Bus Stops Could Get Major Upgrade

By David Schultz

This bus stop in Prince George's County, Maryland is not much to look at.

It's a grimy, dark brown shelter and a small bench, situated just a few feet from speeding traffic on Martin Luther King Junior Highway.

But that could change. The D.C. region is vying for a $16 million federal grant for bus stop improvements.

"The bus stop will just be a much more pleasant experience," says Wendy Klancher, with the regional Transportation Planning Board.

She says if the region wins the grant, the funds will go toward making bus stops more attractive and accessible:

"There will be ease of access. People in wheelchairs, women with strollers - or men with strollers - will be able to much more easily get to that bus stop," she says.

But the funds won't be distributed evenly.

More than half will go to Prince George's County while less than five percent will go to areas in Northern Virginia.

Klancher says Prince George's submitted a list of more than 1,600 bus stops it wants improved, while many Northern Virginia jurisdictions declined to submit any.