The Abandoned Bus Station on the Washington Metro
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- čas přidán 9. 02. 2024
- For a system as “new” as the Washington Metro, you might not expect to find any abandoned facilities. But that’s exactly what you’ll come across if you make a wrong turn at West Falls Church on the Orange Line. Discover why buses stopped serving these secluded bus bays!
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Date of filming: July 26, 2023; December 14, 2023; January 26, 2024
Camera: iPhone 12, iPhone 15 - Auta a dopravní prostředky
Look mom I'm famous! I used to live in Maryland so shady grove is actually the first station I used when I was a little kid, somehow, I completely forgot. But I've used Vienna a few times and it has a second place in my heart.
I used to live in Shady Grove as a 3 year old. I used the station a lot.
I was there just last week!
It’s ok we all forget things
13:20 - Sammy at Vienna station
I work for WMATA as a train operator, and I can tell you exactly why that second entrance is still open: because it's used by employees to go between there and the rail yard. There is no secret passage for walking between the yard and the station. So we go through the gate at the yard, walk through the bus loop, and then enter the station via that entrance. The cars that you see there most likely belong to employees who drove up to the station rather than walked. Passengers don't typically use that area for anything, except for the occasional pickup or dropoff by someone who knows about the area. Most people who end up over there didn't mean to go over there. When I've seen someone on that side, I've asked them, "Are you sure that you meant to come out on this side?" Nine times out of ten, they meant to go out the other side, but didn't know any better. So after ascertaining where they're trying to go, I show them where to go. Though I have had people who knew what they were doing, and did intend to come out on that side.
Dunn Loring was founded in 1886. General William McKee Dunn and his wife purchased about 600 acres located on the Washington, Ohio and Western Railroad, now the Washington and Old Dominion Regional Trail in June 1886. In September of that year, the land was transferred to the Loring Land and Improvement Company, with George B. Loring who was a former congressman and Commissioner of Agriculture. Thus, Dunn Loring. Vienna got its name from a doctor named William Hendrick. He named it after his hometown of Vienna, NY (now Phelps, NY in Ontario County). Before Vienna, the area was named Ayr Hill after Colonel Charles Broadwater's son-in-law's birthplace of Ayr in Scotland.
Another piece of interesting abandoned transit infrastructure: Myrtle Avenue on the BMT Fourth Ave Line in NYC. The station opened in June 1915 with the rest of the line. The station closed on July 16, 1956 for the reconstruction of the flying junction north of DeKalb Avenue to increase capacity for the entire BMT Division. The Brooklyn-bound platform was removed completely, but the Manhattan-bound platform still exists. In 1980, an artist named Bill Brand used this platform to create Masstransiscope. The artwork consists of 228 hand-painted panels that are behind a long slit light box. The idea was that from the trains passing, the paintings would look like they're moving! It was inspired by a zoetrope!
There are a lot of great trails in this area!
12:30 - Dunn Loring
No doubt those two helped take the land away from its previous owner by taxing the life out of people who’d lost every cent already
It's quite bizarre to still have a working escalator and updated advertisement for an entrance that's been abandoned for some time....then again, maybe they knew you were coming 😂! Looking at WMATA architecture is so cool though! This reminds me how the infamous Hotel Carter in NYC opened with a bus terminal that was later abandoned. The hotel opened as the Hotel Dixie in 1930 with the Central Union Bus Terminal. Buses entered beside the hotel’s entrance on West 43rd and proceeded underground where there was a 35-foot turntable which rotated to lead the buses to their berths. The terminal closed in 1957 because it couldn't compete with the PABT. They made it a parking garage, and the turntable and waiting room floor remained for decades.
A great way of using abandoned transit infrastructure is the NY Transit Museum. The NYTM opened in the former Court Street station on the IND Fulton St Line. The station opened in 1936 and was supposed to be the terminus of the HH Fulton Street Local, but this service never happened and instead served the Court St Shuttle, taking people from Court St to Hoyt-Schermerhorn. Due to proximity to other stations and the need to transfer, Court St had low ridership and it closed in 1946. Even though it closed, they still ran non-revenue trains and allowed studios to film movies there. In July 1976, a transit exhibit opened for the US Bicentennial. Plans were for it to only be temporary until September, but it was so popular that they made it permanent!
Bring back the rotating bus table!!!
