City of Alexandria
The slowly-progressing King Street Metro Station project may wrap up late next spring, according to Alexandria officials.
The project, which focused on Metro accessibility, parking and pedestrian improvements, started in November 2018, but has “experienced some delays,” to put it gently. The global coronavirus pandemic has squeezed supply chains and put many construction projects locally and globally on a longer schedule, but this project was running late before the pandemic arrived.
The King Street Metro Station and the nearby Amtrak and VRE stations have seen a huge increase in ridership (until the coronavirus pandemic slowed growth). Combined with an increase in population in the area and the advent of ride-share services, the way people move around the stations needed a significant upgrade for everyone’s safety.
When the project is complete, there will be more bus bays, a dedicated ride share and kiss-and-ride area, improved pedestrian access and more lighting, along with new landscaping. There will be no parking in the lot to the south of the Metro station like there was in the past.
The first phase, focused on a new bus loop, was supposed to open in March 2020 but is now being “reassessed” according to the project website. “City staff are working with the construction contractor to provide an estimated date on which the bus loop will reopen and Phase 2 (partial reconstruction of Diagonal Road) will begin.” The first phase was supposed to last just 18 months and had started in late 2018.
The hope is that the bus loop will be completed and usable in the next four to six months. The full project, which includes partial reconstruction of Diagonal Road and repaving the parking lot, should be done by the end of the spring in 2021.
“The City is closely monitoring the project's progress and working with the contractor to ensure construction is completed as quickly, safely, and responsible as possible,” according to Alexandria officials.
Learn more about the project and its history here.
