Breakfast links: Youngkin pushes federal workforce return to office to boost Metro ridership
MARC train on the Brunswick line in Silver Spring. by MW Transit Photos used with permission.
Youngkin calls for full return of federal workers to offset WMATA shortfall
In a letter to the federal Office of Personnel Management, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin urged a mandate for federal employees to fully return to the office to help address WMATA’s $650 million budget deficit. Youngkin also pointed to the need to address fare evasion. (Nick Minock / WJLA)
Study: Telework policies are bad for transit but good for diversifying federal workforce
Preliminary findings from a new survey indicate that a permanent federal telework policy that allows four to five days of remote work per week could help the government recruit a younger, more geographically diverse workforce — but would have profound negative consequences for public transportation and the economic recovery of downtown DC. (Morgan Baskin / DCist)
Wiedefeld lays out impact of $3 billion in proposed transportation budget cuts in Maryland
According to Maryland transportation secretary Paul Wiedefeld, a proposed $3.3 billion cut to the state’s transportation budget will be felt the most in the form of reductions in MARC service, elimination of some commuter buses, a 40% cut in grants to local transit services, some hiring freezes, tabling projects that haven’t yet started, and higher parking fees at BWI Airport. The remaining $20 billion in work over the next six years will continue to support transportation priorities currently underway like the Purple Line and improvements to the MARC Penn Line and Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor. (Esther Ciammachilli / DCist)
DC’s hotel shelter program for medically vulnerable will close this month
DC’s four-year-old program to provide shelter in hotels to unhoused individuals at high risk for complications related to COVID-19 will officially close on December 30. The 77 remaining people in the program will be either sent to long-term care facilities, relocated to another shelter, or may move into bridge housing while applying for housing vouchers. (Annemarie Cuccia / DCist)
Survey seeks Alexandrians’ input on bus stops for new transitway
The City of Alexandria wants residents to weigh in on the location of bus stops for the future West End Transitway, a proposed bus rapid transit system that will run from Shirlington to the Van Dorn Metro station. The city is also asking residents to rank amenities for bus stops, such as free wifi, solar power, and charging stations. (Vernon Miles / ALXnow)
Chevy Chase, Maryland, residents raise awareness of burial ground for enslaved people
A group of Chevy Chase, Maryland, residents are raising awareness in their community of a burial site for enslaved Black people that’s located in Rollingwood area. Having successfully lobbied for county recognition of the burial ground in 2019, the group is now working to establish a historical marker and hold educational seminars about the site at nearby schools. (Akira Kyles / MoCo360)
UMD grad students outline plans to revitalize Lakeland in College Park
A group of University of Maryland graduate students recently presented plans to the community to revitalize Lakeland, an historically Black American neighborhood in College Park, through housing growth, affordability, and restorative justice. Two-thirds of Lakeland’s Black population was displaced as a result of urban renewal initiatives in the 1960s-1980s (Katharine Wilson / The Diamondback)
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