New Ride On Route 23 signs installed in Bethesda (Photos)

Restoration of Ride On Route 23 bus service to Westbard Avenue in Bethesda, following a 20-month detour caused by a road realignment project, faced a minor snag. Bus stops on the now-no-longer-extant block of Ridgefield Road, like everything else on that section of the street, had been demolished. This weekend, that problem was resolved with the installation of two new bus stop signs on what Montgomery County is now calling the 5600 block of Brookside Drive, instead of Ridgefield Road. 

The stop that used to be in front of Domino's Pizza in the Westwood Center II mini-mall (also demolished) has been relocated closer to the intersection with River Road. I suspect that is to put it in proximity to the lobby entrance of the future assisted living facility that will be built on the former site of Westwood II and Citgo.

Westbard Square bus shelter installed in Bethesda (Photos)

The Montgomery County Council may have deleted the transit center from the Westbard sector plan in 2016, but it turns out those arriving and departing the future Westbard Square development at 5400 Westbard Avenue in Bethesda by bus will still have a roof over their heads. A bus shelter has been installed on Westbard right in front of the new Giant building. I notice that a sign has also been installed on the building behind it, indicating the pedestrian access to the parking garage. This is where the Route 23 Ride On bus will stop, once service to Westbard Avenue is restored.

Ride On 23 will not service 9 Bethesda stops during long-term Ridgefield Road/Westbard Avenue construction detour

UPDATE: MCDOT has confirmed that the actual closure of Ridgefield Road is set for 12:00 AM on June 5, 2022. The decision was made because the Maryland State Highway Administration would only allow Montgomery County to shut the road down on a weekend, and at night. Expect the Ride On detour to begin on June 5, then.

There's more bad news on the Ridgefield Road closure front in Bethesda. For at least 12 months of the closure of Ridgefield between River Road and Westbard Avenue, Ride On Route 23 will drop 9 of its usual bus stops in Bethesda. The bus will detour around the construction using Little Falls Parkway, and rejoin the rest of its stops at Westbard and Massachusetts Avenue when bound toward Sibley Hospital, and the reverse when heading toward the Friendship Heights Metro station. Detours begin June 1, 2022 or June 6, 2022 and will end on May 31, 2023, according to the Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT tweet says "June 1," but its detour announcement says "June 6." I am awaiting a response from MCDOT and will update as soon as I hear back).

A Ride On Flex shuttle bus will operate between the Westwood Shopping Center on Westbard and the Ride On stops still operating on Massachusetts. It will turn around on Fort Sumner Drive and head back to the shopping center.

A Ride On Flex shuttle bus like this will
operate between the Westwood Shopping Center
and Massachusetts Avenue to replace the
Westbard Avenue stops of Route 23

Stops between Little Falls Parkway and Ridgefield Road along River Road? Well, you're out of luck, according to Montgomery County. So if you rely on Ride On 23 to get to Whole Foods, McDonald's, 7-Eleven or Talbert's, you're out of business for at least a year. Although the official County announcement does not mention this, if you are a River Road rider who needs to get to and from the Friendship Heights Metro station, the T2 Metrobus is another option.

Folks like this who rely on 
Ride On 23 along River Road are
about to get some tough love from
Montgomery County

The detour plan discriminates against Ride On 23 riders, and discourages use of transit at a time when gasoline prices are at an all-time high. This is only the latest transit failure related to the 2016 Westbard sector plan. The County Council already eliminated the proposed Westbard Transit Hub, and a Westbard-Friendship Heights Metro free shuttle bus, from the plan prior to approving the document. More recently, the Council voted to end free Ride On service, instituting a $1 fare that will take effect July 1, 2022.

"Elections have consequences."
- President Barack Obama

Snowstorm hits Bethesda for an icy start to 2022 (Photos)

The most significant snowstorm in several years yesterday caused some limited power outages and a number of traffic accidents. Many businesses closed for part or all of Monday. There are currently small numbers of Pepco customers without power in Spring Hill, Brookdale, American University Park, Bannockburn, Glen Echo, Wyngate, and between Fernwood Road and Old Georgetown Road near Wildwood Shopping Center.

