By the end of the year passengers will be able to dial a phone number or check an Internet site to see when the next Metro bus will be coming to their stop.
Under a pilot program launched last year, Metro uses a computer system to track its buses and anticipate their arrival at each stop. A pilot project to test the system was launched last year.
On Thursday Metro’s board of directors approved adding 24 bus routes to the system by April with plans to incorporate all of Metro’s 300 routes before the year ends.
“It serves our customers better because they do not have to guess when the next bus is coming,” said Beck Pak, who manages the project for Metro.
When the project is fully implemented, every bus stop on Metro’s bus system and on all local systems (such as the Fairfax Connector or Prince George’s The Bus), will have signs telling customers the stop’s number. Passengers can call 301-562-4669 to find out the estimated arrival times for the buses serving that route. The info is also available on the Internet on www.wmata.com.
“This will be quite a benefit to riders,” said Chris Zimmerman, a Virginia representative on Metro’s board. “People will ride the bus during rush hour when the service is at its peak. But knowing I can figure out when the bus is coming makes me more willing to use the system on the weekends and other times when the buses are not running every few minutes.”