@@Thom-TRAThere was also one in Jersey City, N.J. at the Central of New Jersey Railroad at their terminal for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad that's shared the terminal to put their buses onto the ferry to Battery Park at the southern end of Manhattan to their bus terminal at Columbus Circle. If I am not mistaken when I went with my late father to see my first car show at the New York Coliseum for the New York International Auto Show of 1962! 😊
I used this very bus station in 2006 when I took the Washington Flyer from Dulles. Back then they had some infrastructure like column bases which was very clearly intended for what became the Silver Line; they really planned ahead when they built the Metro. I'm planning to visit DC again this year; not decided yet if we're flying into DCA or IAD, but we're definitely taking Metro from the airport. I love the way their stations are designed!
Looking forward to welcoming you here!
WFC's daily parking fee is $3 and, together with Landover, is the lowest of any of the Park & Ride stations. The overwhelming majority charge $4.95, while Grosvenor-Strathmore and Shady Grove charge the most, at $5.20
the range in rates hasn't changed in at least 6 years SMH...
They actually still used that West Falls Church bus stop for one thing up until the Dulles segment of the Silver Line was finished in 2022. The Wolf Trap shuttle bus picked up and dropped off there on summer nights when there were shows at that venue. In fact, I used it in the summer of 2022, I believe, to go see Tom Jones perform. I was a bit miffed they didn't move the shuttle to East Falls Church, but instead moved it to the McLean for the 2023 season, which is much less convenient, as Vienna is my station.
It's also kind of annoying that they put in those nice white bus stop/sidewalk covers, which must have been done in the last 10 or 12 years, when they still haven't gotten around to adding them to the north side of Vienna, a very active station.
Ah, well. I've still got my fingers crossed that Metro will redevelop the sea of parking at Vienna into a mixed use community kind of like Dunn Loring, where it can earn revenue through rent and whatnot.
I saw some apartment buildings that looked like they might have been under construction at Vienna!
Thanks for sharing about the Wolf Trap shuttle, did not know that.
I found this quite an informative video! Now, I know a lot more about the Washington Metro: how the Orange Line was once the Blue Line, why the signs at Foggy Bottom and Smithsonian are mismatched, and the fact that there is a ghost bus stop at West Falls Church station which (for some reason) is maintained like a bus stop, despite having no buses!
Thanks for the video!
Notice the color difference of the column between track 3 and inbound track 6:49 on the right compared to the columns outside of the fences. That column was built to accommodate the future Silver line when VA I-66 and the West Falls Church station were being built back in mid 1970s. The other columns are supported by foundations that were built at the time as well.
Besides being only one of two station with a center track, it only station with a center track that is long enough to hold 2 8 car trains.
The north bus terminal remains open to allow train operators, station managers, maintenance personal to change shifts that are based out of Falls Church Yard.
@@pizzajona There are dozens of provisions scattered around the system to allow for future expansion. Several stations have provisions for new surface entrances and some of those include provisions for new entrance mezzanines. Both Farragut stations have provisions for a future transfer passageway The south end of the Pentagon station has a junction provisions for branch along Columbia Pike. The ends of all of routes have provisions for extension.
The abandoned bus station and buses served as the “Silver Line” before the Silver Line was built. In the Bay Area, we might not have a fancy purpose-built bus station like this, but we do have express bus that serve BART stations being eliminated or shortened. This results in extra bus bays at the old stations, and parking lots become less full. Busy stations become quiet since riders are already on the train.
When BART was extended from Fremont to Warm Springs, VTA express buses (not all) were shortened to Warm Springs. Once the Berryessa extension was completed, those BART express routes were eliminated. Bus service to Downtown SJ is available until the controversial downtown SJ extension is completed.
Similarly, when eBART was completed, Tri Delta has shortened the 300, Brentwood-Antioch-Pittsburg/Bay Point express bus to Antioch only.
It is funding, politics… all that makes extensions finally happening… after decades, and in stages.
Long before the Silver line was actually built basically everyone knew that the metro would eventually be extended to Dulles. It was said that West Falls Church would be the (last) transfer station towards the airport. That was said to be the purpose for the 3rd/middle track.
I'm not sure why the plans were changed, it seemed to make more sense in many ways and there was already various infrastructure built anticipating that eventual extension.
