Press Releases - Department of Transportation
New Service Enhancements to Metrobus's Q Line on the Veirs Mill Corridor
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Four additional lines now supplement the Q2 route on the busy Veirs Mill Road corridor that connects Shady Grove, Montgomery College, Rockville, Wheaton, and Silver Spring
Metro, in partnership with the County and the Maryland Department of Transportation, has recently improved transit service along the Veirs Mill Road corridor. The corridor connects Shady Grove Metro with Silver Spring Metro and serves around 10,000 riders a day. Because of its popularity and heavy traffic along its route, the line suffered from frequent overcrowding and poor schedule adherence. A comprehensive study was begun in late 2008 with a rider survey and continued into 2009 with a series of public meetings, and a comprehensive technical analysis which led to service improvements being implemented.
In the first phase of improvements, two new routes were added: the Q4 - Rockville Metro to Silver Spring Metro (all stops, 15-minute rush and 30-minute midday schedule, daily); and the Q6 - Shady Grove Metro to Wheaton Metro (all stops, 15-minute rush and 30-minute midday schedule, Monday through Saturday).
The study showed that most activity on the line takes place on Veirs Mill Road. The two new routes overlap along the busiest part of the corridor and provide more service to riders between Rockville and Wheaton.
In addition to the Q4 and Q6, two more routes will be operated: the Q1 - Shady Grove to Silver Spring, bypassing Montgomery College (early and late full length trips, daily); and the Q5 - Shady Grove to Wheaton, bypassing Montgomery College (30-minute midday schedule, Sunday).
During the study, many riders indicated that the service to Montgomery College is timeconsuming for those who want to get to other destinations along Frederick Road/Hungerford Drive. The addition of the Q1 and Q5 means that riders who want to bypass the college will now have that option at times when service to the college is not needed.
The existing Q2 route (from Shady Grove to Silver Spring via Montgomery College) remains in place for early and late full-length trips daily, meaning that five routes in total now serve the Veirs Mill Road corridor.
In addition to the route changes taking place along the Veirs Mill Road Line, several operational improvements are happening to make the service run more smoothly. Among these are:
* Increased Supervision – A team of Metrobus supervisors will focus only on the operation of the Q Line.
* Greater Parking Enforcement – Enforcement of parking regulations around bus stops will help improve the overall flow of the bus service, especially along Georgia Avenue and in Silver Spring.
* Enhanced Bus Driver Training – Additional training will be given to bus drivers to help them deal with problems specific to the Q Line.
For more information on this new service, visit Metro’s website or call the Division of Transit Services's Transit Information Center at 240.777.7433 or Metro's Customer Service at 202.637.7000.
Media Contact: Tom Pogue 240-777-7155