Expect a mostly sunny day with a high temperature of around 46 degrees and a north wind at approximately 7 mph. Transitioning into Thursday night, the sky will turn mostly cloudy and the temperature will drop to around 30 degrees, accompanied by a gentle north wind of 3 to 5 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
💡 Quote of the Day
“The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” – Steve Jobs
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
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Passengers board an ART bus on Columbia Pike (file photo by Jay Westcott)
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(Updated at 4:15 p.m.) In the half-decade leading up to 2017, ridership on Arlington Transit, or ART, had risen 34%, or nearly 1 million rides.
Then, in 2018, ridership started trending down, a decline that Covid only sped up — despite the essential workers who continued riding the bus and insulated ART from the pandemic hit Metro sustained.
Today, ridership is on the upswing but still far lower than the 2017 highs. Arlington County is trying to change that — outlining several service changes in a new 10-year strategic plan — all while studying how best to make more expensive investments: buying zero-emission buses.
As for ridership, Joan McIntyre — chair of Arlington’s Climate Change, Energy and Environment Commission, or C2E2 — attributes low numbers to the length of time it takes to reach many destinations in Arlington by bus versus by car.
“Even before the pandemic, ridership of ART and other public transit was largely stagnant,” she told the County Board last month in November. “The reality is that for many in Arlington, you simply can’t get there from here via public transit.”
Arlington Transit ridership numbers since 2014 (via Arlington County)
Surveyed as this plan was coming together, Arlingtonians said the bus needs to arrive more frequently, run for more hours and connect them to more destinations. A 2019 study diagnosing ART’s declining ridership found riders wanted more frequent service, better real-time information and more on-time performance. A 2022 survey had similar findings.
Arlington was not alone in seeing a pre-Covid ridership slump and national studies found contributing factors included the rise of telework, online shopping and ride-hailing services, lower gas prices and higher fares, and in New York and D.C., maintenance service disruptions. (Arlington’s 2019 survey likewise found ride-hailing siphoned off some 19% riders while 51% only rode for work, suggesting telework could be a limiting factor today.)
Arlington cannot control for telework and ride-hailing, but it can make service changes. Areas with growing ridership, Columbia Pike and Route 1, are set to see more frequent service, with more weekend trips and new destinations, such as Long Bridge Park.
Expensive, low-performing routes primarily serving North Arlington will be discontinued or redrawn to connect high-ridership neighborhoods and destinations, such as Waverly Hills and Virginia Hospital Center. Where service is discontinued, it intends to pilot an on-demand “microtransit” option.
On-time performance, however, has more external factors to consider. Recently, this includes public and private construction on Columbia Pike and near the Pentagon, which the county considers “temporary disruptions for long-term gain.” Other factors are traffic congestion on I-395 and in Pentagon City and, for a more positive spin, increased ridership on several routes.
On-time performance (courtesy Arlington County)
To make every change outlined in the 10-year plan, Arlington County would need to spend some $10 million, according to Transit Bureau Chief Lynn Rivers.
This is a fraction of the $130-$180 million estimate from a consulting firm that analyzed the potential cost to convert the entire ART bus fleet to battery electric or hydrogen fuel cell electric buses, though advocates say up to two-thirds of purchase costs could come from state and national funds.
High-dollar investments in buses are not without their controversies. A decade ago, Arlington and Metro embarked on installing new stops on Columbia Pike, leading with the memorable $1 million Pike “Super Stop” plagued by poor inter-agency communication and design flaws.
Pilot projects like free fares, currently being tested out on all routes in peak directions, are also not guaranteed successes. Arlington is currently piloting the change on the heels of some U.S. cities. Earlier European adopters, meanwhile, have reported ridership increases after going fare free but only marginal declines — and in some cases increases — in car use.
Address:6223 Langston Blvd Neighborhood: Lee Ridge Type: 3 BR, 2 BA single-family detached – 3300 sq. ft. Listed: $1,299,000
Noteworthy: City living with tailored country surroundings/two-car garage
A timeless North Arlington Cape Cod, lovingly maintained and thoughtfully upgraded by the same owners since 1995.
This home features three upstairs bedrooms and two full bathrooms. Set behind a handsome stone retaining wall, the home enjoys wonderful privacy and quiet, thanks to its solid one-foot-thick stone construction. Large windows on every side invite natural light to spill across the high ceilings, solid wood floors, and custom built-ins found throughout both levels.
The kitchen is a chef’s delight, complete with a gas cooktop, granite countertops, and a suite of thoughtful additions including a microwave with convection capabilities. Surround sound enhances the first floor, ceiling and wall speakers in the sunroom, dining room, and living room, and SpeakerCraft ceiling speakers in the kitchen. Bright recessed lighting runs throughout the home, while the basement shines with upgraded fixtures that bring exceptional brightness to the space.
Outdoor living is equally as inviting with a rear stone patio and exterior lighting with carriage lamps and multiple spotlights that showcase the grounds beautifully. The primary suite is a true retreat with custom built-in cabinetry featuring granite countertops that flow seamlessly into the walk-in closet and bathroom.
