The Holiday season is in full swing in NYC, with holiday lights in Brooklyn, a giant snow globe in Bryan Park and Chanukah specials for ham. One citizen decided to go vigilante on annoying car alarms, a murder suspect used a fake Asian accent on the stand and a video of a man being beaten up by teenage girls on a subway shocked the city. And we interviewed soon-to-be-leaving-Gawker editor Choire Sicha, who said,......

Commenter Nate asked if we would look into what's been happening on the Red line lately, which he describes as having been suffering from "morning and/or afternoon delays every day for nearly two weeks now." Indeed, we've heard others grumbling about the Red line of late, which is usually one of Metro's speediest rush hour options. WMATA explains that the current Red line delays are due to ongoing work needed to replace pieces of......

WTOP's Adam Tuss is the first to the gate with news of Metro's Board of Directors having agreed today to a fare hike proposal to put forward to the public. Here's the details: >> Peak Metrorail base fares would increase 30 cents, from $1.35 to $1.65 >> Off-peak rail service would remain at $1.35 >> The maximum rail fare would jump 80 cents, to $4.70 >> If you use SmarTrip, bus fares will remain......

We'd like to waste about $800 sitting in traffic this year, please. That, at least, is the average annual cost for Marylanders who choose to drive during peak periods, (yet another) new Texas Transportation Institute tells us via Capitol News Service and WTOP. The total congestion cost, the study says, is $3.1 billion annually. We can think of some pretty good things to do with an extra $800. And they have nothing to do with......

If you don't want to pay a toll, just don't leave the city. Information is sketchy at best, but the federal government may soon propose a toll on cars entering the city via the 14th Street bridge, reports The Examiner. According to the story, the proposal seems to be nothing more than another one of those fabulous pipe dreams feds float from time to time for improving our city. Like Sen. Sam Brownback's "flat tax"......

According to D.C. officials, about 700 pedestrians a year are hit by cars in the District, which factors out to about two a day. Wikipedia says there are currently about 580,000 of us living here, so that means the next time you step outside your door you have about a 1 in 83,000 chance of getting hit by that idiot who always runs the red light down the block. Given those rather grim odds,......

While we sit here tap-tapping our fingers, eagerly awaiting the Metro Board’s next move on our collective fare fate, we will distract ourselves with other traffic and metro related tidbits: metro savings, the ICC goes on and weekend delays. Photo by philliefan_99......

This week on Transit on Thursday, good news from DDOT for people who don't like getting hit by cars, and Metro plans on fixin' some things that really need fixin'. Score One For Pedestrians: We will soon get to say farewell to annoying sidewalk closures caused by those greedy development projects. No more braving the fury of cars as we find a way around. And no more crossing to the other side. Builders will......

Flickr user philliefan_99 has become our resident birder, catching some amazing views of our local eagles, ospreys, and herons -- like this gorgeous one taking a dip off Roosevelt Island. The questioning pose of the great water bird and the awesome green reflecting off the water make for a spot-on nature shot. EXIF. Philliefan_99 was at our last DCist Photographer's Meet-Up; will you be at our next one? Join us at Solly's at the......

It's going to be another rough commute home on Metro this evening, with major delays on the Green Line currently after a woman was struck by a train at the Georgia Ave-Petworth station a little over an hour ago. WMATA reports that Green line trains are sharing one track between the Georgia Ave-Petworth and Fort Totten stations while police and emergency personnel investigate the incident and talk with the woman, who is expected to survive.......

If you're heading to any Yellow line destinations this weekend, including National Airport, you should make alternate plans. Metro is shutting down the Yellow line rail bridge over the Potomac River this weekend to do track maintenance and conduct an annual bridge inspection. The closure begins tonight at 10 p.m. and lasts through Sunday at midnight. Directions from WMATA: When a Yellow Line train arrives at the King Street Metrorail station, passengers must transfer to......

This week in Transit on Thursday, we pose a stunningly dramatic series of questions... Could Metro be Smartening up? Will you get hit by Virginia's new transportation fees and taxes? Is a road better than a rail? Will your Metro trip be delayed this weekend? Find out after the jump! Photo by Terecico......

Anyone who's lived in D.C. for more than a minute or two knows that appearances are important in this town, but is it reasonable to suggest that the changing face of Metro will have an impact on ridership? Also this week, a fare hike fight gradually takes shape, and another area bridge is going out of commission. If you were one of the 500,000 or so passengers who took Metro to the Mall on......

There are certain defining moments in the relationship between any father and son. Times when a father passes down the wisdom gained through the years, when a son asks those burning questions he doesn't feel comfortable asking his buddies, the guidance counselor, or the older guys in the gym locker room. And the father sits his son down and they talk long into the night. About why you should get flowers for a girl when......

Happy Thursday, and welcome back to another post full of the best in transit news. This week, we consider whether Virginians would rather obey traffic laws or pay more taxes. It's a real Sophie's Choice, we know. Also, a few words on the latest Metro fare hike proposal from Metro. We also have Metro's schedule of weekend track work and maintenance, which will cause delays on some lines. Photo by christaki......