WMATA employee here. I spent a lot of time in that bus loop last summer during the orange line shutdown. The only ways to access it by car is the restricted exit on 267 or through a gate from inside West Falls Church yard. Its main use now is an overflow employee parking lot and equipment staging area. There’s also an entrance to an MTPD facility in the bus loop and a large gravel path that runs next to the tracks for a while which was very helpful last summer because we were able to get a full size mobile crane back there to replace the interlocking instead of using rail born equipment and we were able to dump a pile of ballast right next to the tracks to load the ballast cars on site. Also as a rail equipment mechanic it made my job easier because I could park the service truck right next to the tracks.
Thanks for sharing your experience!
Historical anomalies (like this abandoned bus station on a relatively new metro line) are fascinating, and you do a great job of covering them! I hope you will continue covering them with your balanced touch. Here are some more I hope you will get a chance to explore: Cleveland's Rapid, where two types of equipment (with different platform heights) share the same track and the same overhead wires; The South Shore Line's new branch, where perhaps the last historic interurban buds off a new light rail branch line; And the last two of the Pacific Electric's red cars are running a tourist line (on old PE tracks no less) in the Los Angeles harbor area (is it still running?). Any way, keep up the great work!
It is my mission to get to Cleveland sometime before the new trains come!
The New Carrolton station is also going to be the eastern terminus on Maryland's purple line which has seen cost overruns and construction delays for years (classic Maryland) they're back to construction now and 2027 is the target date for opening 🤞
I am very excited for the purple line
Great video! New Carrolton was my home station back in the day. I can remember riding the B24 with my Dad from our house in Bowie out to the station. Every time I go back to visit, something new is always opening around the area.
I almost rode a bus up in Bowie the other day and then ended up riding the MARC Train instead
Great videoI remember taking the bus from West Falls Church to Dulles in June 2014 as part of a family vacation and I remember seeing the Silver Line was about open. I think,it opened several weeks later so I was glad I was able to take this route before it was scrapped. The only similar situation in London is the old Greenline Bus Station close to Victoria Coach Station which is now just used for parking coaches but was once used by the numerous Greenline Coaches around Greater London and Megabus also used it for a time in early operations. 😊
Nice video! A little bit of additional information on the bus station: The last two bus lines that serviced the north bays at WFC were Fairfax Connector Route 480, which functioned as a shuttle between West Falls Church and Wolftrap, and Loudoun County Transit Route 901/902, which ran between West Falls Church and Cascades (replaced by Route 312, which starts at Reston Town Center). Both of these routes stopped servicing the station in 2022, around the time Phase II of the Silver Line opened. It is now used as an employee parking lot, but can also be used as a bus terminal for shuttle buses in case of a shutdown on the Silver Line.
I am from Kenya and I started ridding the DC metro rail in 1994. I was amazed and thrilled. My favorite escalator is the Medical Center in Bethesda on the redline as its long and deep. My favorite metro station name is Friendship Heights. I loved the mall and Chevy Chase area. Good job guys
I've been there (I am from Ireland) as I visited DC before the Silver Line extension to Dulles Airport had been opened and used the bus to get to Dulles Airport on my return journey.
Another amazing video. I’m 10 minutes from the Vienna Station and Fairfax Connector is an easy option to the station utilizing the 66 express lanes.
I recently got a chance to ride Fairfax Connector’s new electric buses. Nice ride, rude driver.
@@Thom-TRA yeah not a fan of rude drivers. But at least it gets the job done. Love seeing the electric buses.
This is interesting. Nice throwback. I remember that old Washington Flyer route. Though the 5A Metrobus was usually more convenient for accessing downtown.
I’m glad people have a one-seat ride now!
Great video! I live in central VA but always keep an eye on events at Wolf Trap near this Vienna station and intend to travel this route in the near future.
Thank you for this enjoyable video featuring my "home" WMATA station. It's so true that ridership at WFC dropped drastically after the silver line opened, to the point that there was concern the station would shut down entirely, but I don't think that's likely now that more housing and businesses are being built nearby. If you would like an idea for a future WFC-related bus video, I often see buses for the Virginia Breeze operating out of the upper bus circle; they go to various locations in the state of Virginia such as Blacksburg and Harrisonburg. I'm tempted to travel on the routes sometime and I am surprised there's enough demand to keep these buses coming to WFC station.
I’ve looked at Virginia Breeze before but their schedules always seem a little too meager to make a trip out of it… perhaps someday!
