DASH (bus)

This article is about the bus operator in Alexandria, Virginia. For other services named "DASH", see Dash (disambiguation) § Public transportation.

DASH is the main public transit bus operator in the Northern Virginia city of Alexandria. DASH provides bus service within the City of Alexandria, connecting to local and regional public transit services in the Washington metropolitan area. DASH operates throughout the city of Alexandria, with 124 buses on eleven routes.^[7] DASH buses serve all five Washington Metro stations within Alexandria city limits, with additional hubs at the Mark Center Building, the former Landmark Mall, and The Pentagon. DASH buses carry over five million passengers annually as of 2024^[update].^[8]

DASH

DASH bus at Van Dorn Street station
Parent	City of Alexandria
Founded	March 1984[1]
Headquarters	3000 Business Center Drive, Alexandria, VA
Service area	Alexandria, Virginia
Service type	Bus service
Alliance	WMATA
Routes	11[2]
Fleet	Gillig New Flyer Proterra[3][4]
Daily ridership	14,900 (Q1 2023)[5]
Annual ridership	4,209,500 (2015)[6]
Fuel type	Diesel, Diesel-electric Hybrid, Battery electric
Operator	Alexandria Transit Company
Website	dashbus.com

DASH is operated by the Alexandria Transit Company (ATC), a non-profit corporation wholly owned by the City of Alexandria. ATC is governed by an eleven-person board of directors elected by the city council.^[9] The Alexandria Transit Company was formed to supplement the regional rail and bus service provided by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) and to provide a local bus service to the City of Alexandria.

History

In 1981, in anticipation of the opening of the Metrorail stations and the subsequent reordering of Metrobus service, the City Council authorized a feasibility study for a city-sponsored bus system. In 1982, the study recommended a five-route system, using 18 buses.

In 1983, the City Council developed an RFP (Request For Proposal) for management companies to develop a detailed plan for the operation of transit service in the City of Alexandria. The city chose to establish a non-profit public service cooperation that would be wholly owned by the City. This arrangement provided means by which:

• The transit system could be run as a business-type enterprise, and
• City Council could retain overall policy control yet be free from the day-to-day operation of a transit system.

On October 23, 1983, the City Council set up a Transitional Task Force and, on January 24, 1984, instructed the City Attorney to proceed with the incorporation of a non-profit company. The certificate of incorporation was issued by the State Corporation Commission on January 31, and the organizational meeting of the company was held on February 6.

In January 1984, the General Manager employed by the Management Company that was awarded the management contract reported for duty and final preparations began for the opening of revenue service on March 11.

On October 19, 2020, DASH unveiled its first all-electric transit bus at the City Hall of Alexandria.^[10]

In September 2021, the entire network was restructured as part of the Alexandra Transit Vision Plan to create a more useful and equitable bus network that encourages more people to get to more places using transit. All Routes were renumbered in either the 30s or 100s eliminating the AT designations.^[11]

Fares

As of September 5, 2021^[update], DASH is fare free.^[12] Before the free fares, DASH's base fare was $2.00 for riders paying cash or SmarTrip.^[13][14] In 2007, DASH converted its buses to allow the use of the WMATA SmarTrip, an electronic debit farecard. DASH continued to accept and issue paper transfers until they were eliminated altogether January 1, 2013.^[15]

