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Metro is prepared for a potential surge in commuters as federal employees return to their offices under a new mandate from President Donald Trump, a senior Northern Virginia transit official says.
Trump signed executive orders after his inauguration on Monday directing federal agencies to eliminate telework options, freeze hiring and end diversity initiatives.
Metro and other D.C.-area transit agencies had been preparing for a return-to-office order since the November election. The shift has raised concerns about heavier traffic and the possible loss of federal workers, but local leaders also see an opportunity to boost transit ridership.
“From an operations standpoint … I think we’re confident,” Paul Smedberg, Virginia’s representative on the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority board, told the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission on Jan. 16.
Smedberg said WMATA staff had been coordinating with the federal Office of Personnel Management to ease the mandate’s effects on the regional transit system.
“We need to wait and see what transpires,” he said.
Metrobus ridership has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, but Metrorail has yet to fully recover. The prevalence of hybrid schedules among white-collar federal employees has contributed to the rail system’s slower rebound.
Takis Karantonis, an NVTC member and chair of the Arlington County Board, said planners should make Metro “extra welcoming” for returning commuters.
“Many people won’t be very happy” about going back to the office, Karantonis said.
Northern Virginia Pushes for Stable Transit Funding
The commission also adopted long-term transit funding principles and elected new leadership during its Jan. 16 meeting.
NVTC holds seats on the DMV Moves task force and a Virginia General Assembly subcommittee. Both groups have spent months exploring possible revenue sources that could provide permanent, dedicated funding for Metro and other transit agencies.
The commission’s newly approved “Guiding Principles for Future Transit Funding” reflect shared priorities among its member jurisdictions: Fairfax, Arlington and Loudoun counties and the cities of Alexandria, Falls Church and Fairfax.
The principles call for protecting existing revenue sources and reducing reliance on local property taxes. For Metro specifically, they seek continued strong federal support, a state contribution covering at least half of Virginia’s funding share and a system that requires Metro users to help fund the service.
Falls Church City Council member David F. Snyder, elected NVTC chair for 2025, said reliable transit is vital to Northern Virginia’s economy and civic life.
“That’s why we need to ensure that Metro, [Virginia Railway Express] and our local bus systems receive the ongoing funding that they will need to remain viable far into the future,” Snyder said.
Snyder has served on the commission since 1994 and previously chaired it in 2000, 2007 and 2015. He succeeds Arlington County Board member Matt de Ferranti, whom Snyder credited with steady leadership during a productive 2024.
“It really was an amazing year,” Snyder said. “An awful lot got done.”
Commission members also voted to formally seek $2 million in federal grant funding for continued planning of the Route 7 Bus Rapid Transit project, which is expected to connect Tysons and Alexandria.