“Charles Allen Re-Introduces Metro For DC Bill to Give Every DC Resident $100 Monthly Balance on SmarTrip Card and Transform Bus Service”

photo by Bradley Joines

From a press release:

“DC Councilmember Charles Allen (Ward 6) is re-introducing his bill that would put a recurring $100 balance to DC resident’s SmarTrip card every month and make a $10 million annual investment in improving bus service and infrastructure in the District.

Metro For DC would create a way for all DC residents to register a SmarTrip card and have it refresh to a $100 balance at the beginning of each month, similar to some employer-paid benefit programs. The balance would never exceed $100, so the District only pays for what a resident uses while riding Metrorail or Metrobus.

“It should be a benefit of being a DC resident to be able to take full advantage of our world-class WMATA system. No matter how you slice it, an extra $100 a month saved on transportation would help a lot of DC residents and it would be a great boost to our WMATA system at a time when it needs to recover,” said Councilmember Allen. “At the same time, it’s not enough to make it more affordable. We need to improve service by making it frequent, faster, and more reliable. That’s why the dedicated bus fund is just as impactful.”

The law would also create a dedicated fund that requires DDOT to make improvements to bus service. That could include funding more District routes or reducing headways on existing routes. It could also be used to create dedicated bus lanes or improve bus shelters for those waiting.

“This offers a lot of benefits for our community. Better for families. Better for employers and businesses who count on WMATA. It will help get more people back on WMATA, plus an important boost for the essential workers who have been riding the whole time. And we can pay for it without raising anyone’s taxes,” said Councilmember Allen.

The bill proposes funding the benefits to residents by dedicating excess revenue to the fund once other existing obligations to debt servicing and the Housing Production Trust Fund are met. Learn more here.

Council Chairman Phil Mendelson and Councilmembers Mary Cheh, Robert White, Janeese Lewis George, Brianne Nadeau, Anita Bonds, Christina Henderson, Kenyan McDuffie, and Brook Pinto have signed on as co-introducers. The bill was first introduced in March 2020, right before the global pandemic disrupted much of District life.”