Interesting investigative piece--I remember taking the Washington Flyer bus to and from the West Falls Church Station as a kid. The bus attendants only took cash payments up until about ten years ago. . . I grew up a 5 minute walk from the Clarendon Station. The Orange Line subway portion in Arlington was built cut-and-cover beneath an old interurban streetcar right-of-way, which became Fairfax Drive, a part of which was later renamed Clarendon Boulevard. Unfortunately a lot of historic old commercial buildings were demolished in the early 1970s to facilitate subway construction. You should check out the neighborhoods along the Orange Line in Arlington if you haven't yet. To honor Arlington's transit-oriented development success, the American Planning Association named Wilson and Clarendon Boulevards "Great Streets" a few years back. Wilson Boulevard is the historic commercial "main street" for Arlington and some notable old buildings remain among all the new ones.
I’ve been in the area a few times. Let’s just say I much prefer the neighborhoods in the district itself.
Did they switch to taking SmarTrip on the Washington Flyer?
I agree with you. DC will always be more visually appealing, have trendier cafes, more interesting neighborhoods, etc., as any city should be, but Arlington was a nice place to grow up, and very close to DC which was convenient for going into the city a lot. I did also live in Chevy Chase near the Avalon Theater for a bit. I don’t ever recall using SmartTrip on the Flyer. I just had to pay cash at the bus door. Then at some point I could pay with debit card at the indoor kiosk. Not unlike the LAX Flyaway bus which was also cash only but then switched over to card in the mid 2010s I think. When the people mover and the other light rail line extensions open for the Olympics, I doubt LAX will keep the Flyaway. It is actually quite fast and convenient, much like the Flyer was.
@@johnp1937 ah, so there was a kiosk. Thanks for explaining !
I lived in Reston Town center from 2008 to 2012. I took the Connector from the town center to West Falls church every day to catch the Metro. On a side note my Father ran the Washington Flyer for about 10 years!
That’s so cool!
Thanks for the video. I love transit! I used that bus bay several times. I lived in the East Falls Church area and worked in Reston (late 90s/early 2000s). If my car was being serviced, I would take Metrorail one stop to West Falls Church and then a Fairfax Connector Bus to my office in Reston. The transit options were very convenient. I like Metrorail and VRE. I wish I could ride more, but now I commute with 2 others and we can use the I-66 express lanes, free. On days I go in alone, I take the Omniride commuter bus. Practically door to door service.
OMG thank you for answering my burning questions! I was just on the Silver Line last week heading to Reston for a work lunch and when we passed West Falls Church I saw the bus station and was wondering why it looked so abandoned. Now I know why!
Glad I could answer a question!
It’s awesome that you were able to visit this closed bus station so easily and see a glimpse of the past. Washington DC area has some awesome transit!!!
It has great transit indeed!
I'm a retired metro worker. They keep that open to allow workers access to rail yard. Some vehicles stored there. Parking at yard very restricted inside yard.
There use to be a trailer type train station at New Carrolton. In January 1971 my wife and I took Penn Central’s Metroliner to New York City City. This was pre Amtrak. Memorable because I departed for Viet Nam a few days later.
Have you ever used the Beltway station on the old Pennsylvania railroad?
Awesome Metro episode! 🧡🧡🧡
Thank you for the positive video! Here in the DMV area, everyone complains about the Metro but I think its great compared to the rest of the US. Of course, repairs and upgrades will always be needed.
I never understand the complaining. Having lived all over the world, the metro here actually impresses me. I know several people who work there and they are all committed to making things better.
Exactly! Thanks for the content
Thanks Thom I always feel like I have enjoyed the trip and I bring snacks.😀
Bring some snacks for the rest of us!
Yea I used to go to school out there and I would wait for my bus at that same station. Wow making me feel old
Age catches up to all of us haha
The entrance to the former bus bays still being open probably has something to do with building and fire codes for emergency egress. The Silver Line wasn't even a thought when West Falls Church station was designed and built. Those bus bays also served Loudoun Transit busses, and the Fairfax Connector Rt. 480 shuttle to Wolf Trap which operated via the Dulles Toll Road and just changed last summer from there to the McLean Metro Station instead.
I visited DC often around 2000 and stayed near the Dunn Loring Station. (“I’m Dunn Loring about this station” - haha!) I rode the Orange Line into the city many times and loved it. A great ride and I loved the design of the stations, especially the underground ones.
Glad the joke landed
Great video, thanks
You’re welcome!
I think it’s kind of funny how there’s an abandoned bus station that looks like one that’s still used and has a bunch of parked cars there. None of those structures from what I could tell have never been taken apart.
