Rockville Metro station paving will temporarily relocate these bus stops

Construction and paving at the Rockville Metro station from May 31 to June 6, 2022 will require the temporary relocation of many bus stops at the transit hub. Wayfinding signage will be posted at the station to assist riders in finding their bus stop. The following routes will be affected:

RIDE ON

• Route 44. Destination: Twinbrook. Temporary bus stop: T1.
• Route 45. Destination: Rockville Regional Transit Center and Twinbrook. Temporary bus stop: D (eastside).
• Route 46. Destination: Montgomery College and Medical Center Way. Temporary bus stop: T1.
• Route 47. Destination: Bethesda. Temporary bus stop: T1.
• Route 48. Destination: Wheaton. Temporary bus stop: B (eastside).
• Route 49. Destination: Glenmont. Temporary bus stop: B (eastside).
• Route 52: Destination: Montgomery General Hospital. Temporary bus stop: D (eastside).
• Route 54. Destination: Lakeforest Transit Center. Temporary bus stop: T2.
• Route 55. Destination: Germantown. Temporary bus stop: C (eastside).
• Route 56. Destination: Lakeforest Transit Center. Temporary bus stop: T2.
• Route 59. Montgomery Village. Temporary bus stop: C (eastside).
• Route 63. Destination: Shady Grove. Temporary bus stop: T1.
• Route 81. Destination: White Flint. Temporary bus stop: T1.
• Route 101. Destination: Medical Center. Temporary bus stop: T3.
• Route 101. Destination: Lakeforest. Temporary bus stop: G.
• Route 301. Destination: Tobytown. Temporary bus stop: D (eastside).
• Flex Rockville. On Demand Service. Temporary bus stop: T1.   

METROBUS

• Routes Q1, Q2, Q5, Q6. Destination: Shady Grove. Temporary bus stop: G.
• Routes Q1, Q2, Q4. Destination: Silver Spring. Temporary bus stop: A (eastside).
• Routes Q5, Q6. Destination: Wheaton. Temporary bus stop: A (eastside).
• Route T2. Destination: Friendship Heights. Temporary bus stop: A (eastside).
• Ride On bus remains free to ride until July 2, 2022 when fares will be $1

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.

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.