Fleet

Photo	Builder and model name	Model year	Length	Numbers (Total)	Vehicles in service	Fuel type	Engine	Transmission	Notes
	Gillig Phantom 40'	2005	40 ft (12.19 m)[3]	101–102 (2 buses)	2	Diesel	Cummins ISL	Allison B400R	Ex-PRTC OmniRide, acquired in 2019.
	Gillig Low Floor 35'	2011	35 ft (10.67 m)	200–206 (7 buses)	7	Diesel hybrid	Cummins ISL9	Allison H 40 EP hybrid system	First low floor buses for DASH.[16]
		2012		207–211 (5 buses)	3 retiring
		2015		212–216 (5 buses)	5
		2016		217–229 (13 buses)	13
		2017		230–233 (4 buses)	4		Cummins L9
		2018		501–514 (14 buses)	14	Diesel		Allison B400R
	Gillig Low Floor 40'	2010	40 ft (12.19 m)	300–302 (3 buses)	2 retiring	Diesel hybrid	Cummins ISL9	Allison EP40 Hybrid System	First low floor buses for DASH.[16]
		2013		303–307 (5 buses)	3 retiring			Allison H 40 EP hybrid system
		2014		308–309 (2 buses)	2
		2017		310–311 (2 buses)	2		Cummins L9
	Gillig Low Floor Trolley 29'^	2011	29 ft (8.839 m)	400–404 (5 trolley buses)	5		Cummins ISL9		Operated on the King Street Trolley route
	Gillig Low Floor Trolley 35'^	2015	35 ft (10.67 m)	405 (1 trolley bus)	1
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD35	2019		515–527 (13 buses)	13	Diesel	Cummins L9	Allison B400R
		2020		528–530 (3 buses)	3
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40		40 ft (12.19 m)	701–705 (5 buses)	5
	New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE XE40			801–803 (3 buses)[17]	3	Battery electric			First all-electric transit buses for DASH.[18]
	New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE NG XE60 articulated	2021	60 ft (18 m)	901–904 (4 buses)	4
	Proterra ZX5+		40 ft (12.19 m)	804–810 (7 buses)[17]	7
	New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	2023		706–715 (10 buses)[3]	10	Diesel	Cummins L9	Allison B400R
	New Flyer Xcelsior CHARGE NG XE60 articulated	2025	60 ft (18 m)	905–906 (2 buses)[19]	2	Battery electric

On order

Builder and model name	Length	Year	Fleet number	Fuel type	Notes
New Flyer Xcelsior XD40	40 ft (12 m)	2025	716–721 (6 buses)	Diesel
TBA	TBD	2026	(13 buses)	Battery electric	To begin in FY27. Funded by the FY23 FTA Bus and Low- and No-Emission Grant Awards.[20]
		2027	(12 buses)		Expected to begin in FY27.

Retired fleet

Year	Builder and model name	Numbers (preserved numbers)	Year Retired	Picture	Notes
1984	Bus Industries of America Orion I (01.502)	1-17	2001
1986	Bus Industries of America Orion I (01.507)	18-19	2002
1990–91		20-33	2005		Bus #28 is preserved by Commonwealth Coach & Trolley of Roanoke, VA.
1996	Gillig Phantom 35'	34-43	2012
1998		44-53	2014
1999		54-58	2015
1999–2000	Orion Bus Industries Orion V (05.503)	59-68	2017		Bus #59 is preserved by Commonwealth Coach & Trolley of Roanoke, VA.
2002	DaimlerChrysler Commercial Buses Orion V (05.503)	69-76	2019–20
2004–05		77-90	2019–21
2007		91-99 (96)	2019–22		Last order of Orion buses for DASH.[21] 97 is preserved by Friends of the NJ Transportation Heritage Center
	Gillig Phantom 35'	100-103	2019		Last order of high floor buses for DASH.
2001–02	Neoplan USA AN460 (articulated)	601-614	2020–21		Ex-Westchester County Bee-Line, acquired in 2019. First non-WMATA-operated articulated buses in the Washington region.[22]
2002	Motor Coach Industries D4500	103–105	2024–25		Ex-PRTC OmniRide, acquired in 2019. Originally numbered 703-705; renumbered in early 2020 due to a numbering conflict with new buses.