Back in … must’ve been 1987 or 1988, my parents took our family on a trip to DC. We stayed in Vienna, close to the Metro. My dad absolutely refused to take the train into the city… demanding instead to drive us. There was (and still is) a complete dearth of parking there. So after we got two parking tickets in one day, he relented. :)
I’m sure taking the metro was one of the best days of your life! Haha
Never be Dun Loring, this kind of adventure is what transit is for, long may you and your friends and family share it with us - must say the bus terminal has echoes of Bluewater in Kent \m/
Interesting video Thom. Been to DC several times and love using the Metro. I agree it is one of the best transit systems around. Several years ago was in DC for two weeks staying at the Econolodge on Lee Highway and using the East Falls Church station. Ride from downtown a bit long but usually quick and punctual. The area where the hotel is in has a nice little commercial area with several restaurants, a coffehouse and an excellent bookstore called One Page Books. Pleasant way to spend some free time. Also love the Metro service from Reagan National to Downtown - wish NYC had airport connections like you do but.... What is the status of the line to Alexandria King Street station - heard that section was closed for some time. Alexandria is also a great place to visit.
That closure was a few years ago
Great video sir.
Thanks!
Back in the early 2010s I rode the bus between the West Falls Church station and Herndon. I always sat on the left side of the bus so I could watch the Silver Line construction, like I was a little kid again. Great memories, thanks for bringing them back.
That’s what I’m doing with the purple line! Every time I ride the red line I look at the construction
My cousin used to live a bit further west of Vienna so riding the Orange line way way out there was kinda a treat
I bet it brings up good memories
This is an AMAZING overview of the BOS corridor- truly the DMV’s strongest transportation workhorse. There are are also two excellent secure “Bike & Rides” on the orange line at Vienna and East Falls Church!!
Love the bike and rides!
No way. I live in Bowie, Maryland, and New Carrollton Station (as well as Downtown Largo station) are the main stations that I use on the DC metro.
I visited Bowie State station back in October!
I enjoy your videos with you and your wife traveling around the world Thom. Me and my wife just had our newborn son before New Year's Eve 2023. I just wish the WMATA MetroRail runs later after 9pm.
Congratulations on the baby! And metro runs until 1am…
Now that you did a bus video, could you also do one on why there are so many bus companies in the DMV. I know one of the reasons why, but it would be nice if you made a video about it.
I’m not sure if I would consider this a bus video perse but there are definitely several in the works!
@@Thom-TRA Well that’s nice to hear. It’s also kind of interesting that a metro system under 50 years of age has (in a way) abandoned infrastructure.
I like the background info that you provide for your videos. Good job again!
Thank you!
I saw Andy's Secrets video and felt that it wouldn't make sense to move parking to the abandoned part and upzone the active bay/ with TOD (there's already a loop around the existing apartments and do a new shelter for the 2 routes that still use it). I guess its just overflow employee parking now, but you could just build a garage as big as the current one and make up for the parking deficit with the TOD
Excellent choreography. Metrorail is my favorite attraction. I live in New York and am a subway buff.
I love how relatively close New York is to DC so I can enjoy the subway here and there
@@Thom-TRA The last time I visited the Washington Metrorail was on Thursday, July 11, 2002. I rode the best Amtrak Acela Express from Pennsylvania Station down to Washington (Union Station). That train stopped only at 6 stations, 1 in each state. The Acela train was faster than the Metroliner I rode a long time ago. The New York City rapid transit system is an ancient urban railroad with many lines, most historically built. Thank you for typing to me.💙
@@captainkeyboard1007 thanks for the response!
@@Thom-TRA You are welcome.
You have an amazing channel
Thank you!
Why have a working escalator at an abandoned bus station? Answer is obvious: So Tom is Awesome will have something to talk about
I guess they just knew!
Hey Thom do you know if metro has resumed automatic train operations and automatic door closing? I saw conflicting reports regarding the same. Also have you noticed an increase in frequency? Thanks as always.
The door operations on the red line are automatic. It has made my commute significantly faster. The rest of the lines will follow soon.
ATO, I don’t think so, but they are planning to raise line speeds soon.
And yes, service is the most frequent it’s ever been right now.
@@Thom-TRA wow so things are looking up! Thanks for the info though. Looking forward to see what happens with the bloop and 8000 series updates. Hope you are enjoying your time in DC.