This morning, Bethesda hit a hard freeze of 19 degrees. Montgomery County Public Schools closed for a second day. Metrobus is operating on a Severe Storm Schedule. Ride On bus is on a normal weekday schedule, but expect delays and detours based on road conditions in specific areas.

The calm before the storm:
Montgomery County deicing vehicle
stands by on Westbard Avenue as
snow approaches

Many businesses closed Monday, 
including the venerable Tastee Diner,
which reopened at 5:00 AM this morning

Collision involving Ride On bus in downtown Bethesda (Photos)

A Montgomery County Ride On bus was involved in a collision at the intersection of Battery Lane and Woodmont Avenue in Bethesda around 7:00 PM tonight. Damage to the bike rack and front of the bus is visible. Over an hour later, some lanes are closed in that area, as investigation and cleanup continue. There is no word on the cause or injuries as of this writing.

Bethesda-Potomac Ride On 36 will no longer stop at Connelly School of the Holy Child "per the request of the school"

Ride On Route 36 will no longer stop at the Connelly School of the Holy Child at 9029 Bradley Boulevard in Potomac as of this coming Sunday, February 28, 2021. That has been the last stop on the route, which has run between the Bethesda Metro station and the school up until now. 

New Route 36 map effective
Sunday, February 28, 2021

Ride On 36 will now loop back to Seven Locks Road via River Road, instead of crossing River Road. Montgomery County's Department of Transportation said the termination of service to the Connelly School stop is "per the request of the school." Click here for the new map and timetable that will become effective this Sunday.

Fact check: Is Montgomery County Ride On bus service being cut by Larry Hogan?

A remarkable column about Montgomery County transit appeared in Friday's Washington Post. It was remarkable for two reasons. First, Post columnists have been silent on transit cuts made by the Montgomery County Council over the last decade, including their elimination of the Park and Ride route for Frederick commuters entering Montgomery, and their slashing of weekend bus service in Damascus. And remarkable because it was...false.

Columnist Petula Dvorak was apparently attempting to write a critical piece about service cuts proposed by the Maryland Transit Administration to MTA bus routes and MARC rail service. But a lengthy introduction, and let's-give-the-Council-free-press quotes from councilmembers, suggest that Montgomery County and its Ride On bus service will be the victims of the MTA cuts.

Ride On Route 55 is specifically cited by Dvorak, and later she says the MTA cuts will make the Route 55 buses even more crowded like "sardine cans." She adds that low-income residents in Montgomery County will be "among those devastated by reductions in bus routes." The article paints Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) as the villain who is behind the cuts.

Just one problem - Ride On is not run by the MTA. Ride On is funded by Montgomery County taxpayers, and is run by the Montgomery County Department of Transportation. There are no Hogan cuts to Ride On because Hogan has no authority over or involvement with Ride On. There are no MTA cuts to Ride On routes proposed. If any Ride On cuts are made, they will be made by the Montgomery County Council deciding not to fund those routes.

The column wound up literally being fake news. At best, Capitol Hill resident Dvorak did not realize the MTA doesn't run all bus service in the state of Maryland.

Depicting Montgomery County Council members as heroes fighting to save Ride On bus service in the County doesn't even pass the laugh test, much less a fact check. If they are working so hard to save transit, why have they still not restored weekend service on Route 90 in Damascus, a 2010 Ride On cut that left car-free residents stranded in town on weekends?

Is Montgomery County Ride On bus service being cut by Larry Hogan? Nope. It has been cut in the past by the Montgomery County Council, though.

Fact check score: FOUR PINOCCHIOS 

Masks mandatory on Ride On buses starting today

The Montgomery County Department of Transportation has mandated that all Ride On bus passengers must wear masks or face coverings starting today. Riders not in compliance will be asked not to board, or to disembark if they remove their mask while aboard. A similar rule will take effect statewide on Saturday, April 18, 2020.

