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Alexandria-area commuters would see more frequent Metrobus service on a key local route under a revised fiscal year 2027 budget proposed last week by WMATA General Manager Randy Clarke.
Route A76, which connects the Mark Center in Alexandria to Ballston-MU and Virginia Square-GMU stations and continues to Rosslyn Station via Fairfax Drive, 10th Street North and Arlington Boulevard, would see its weekday peak frequency cut from every 30 minutes to every 15 minutes, effective on or around July 1, 2026. The route also serves Southern Towers and the Northern Virginia Community College-Alexandria campus on Fillmore Avenue. It largely replaced the former 25B route when Metro launched its Better Bus network redesign in June 2025, extending service north to Rosslyn — a connection the 25B did not provide.
The budget document also highlights a mid-year improvement already in place: new commuter peak service launched earlier this fiscal year on Route A29, which improved access from Alexandria and Arlington to downtown Washington.
Larger rail improvements are on the way, but delayed. Under the revised plan, Blue line trains — which serve Alexandria's King Street-Old Town, Eisenhower Avenue, Braddock Road, Van Dorn Street and Franconia-Springfield stations — would run every 10 minutes throughout the day before 9:30 p.m. on weekdays, improved from the current 12-minute headway. That change, originally proposed for July 2026, has been pushed to December 2026 to help reduce the overall jurisdictional subsidy increase from 3 percent to 1.8 percent.
Alexandria is also among the jurisdictions where Metro plans to complete installation of its new public safety radio system by summer 2027, part of a $608.7 million infrastructure overhaul that has been underway since 2017.
Paratransit riders should be aware of one new cost. The revised budget proposes a $3 per-trip administrative fee for Abilities-Ride trips beginning July 1, 2026. The program, which provides curb-to-curb service and has been free since its regional rollout in 2019, now accounts for the majority of trips taken in the Metro Access network, according to the budget presentation.
Virginia's jurisdictional subsidy contribution is projected at $500 million in the revised budget, a 1.6 percent increase over the current fiscal year. The WMATA Board of Directors is expected to vote on the final fiscal year 2027 budget on April 23.
To review the full, revised budget proposal, click here.