The last bus that served was the Loudoun county transit bus to Potomac falls. As a local resident, that bus and orange line made it the cheapest way to DC vs catching the silver line from Reston. Currently the same bus is now route 312 to Reston town ctr station
Glad to hear a regular user’s perspective!
0:47 - I thought there had been a "Beltway station" here on PennCentral years before MetroRail or even Amtrak.
There was. It was a glorified trailer. I used it a number of times.
I enjoyed that video👍👍
I'm glad!
I think they maintain that currently non-used area because it's cheaper to maintain it than it is to just let it go and then try to recover it from damaging effects of neglect. It doesn't take mother nature long overtake man made structures and turn it in rubble and weeds.
Mother Nature definitely is powerful
I kinda wish East Falls Church were built like West Falls Church (with three tracks and two island platforms). I say this as a longtime resident of the area.
My station!!!! I think there is a weekday rush-only Loudoun County transit bus
Any buses using this station now use the other side
Thom, there's a curious alley near the White Plains Transit Center in Westchester NY, the central bus terminal that connects to the Metro North. It looks like at one time, before the terminal was built on the east side of Metro North, it may have been the drop-off for the buses on the west side of the M-N. It's been repurposed in later years as the parking for a fast food outlet situated in what may have been a dispatcher's shack. But for many years, the short road and the small building went unused. I'm wondering if this lot on the Wash Metro in the video can somehow be repurposed as other than employee parking (which is what it probably was, and why the employee shooed you out).
I’ve never been to White Plains yet but I’d love to check that out!
And yes, metro staff love to park anywhere and everywhere.
Aw I thought the abandoned bus station in DC was a Garden!
Really like your videos. You also have good musical taste - judging by the music you use in your videos.
Thanks! I have one of those “a little bit of everything” playlists on Spotify. I surprise myself sometimes with the randomness on there.
If you ever need a transit buddy in the DC area lmk.
I’d love to meet up someday
That’s weird love you and video
With airport buses most people would prefer to get a direct bus to the centre of the city, assuming that they are going to the centre, rather than get off halfway and get a Metro train especially true if they have heavy cases which many travelers do.Boston and Budapest use to have buses to the nearest Metro and then trains to town and you could always hear the passengers moaning about having to get off and on .
West Falls Metro is also the "Arlington" stop for the three Virginia Breeze intercity bus lines which will take you to Bristol, Blacksburg and Danville.
I accidentally ended up down there once. Technically, I think the bus to Wolf Trap stops there for events so it's not fully abandoned.
I don’t think it does anymore
Do Metro employees working or reporting to work at that yard use this entrance?
I think they do but I’m not sure how legal it is
I lived in Falls Church and had a rabbit family living under my shed!
Hope they didn’t cause too much trouble!
Thom, what do you think of the new WMATA 7000 series trains from Kawasaki?
They are my favorite trains on the system
@@Thom-TRA Coolness!!
Hey thom I love your channel I’m based out of Brunswick md. Let me know if you ever need any clips
Will do!
The abandoned bus terminal at West Falls Church really needs to be repurposed or redeveloped! This is a significant waste of valuable real estate with some very unique & special attributes.
It would be nice if it were turned into something more attractive
I'm perplexed by WMATA's choice to place the last transfer station at EFC instead of WFC. With three tracks available at WFC, it would have made more sense to have Silver Line trains terminate there instead of Ballston during service reductions, enabling direct across-the-platform transfers. This decision seems shortsighted, especially given the significant upcoming development around WFC.
Both lines follow the highway medians. There is no space to branch the silver line off after WFC.
Having a transfer at WFC would have been better but would have required massive amounts of new infrastructure in the form of a new underground station and tunnel due to the locations of the highway median in which the silver line sits.
@@Thom-TRA The original plan was to have the new Silver Line extension from WFC to Ashburn but was changed. The trains already go to WFC as orange line trains. There is a tunnel to the west of WFC that goes under 66 that is used to move trains to the WFC yard. There is space to have trains leave WFC, skirt the yard and then join the median of 267 were a flyover to be used. The proposal for the Silver Line express uses WFC as a station on the Silver Line as well.
Lastly, the Silver Line does not follow medians during its entire route. At Dulles, it leaves the median, loops into the airport and then loops back over to the median of 267 from there. From WFC yard, it would need a flyover to join the 267 median but it has a flyover now that is feet from the end of the WFC platform.