Bethesda liquor store, nursing home report coronavirus cases; Hogan announces Bloomberg partnership for Covid-19 treatment

Ride On reduces bus 

service to essential routes

drive-thru coronavirus 

testing site opens in Bethesda

A major coronavirus hotspot was identified by Montgomery County in one of its own County-owned liquor stores Friday. An employee at the Montgomery County Liquor store at 4920 Hampden Lane in Bethesda has tested positive for Covid-19, the County liquor department announced in a press release. The County said anyone who shopped at the Hampden Lane liquor store on March 23 or 24 should monitor themselves for coronavirus symptoms.

However, unless the employee only started working March 23, that does not seem like sound advice. The employee tested positive after exhibiting symptoms of Covid-19 on March 25. But a person can be asymptomatic for up to 14 days after being exposed to the coronavirus, so customers could have been at risk of exposure long before March 23.

When you think of how heavily the county government has pushed liquor sales during the coronavirus shutdown, and how many people in downtown Bethesda, Edgemoor, East Bethesda and Chevy Chase likely stocked up at the downtown Bethesda store over the last few weeks, this represents a major risk to the community. The Hampden Lane store has been temporarily closed for sanitizing and deep cleaning.

Montgomery County nursing homes

with coronavirus

The Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services has identified three nursing homes in the county where either residents or staff have tested positive for coronavirus. Three residents at Brighton Gardens on Tuckerman Lane in Bethesda have tested positive for Covid-19, the HHS confirmed. All three are currently hospitalized.

One staff member at Fox Chase nursing home in Silver Spring, and one staff member at the Fairland Center on Fairland Road in Silver Spring also have tested positive. Each is self-quarantining at this time.

The reports on this and the liquor store are among the very few cases where the County has been open with the public on where infected people have worked, shopped or traveled. Such a lack of open information has helped to spread the coronavirus because residents could not avoid places of exposure, and people who were in those places could not self-isolate to protect vulnerable household members and others in the community.

Ride On further reduces

services to essential routes

Ride On announced that bus service is being further reduced to essential routes. If your regular bus includes a hospital as a stop, you're in luck, such as the Ride On 23 in Bethesda that goes to Sibley Hospital. If it doesn't, not so much. A full list of routes still operating can be found online.

Hogan announces partnership to find

coronavirus treatment with Bloomberg,

Johns Hopkins

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced a major research initiative the state is undertaking in partnership with Johns Hopkins Medicine and Bloomberg Philanthropies. The research will center around blood plasma samples from patients who have recovered from Covid-19, and attempt to find a treatment for the disease, if not a vaccine. Bloomberg is donating $3 million, and the state is contributing $1 million.

MedStar opens coronavirus

testing site in Bethesda

MedStar has opened a coronavirus testing site in Bethesda, as predicted by Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich earlier this week. However, rather than using the White Flint Mall site Elrich suggested, MedStar has opened it at the Pauline Betz Addie Tennis Center, located at 7801 Democracy Boulevard. Before you jump in your car, though, you must have a referral from a MedStar physician who will approve you as a candidate for testing.

Montgomery County Ride On disinfecting buses for coronavirus

Montgomery County's Ride On bus service is trying to get in front of a potential loss of ridership due to fears over the novel coronavirus. Three MoCo residents have tested positive for covid-19 so far; officials have not yet informed the public as to whether any of the three rode public transportation before their current quarantine status. Ride On says they are disinfecting all buses nightly for coronavirus, including fareboxes, poles and even the driver's steering wheel. The transit service says they are using a "concentrated, multi-purpose, hospital grade, germicidal detergent, antiviral solution."

On Saturday, the first cases of coronavirus in the District and Virginia were reported. Maryland and Montgomery County officials have yet to offer any further information on where the three MoCo patients may have traveled while infected with coronavirus after returning from their cruise in Egypt. Of course, while it will certainly help to clean the buses in any case, there will still be the issue of riding in close quarters on buses as the outbreak spreads. Coughs and sneezes are one of the leading ways the virus is spread.