We've got two words for you, D.C.: beer pops. That's right, beer pops. WTOP, along with a number of other local news outlets, has coverage of an innovation being brought to market by an Alexandria restaurant. The folks at Rustico may not be the first to come up with the idea of ale-on-a-stick, but they're the first purveyors of it we know of in the D.C. area, and we salute them for it. Here's......

We're back with another edition of Transit on Thursday, bringing you transit news from around the city to satisfy the inner-geek in all of you. This week, we've got developments with the transit situation at the National Harbor development, currently under construction south of the city, as well as yet another round of national commuting stats that are, yet again, a mixed bag for the D.C.-metro area. Also, Metro has a long list of......

Some people might assume that dangerous, congested roadways are just one of those things you have to accept about city life. We disagree. Luckily, so do a lot of other people. This week, we look at two efforts to make District streets a little safer, and a little smoother. Also, we've brought back our weekly posting of anticipated Metro service disruptions over the weekend. Photo by everyskyline......

Home is a pretty subjective concept. Where you hang your hat? The place you can always go back to? Where your love lies waiting silently for you? But what about where you spend the largest part of your waking hours? We may like to keep a firm separation between office life and "home" life, but let's look at the facts: who do you spend more hours awake and in the same room with than that......

Another week, another set of transit headlines. This week we've got "controversy" over the new Taxicab Zone Map, Metro's contribution to the, er, local economy, and questions about the new rail cars Metro's been bringing on line. Also, yet another story of inaction on Metro funding...but by Maryland. Worth noting: The Metro Riders Advisory Council is holding an event this evening at Metro's 600 5th St. NW headquarters to take suggestions on transit improvements......

Fans had plenty of great things to say about the Nationals season opener at RFK last week: the hats, the weather, the midday beer-drinking. They also had some gripes. In addition to the unfortunate loss, one key complaint was, naturally, traffic. The Post noted that, "In the stands, Nationals fans complained. About parking-lot traffic, snack booths and long lines for just about everything, including hot dogs and ATMs." When the Nats move into their new,......

Good morning, Washington. After five straight days of frost warnings, temps will claw their way back into the 50s, though you'll still need a parka as you head off to work. We guess it could be worse; the Nationals could be driven out of town by a foot of snow. The Cleveland Indians have been forced to cancel several games and play this week's home games in Milwaukee by the fluffy stuff. Yikes, if......

We hope you had a relaxing, if not warm, holiday weekend, Washington. Mixed in with the egg decorating and good cheer, we sure noticed a lot of grumbling about the ongoing cold snap (along with those flurries on Friday night), so let's get right down to the all-important question: When will this misery end? CapitalWeather.com is breaking it down like so: Most of this week will still see cold temps in the morning, with......

You'll forgive us, we hope, if when we first saw this headline, we let out an exasperated "not again!" But it wasn't a Metrobus that was involved with the death of a man earlier this afternoon. Police are still investigating how the still unidentified man ended up on the tracks at the Columbia Heights metro station, in the path of an incoming Yellow Line train. The WaPo has limited details so far. It would be......

Here at Transit on Thursday, we love giving good news, and we've got some for you today. New rail cars! Also this week, Governor Kaine works to rile up support for changes to Republican transportation legislation. Finally, maintenance and rail car testing will cause some delays on the Red, Yellow and Green Lines this weekend. Also, MetroAccess is now offering eAlerts with information on major service disruptions due to inclement weather and other emergencies.......

Last May we pointed to a Post article detailing the troubles WMATA was having with Metro's ubiquitous platform lighting. According to the paper, the light-bulbs -- over 25,000 throughout the whole system -- lasted but three months at a time, requiring late night replacing that could involve as many as 13 employees working seven three-hour shifts to cover a large station. At the time, we asked if the expense was really worth it. Given all......

Live long enough in this town, and you've probably done some pretty crazy things for that perfect parking spot. Put your bumpers to their literal use. Laid down on the street. Threatened the elderly. Believe us, we're not judging: we've all been there. When you've been making concentric circles around 18th and U for 45 minutes, you'll give your first born just to park and go home. You never liked that brat much, anyway. Still,......

NBC4 is reporting that a woman was struck and killed by a Metrobus around 10:30 last night in Mount Pleasant. Officials say an H8 bus was making a left turn onto Park Road from 16th Street when a pedestrian ran in front of the vehicle. A portion of 16th Street was closed for a time, but all lanes have since re-opened. No further information about the victim or the driver involved has been released and......

We know, we know. Bloggers, like all journalists, are supposed to be hyper-skeptical of everything that comes across their monitors, only acquiescing after the most rock solid of facts are in. Well, forgive our optimism and idealism, but whenever we see any forward movement at the statehouse down in Richmond, we can't help but get a little giddy. This week in transit, we look at the motivating forces of partisan democracy in Virginia, the......

Hope you didn't stay up too late debating the President's speech with friends last night, Washington. We stayed up a bit past our bedtimes ourselves, mostly pondering the rhetorical significance of the difference between the phrases "mistakes were made", and "where mistakes have been made". Either way, we take full responsibility for any mistakes that were/have been made in this morning roundup, which was completed with the known unknown of the amount of sleep we......