Fomer Routes

Route/Name	Terminals		Streets traveled	Service notes
30 Van Dorn Metro – S Whiting St – Duke St – King St Metro – Old Town Circulator – Braddock Rd Metro	Van Dorn Metro	Braddock Road Metro	Duke St S Van Dorn St	Some AM Eastbound peak trips begin at Edsall Rd & S Whiting St
	Landmark Mall Rdwy & Mall Entrance
31 NVCC – King St – King St Metro – Old Town Circulator – Braddock Rd Metro	NVCC-Alexandria	Braddock Road Metro	King St
		King Street Metro
32 Landmark – Van Dorn Metro – Eisenhower Ave – King St Metro	Landmark Mall Rdwy & Mall Entrance	King Street Metro	Eisenhower Ave S Pickett St Holmes Run Pkwy
33 King St Metro – Commonwealth Ave – Mt Vernon Ave – Potomac Yard Metro	Potomac Yard Metro	King Street Metro	Mount Vernon Ave	Began serving Potomac Yard Metro on May 19, 2023[23]
34 Lee Center – S Royal St – N Fairfax St – Potomac Yard Metro	Potomac Yard Metro	Lee Center	N Fairfax St S Royal St	Originally served Braddock Rd Metro until May 21, 2023[23]
35 Van Dorn Metro – Yoakum Pkwy – N Beauregard St – Pentagon Metro	Pentagon Metro	Van Dorn Metro	S Van Dorn St N Beauregard St Interstate 395	Some late night trips terminate/begin at Park Center
36 Mark Center – Menokin Dr/Park Place – Shirlington – W Glebe Rd – Potomac Yard Metro	Potomac Yard Metro	Mark Center Station	Seminary Rd Menokin Dr King St Valley Dr W Glebe Rd	Runs as 36A (via Menokin Dr/Martha Custis Dr) or 36B (via N Van Dorn St/Valley Dr) Began serving Potomac Yard Metro on May 19, 2023[23]
102 Mark Center – Seminary Rd – Janneys Ln – King St Metro	Mark Center Station	King Street Metro	Seminary Rd Janneys Ln	Weekday service only
103 Braddock Rd Metro – Russell Rd – W Glebe Rd – Pentagon Metro	Pentagon Metro	Braddock Road Metro	W Braddock Rd W Glebe Rd Interstate 395	Weekday peak hour service only
104 Braddock Rd Metro – Cameron Mills Rd – Parkfairfax – Pentagon Metro	Pentagon Metro	Braddock Road Metro	W Braddock Rd Cameron Mills Rd Interstate 395	Weekday peak hour service only
King Street Trolley	King Street Metro	Market Square	King St	Service to the Potomac River Waterfront was eliminated on July 5, 2021[24]

Former Routes Before 2025

Route	Name	Terminals		Major streets	Notes
AT1 Plus	Seminary Plaza – Beauregard – Landmark Plaza – Van Dorn Metro	Van Dorn Metro	Seminary Plaza	Duke St N Beauregard St Seminary Rd	All routes were eliminated on September 5, 2021, replaced by new 30- and 100-series routes.[25]
AT2	Braddock Metro – Old Town – Mark Center – Lincolnia	Lincolnia	Braddock Road Metro	Seminary Rd King St
AT2X	Mark Center – King Street Metro Express	Mark Center Station	King Street Metro	Seminary Rd Duke St
AT3	Pentagon Metro – Parkfairfax – Old Town – Hunting Point	Hunting Point	Pentagon Metro	W Glebe Rd Russel Rd W Braddock Rd Pendleton St
AT4	Pentagon Metro – Parkfairfax – Old Town	City Hall via Old Town	Pentagon Metro	W Braddock Rd Madison St Montgomery St
AT3/4	Old Town – Parkfairfax Loop	City Hall via Old Town		Pendleton St W Braddock Rd Russel Rd W Glebe Rd
AT5	Braddock Metro – Old Town – Bradlee Shopping Center – Van Dorn Metro	Van Dorn Metro (weekdays) Eisenhower Ave Metro (weekends)	Braddock Road Metro	Van Dorn St King St
AT6	NVCC Alexandria – King Street Metro	NVCC Alexandria	King Street Metro	King St
AT7	Lee Center – King Street Metro – Van Dorn Metro – Landmark Mall	Landmark Mall Rdwy & Mall Entrance	Nannie J. Lee Center	Eisenhower Ave King St
AT8	Braddock Metro – Old Town – Landmark Mall – Van Dorn Metro	Van Dorn Metro	Braddock Road Metro	Duke St King St
AT9	Mark Center – Bradlee Shopping Center – Shirlington – Potomac Yard	Mark Center Station	Potomac Yard Shopping Center	Seminary Rd King St Glebe Rd
AT10	King Street Metro – Del Ray – Potomac Yard	King Street Metro	Potomac Yard Shopping Center	Commonwealth Ave Mount Vernon Ave
102X	Mark Center Express	Mark Center Station	King Street Metro	Seminary Rd Janneys Ln	Suspended as of December 1, 2021