Saturday bus service from Eastern PWC to Franconia-Springfield Metro starts Sept. 14

PRTC will start Saturday bus service between eastern Prince William County and the Franconia-Springfield Metro Station on September 14, this Saturday.

This Saturday bus service is a three-month pilot program entirely funded by Virginia Megaprojects to address congestion on I-95 during weekends when the HOV lanes are closed for construction of the I-95/I-395 Express Lanes.  Fares for the Saturday service will be free during the three month trial period. 

Virginia Megaprojects is a collaboration of the Virginia Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation. 

“We are grateful for the opportunity to offer what is sure to be a valuable service to our passengers, and we thank the staff at Virginia Megaprojects for providing the funding to make this possible,” PRTC Executive Director Alfred Harf was quoted as saying in a news release.

The Saturday Prince William Metro Direct service will start at 7:35 a.m. and end at 10 p.m. 

Buses will run every 45 minutes between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m., and will run every 90 minutes at other times.

Locally, buses will pick up and drop off passengers at Potomac Mills Mall and the PRTC Transit Center, where passengers also can transfer to OmniLink local buses serving eastern Prince William County.  A map and timetable for the new Saturday route are available at PRTCtransit.org.

PRTC currently operates its Prince William Metro Direct service Mondays through Fridays.  Regular one-way fares for the weekday service are $3.60 cash or $2.90 when paying with a SmarTrip card.  The Saturday fare will be free to give drivers added incentive to leave their cars behind and help to lessen the traffic congestion while VDOT works on the I-95 HOV Lanes.

According to PRTC spokesman Christine Rodriego, Saturday service between eastern Prince William County and the Franconia-Springfield Metro Station has been in PRTC’s Long-Range Plan for a long time. It consistently tops the list of service improvements requested by PRTC passengers, she added.