After the DC Inno office moved last year, I started taking the Circulator almost every day. The bus is a hidden District gem: It runs more frequently than WMATA buses, I can't think of a time where I couldn't find a seat and above all it costs just a dollar.
Now, one D.C. councilmember wants to improve my daily ride even further. Brandon Todd (D-Ward 4) proposed the DC Circulator Tech-Friendly Feasibility Study Act of 2017 this week, which directs the DC Department of Transportation (DDOT) to study the feasibility of technology upgrades to Circulator buses, including wireless internet and USB charging ports. Nice.
Todd's proposal targets the Circulator specifically, because the buses, like the DC Streetcar, are operated by DDOT and not WMATA.
Of course, these upgrades will bring the District up to speed with where transit systems in other parts of the country and the world have been for years. I remember overhearing two young British tourists on a Circulator trip remarking on the curious lack of bus WiFi; even smaller regional transit systems in England have internet connectivity, they scoffed. In a release, Councilmember Todd's office notes that systems in New York City, Los Angeles, Seattle, Atlanta, the Twin Cities, Miami-Dade County, and Riverside, California already provide such services.
Todd's proposal for WiFi and charging port implementation is "to begin with a pilot program on select Circulator buses, and eventually expand the upgrades to all Circulator buses and streetcars." DDOT did not immediately respond to a media request on whether these are upgrades that have been considered in the past, or whether they would be supportive of the initiative.
Perhaps anticipating some fiscal pushback, Todd's announcement includes some dubious justification for the upgrades beyond, you know, just general convenience. The tech upgrades will "also allow for increased access to the internet and mobile connectivity in case of a terrorist attack or natural disaster."
I love my Circulator rides but the next time a hurricane rolls through, you won't catch me at a bus stop waiting for WiFi and some free phone juice.