Ride On Extra buses will be free during October

Two of the alternatives to the proposed boondoggle of Bus Rapid Transit in Montgomery County - express buses and free Ride On fares - will be realized on a very limited basis in October: A new express bus service called Ride On Extra will begin service along MD 355, and fares on Ride On Extra will be free that month. Service will run between Gaithersburg and Medical Center station in Bethesda.

The buses are a lite version of BRT, with similar features like low-floor boarding, 10-minute peak rush hour headways, and free Wi-Fi, but will not take travel lanes along Rockville Pike from cars (as BRT will). Ride On Extra buses will also have traffic signal priority, but the County has never addressed how that random impact on traffic signals will affect the synchronization of lights up and down the Pike. It could cause major rush hour delays on an already-jammed road.

There's no mention of how much the month of free service will cost taxpayers, either. Ride On Extra stops will include Lakeforest Transit Center, Summit Ave., Westland Dr., Shady Grove Metro, Montgomery College, Rockville Metro, Edmonston Dr., Halpine Rd., Marinelli Rd., Security Ln., Tuckerman Ln., and Medical Center. There will be new bus shelters and bus stop flag signs to identify Ride On Extra bus stops.

Bethesda to Glenmont Ride On Route 33 service change proposed

A bus route connecting three of my favorite places in Montgomery County (Bethesda, Glenmont and Connecticut Avenue Estates) could be in for some changes. Montgomery County's Department of Transportation is proposing to make service changes to Ride On Route 33 (Bethesda Medical Center Metro station to Glenmont Metro station).

The change would divert the bus into the Connecticut Avenue Estates neighborhood near the Glenmont end of the route, to provide better service to that community. Here is a rare case where a bus route change would actually provide more service, rather than less.

Existing route near
Connecticut Avenue Estates

Proposed diversion into
Connecticut Avenue Estates

To comment on the proposed change, you can speak at one of 3 public forums:

Thursday, March 2, 2017 at 7 p.m. (Connecticut Avenue Estates Community)
Highland Elementary School in the All-Purpose Room (Cafeteria)
3100 Medway Street, Silver Spring

Tuesday, March 7, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. (Cabin Branch/Clarksburg Communities)
Clarksburg at Rocky Hill Middle School
22401 Brick Haven Way, Clarksburg

Thursday, March 9, 2017 at 6:30 pm (Poplar Run Community)
Poplar Run Community Center/Clubhouse
13500 Stargazer Lane (off Poplar Run Drive), Silver Spring

Register a minimum of three days in advance of the forum to speak for three minutes, either by email or in writing to the Division of Transit Services, Ride On Public Forum, 101 Monroe Street, 5th Floor, Rockville, MD 20850 and provide the following information:
Date of forum the speaker plans to attend
Name
Home address
Telephone number
E-mail address
Organization

Speakers must bring two printed copies of their testimony to the forum. These forums will end after the last registered speaker. If the forum is cancelled due to inclement weather, it will be rescheduled for March 14, 2017.

Opening day at Westfield Montgomery Mall's new transit center (Photos)

Eleven years in the making, the new Transit Center at Westfield Montgomery Mall opened yesterday. Relocated to the corner of the property adjacent to I-270, the center will replace the existing bus bays at Auto Park Avenue and Westlake Terrace. Effective yesterday, Metrobus routes J2 and J3's stops have relocated to Bus Bay F at the Transit Center.

Riders will find a better travel experience, with heated, covered shelters and information screens.

Westfield paid for the new bus bays, utilities and foundation structures. Montgomery County picked up the tab for wind and weather screens, a rain canopy above waiting riders, and a driver restroom.  There is also parking for bicycles.

The original concept for the center's location by I-270 was designed with the future potential for rail transit along the interstate in mind, according to Westfield VP of Development Jim Agliata. He said the company would welcome such a development in the future.

Montgomery County apparently botched the launch PR effort, as no wide media invitations were sent out for a ribbon cutting ceremony last week, leaving County and mall officials essentially talking to themselves at a sparsely-attended event. It's hard to generate ridership if the public doesn't know about it. We aren't likely to lead the nation in tech if our government doesn't know how to engage the new media, blogs and social media.