@@danielkelly2210 I can't find the original plans but the line was supposed to start at WFC and not EFC originally. I am curious as to why would it need a new underground station? There are three tracks and there is a tunnel at the west end. I could see the need to expand the tunnel at the west end that goes to the WFC yard as I am assuming that is how trains would have gone but perhaps from WFC down Route 7.
Huh. I kind of expected to hear what the flagger does, if not from him, from you.🤔
If only there were some kind of website, a search engine perhaps, that you could ask a question and find the answer in a matter of seconds. Perhaps they’ll invent one of those things someday…
Is there not even local bus service? That seems weird to me
Did you see the part where I walk to the existing, active bus station?
@@Thom-TRA i was kinda half watching while cleaning...
There is, the 28A stops there.
The local buses stop at the other side of the station, where they have about 8-10 bays.
Perhaps the entrance from the abandoned bushub is open, because the people use it as a parking lot for train and ride.
But you’re not allowed to do that though
There an official parking lot on the other side.
@@Thom-TRA Now i looked at this in google earth. I`m a German. I Think, they maintaine this entrance because the access to the rail yard. Railroader like to go to work by train.
@@cliffmclane6271 I definitely think it’s because of the rail yard
Like you, I love having a metro! It makes District travel fun and convenient. However, unlike you, I have major issues with the lack of police in the system, and the lack of their ability to enforce laws. It makes WMATA dangerous and seedy.
I highly disagree. I’ve only had one incident on metro, and when I reported it, the police were there to follow up within the hour and have kept me updated on the case on a daily basis.
If you think the Washington metro is dangerous and seedy, then I don’t know what to tell you. You’re a lot safer here than in your car…
My mind went to what a great location for a TOD! Except being in the middle of the highway would be bad for human occupancy, which is antithetical to a TOD! At least the WMATA train yard is accessible from the station.
Unless we built a giant climate-controlled dome around it maybe…
I’ve been to WFC pre-2014 and I remembered and even boarded buses from there like the 28A to Tysons and a PRTC Omniride bus. I remember returning a few years later and it’s only the 28A and maybe one more bus serving it (Virginia Breeze by Megabus).
We’re DMV neighbors so hope to catch y’all on WMATA or Amtrak🐧
DMV represent!
Also 703 Fairfax connector to Mclean metro but WFC needs more buses
So what are a Metro flagger's duties?
Makes sure track workers are safe from passing trains
A Grand Entrance to a Bus Station! Sort of...
I am glad that your visit to West Falls Church didn't win you a ticket to prison for the rest of your life. Keeping the bus station closure a secret for sure is a waste of public money. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if they would blame it on something like Homeland Security or something. This goes to show how stupid our politicians can get.
This all seems kind of extreme
It don’t think anyone would go to prison by walking into an area with no barriers or signs alluding to the contrary.
This doesn’t make sense as many buses service areas between stations, and there’s also lots to the south of the station
What doesn’t make sense?
@@Thom-TRA why the bus station was totally abandoned
@@jonathanwilliams1065 the station only connects to the highway and there’s no reason to connect to the highway anymore.
Love your content that you create Thom. I am a retired Metro employee of 40 years and the only use for that exit at West Falls Church now is for people who need to go to the railyard and some cases maybe park there. Here’s a little factoid for you though….Even though “Falls Church“ is in the name, neither East Falls Church or West Falls Church actually reside in the city of Falls Church. East Falls Church is in Arlington county and West Falls Church is in Fairfax county
czcams.com/video/dj5Iy-9uaNU/video.htmlsi=j9OY-cthq8hubFOK
The two links in January 2011 when suburban bus commuters got stuck waiting in line at that abondoned bus bay at WFC because of heavy snow
czcams.com/video/pzM27hhRLoE/video.htmlsi=K8lNQiED4JH4wGy6
Im the 18 yeay
How dare you criticize the Federal Government that is composed of geniuses on everything? C'MON MAN! 😂
I don't really recall ever bringing up the feds in this video...
@@Thom-TRA You did not. But I have no respect for the Department of Transportation.
Zombie station!
Can't get over the robo voice announcements. So icky.
In my California county (Santa Clara county), we have two abandoned bus stations. They were used for two different purposes. One was built near the flagship mall in my county which was from the 70s. The mall bus station became obsolete when the entire bus network got revamped. The second bus station is located at a tram station adjacent to the eastern mall (Great Mall) which opened in June 24, 2004. This one become abandoned after the BART made it into my county. However it is still used as a walk way for tram riders to get to the mall. Read all about it.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Mall/Main_station