WMATA staff have formulated two alternatives for implementing a “peak of the peak” charge that is more closely targeted at the congested core of the system, as advocates and some Board members requested.

In addition to the 10¢ and 20¢ systemwide alternatives presented earlier, they evaluated one option that charges only for riders exiting at central stations in the morning or entering them in the afternoon, and another that charges riders entering or exiting those stations or passing through. All options have the peak of the peak apply from 7:30-9 am and 4:30-6 pm.

Stations used for “to” (left) and “to and through” (right) scenarios. Image from WMATA.

The option to charge “to” congested stations would apply to trips to stations on the Red Line from Dupont Circle to Union Station, Orange from Rosslyn to Capitol South, Blue from Crystal City to Capitol South, Green from Navy Yard to Mount Vernon Square, and Yellow from Crystal City to Mount Vernon Square.

The option to charge “to and through” would only go as far as Farragut North on the Red Line and L’Enfant Plaza on the Orange, Blue, and Green Lines.

“To” has the advantage that it doesn’t hit reverse commuters, like commenter inlogan who goes from McPherson Square to Tysons Corner. He’s not using up any precious capacity as Orange Line trains westbound empty out at Metro Center. On the other hand, people who ride from Grosvenor to Suitland and use up a lot of room on crowded trains through the center would also be exempt.

“To and through” gets the through commuters but also hits the reverse ones. WMATA staff felt that my option 3, using congested segments only in the busier direction, was too complex.

To avoid conflict, the plan would actually based the charge on the time people entered the system in the morning, not the time they exit, since riders might get frustrated if they entered early enough to finish their trip before 7:30 only to be kept in the system by a delayed train. The delay is bad enough that they shouldn’t also get hit with an extra charge.

Unfortunately, this also hurts people who take the rail system for short trips in the congested core at the very start of the peak-of-the-peak period, when it’s not crowded in the core yet. For example, someone who rides from Mount Vernon Square to L’Enfant Plaza from 7:45-8:00 is not taking up precious capacity since the crowding is still mostly out at the fringes. The core itself gets crowded later.

Ideally, there could be 2-3 “zones” with staggered start times, such as an entry time of 7:15 at Shady Grove, 7:30 at Bethesda, and 7:45 at Cleveland Park, but this would complicate the implementation and potentially confuse passengers.

Here are the revenue and ridership implications of each:

From WMATA.

“To” seems fairer, but raises less money and causes less behavior shifting while also less ridership loss. Of course, these elasticity estimates are pretty rough, since staff don’t have any experience with “peak of the peak.”

DC Board members want to maintain late-night service to 3 am, which will cost $2.1 million more than the 2 am closing in Sarles’ latest budget, and also charge a peak fare instead of a $4 fixed fare late at night, which costs $1.5 million more. That totals $3.6 million.

A 50¢ “to” peak-of-the-peak (PotP) would only get $2.4 million over the previously-budgeted 10¢ across-the-board PotP. Approximately a 30¢ “to and through” would do it.

Another option is to also charge a bus PotP, which staff estimate would bring in $1.2M at 10¢ and $2.2M at 20¢, or increase the bus SmarTrip-cash differential to 25¢, for a gain of $1.5M.

So a 10¢ bus PotP and a 50¢ “to” PotP on rail would do it, or a 30¢ “to” PotP ($1.2M over the baseline) plus a 10¢ bus and a higher cash-SmarTrip differential, or other combinations.

David Alpert created Greater Greater Washington in 2008 and was its executive director until 2020. He formerly worked in tech and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco Bay, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He lives with his wife and two children in Dupont Circle.