Recent updates include exterior and interior painting (2024), a fully renovated lower-level bath (2024), and roof replacements over both the house and garage (2017). An oversized detached two-car garage with storage plus a driveway accommodating four or more cars provides exceptional convenience. This residence offers easy access to Georgetown, downtown DC, Airports, and Metro.
Possible albino squirrel seen in the Yorktown neighborhood (photo courtesy anonymous)
Possible albino squirrel seen in the Yorktown neighborhood (photo courtesy anonymous)
A rare albino squirrel may be living near Yorktown High School.
A local teen sent ARLnow photos of the squirrel, above, taken in the Yorktown neighborhood. The critter has noticeably red eyes, a characteristic of albino squirrels.
Another photo of the squirrel, taken in Greenbrier Park near the high school, was posted earlier this month to the Capital Naturalist Facebook group.
The last white squirrel spotted in Arlington and reported on by ARLnow was back in 2016 near Columbia Pike.
Albino squirrels in particular are exceptionally rare — about 1 in every 100,000 gray squirrel births, according to a post on the Georgia Dept. of Natural Resources website.
“There are two basic types of white squirrels: albino and leucistic. Albinos have pink or blue eyes and no dark pigments anywhere on their bodies,” the post notes. “Squirrels that have white coats and dark eyes are called leucistic.”
“The scarcity of albino squirrels is thought to be at least partially linked to the animal’s lack of any dark eye pigment: This leaves them more susceptible to the harmful effects of sun rays, which can permanently damage their eyes,” the post adds. “In turn, their poor eyesight makes them more likely to suffer injury and death by falling out of trees.”
Alonso Abugattas, Natural Resources Manager for Arlington County and the administrator of the Capital Naturalist group, said there have also been reports of white squirrels in neighboring jurisdictions like McLean and D.C. — on the National Mall — over the past few months.
“Most of these are white squirrels, but not albinos,” Abugattas told ARLnow. “Albinos due to a lack of pigment have pink eyes [and] are indeed very rare as this affects their sight.”
Arlington Forest’s annual community yard sale will take place on the morning of Saturday, May 20 (rain date May 21). Over 40 Arlington Forest households participate in this event, which attracts many bargain hunters visiting multiple sales in the neighborhood.
County workers fix a valve in Ballston (via Arlington Dept. of Environmental Services/Flickr)
Some county employees now have a labor contract with Arlington County.
This weekend, the Arlington County Board adopted a resolution funding the tentative collective bargaining agreement between the county and the local union representing service, labor and trade workers.
County and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) representatives negotiated a tentative collective bargaining agreement effective July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2027. The union ratified the agreement and the County Board reviewed the potential fiscal impacts of the 55-article agreement this November.
All that remained was to approve a funding resolution, the action taken this weekend. The provisions that will cost the county money will either be funded with tax increases, to the tune of $5-9 per average residential tax bill, or budget cuts — either .1% cuts across the board or the elimination of about four full-time employees.
“We’re very happy that we came to an agreement,” says Anthony Pistone, the president of AFSCME Local 3001, which represents Service, Labor and Trades workers in Arlington and Alexandria. “It’s not exactly what we want but we hope to do better next time and in the next three years.”
He praised both Arlington and Alexandria’s labor ordinances but said they do not go far enough. AFSCME hopes to change them so unionized employees have a greater say in day-to-day operations, Pistone said.
“For the time being, we’re excited for what we have,” he said.
Among other provisions, the contract outlines pay increases in the coming years and moves employees to a step-and-grade model — also recently adopted by the Arlington County police and fire departments — which proponents say better rewards experience and makes raises more predictable.
Pistone says the union is most excited about how the contract establishes committees focused on issues such as retirement, benefits and working conditions.
“We formed these committees because the labor laws in Virginia are anti-labor, and we need them to further the agenda on certain aspects of safety and also for better working environment for the people,” says Pistone, who works for Arlington’s Water, Sewer and Streets division. “It gives us a little more of a seat at the table, which is what matters to the guys on the ground.”
The committees also afford employees to sit down with their direct managers to discuss everything from vending machines to overtime. This structure is experimental and other unions have not adopted it, says Pistone.
“It’s unorthodox but it might work better, so it might be a great thing,” he said.
A decentralized approach was also important to unionized employees and why they chose AFSCME. The national union was instrumental in the initial labor laws that passed at the state level — allowing local governments in Virginia to collectively bargain with employee unions — and yet the organization remains grass-roots, he said.
“We have the opportunity to govern ourselves,” Pistone said. “Even though we’re under the umbrella of AFSCME, we do have ability to have our voices heard in a unique way.”
Washington, D.C., May 10, 2023-The Washington, D.C.-based creative agency Dorst MediaWorks, known for its video production and social-media marketing, has opened a office in West Africa, according to Creative Director Steve Dorst.
“The result is we will be able to provide more cost-effective, local services to our international development, humanitarian, and private-sector clients,” said Dorst.
