transportation, around 130,000 cars head into and out of Tysons Corner every day.
The bus stops include Tysons Corner Center, Tysons West Park Transit Station and Tysons Galleria.
