Glebe Road Line
| Company type | Transit service |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transportation |
| Predecessor | Washington Virginia & Maryland Coach Company |
| Founded | 1934 |
Area served | Fairfax County, Arlington County, City of Alexandria, Northern Virginia |
| Products | Bus transit service |
| Parent | Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) |
Glebe Road Line (Route A70)
The Glebe Road Line, identified as Route A70, is a daily transit service managed by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority that links Tysons Corner Center with Ballston–MU station on the Orange and Silver Metro corridors, as well as Potomac Yard station on the Yellow and Blue Metro routes.
Service intervals vary from 15 to 60 minutes during weekdays and from 20 to 60 minutes on weekends. This route connects important commercial and residential hubs such as Tysons in Fairfax County, Ballston, and the Potomac Yard neighborhood within the City of Alexandria.
Route description and service
Operating every day out of the Four Mile Run Division, the A70 covers the entire corridor between Tysons Corner Center and Potomac Yard. It passes through several communities including McLean, Rock Springs, Buckingham, Nauck, Avalon Bay, and Arlington Ridge. Certain trips on this route run only between Tysons Corner and Ballston stations.
History
The Glebe Road Line originated in 1934 under the Washington Virginia & Maryland Coach Company before being acquired by WMATA in 1973. From that year until 2025, it was known as the McLean–Crystal City Line, represented by the 23 series routes connecting Fairfax and Arlington counties along with Alexandria via corridors such as Dolley Madison Boulevard, Old Dominion Drive, and Glebe Road.
Initially, route 23A provided continuous all-day coverage along the full line. Route 23C operated during peak hours between CIA headquarters and Crystal City, with some trips terminating at Village at Shirlington. Due to security measures implemented on September 24, 2005, transfers from Langley were restricted; however, schedules for route 23C remained unchanged.
Major modifications took place on March 30, 2014: route 23A was shortened to start at Tysons Corner Center instead of Tysons-Westpark Transit Station and was rerouted via Dolley Madison Boulevard to serve newly opened Silver Line stations that July. To replace rush-hour service previously covered by 23A, routes 23B and 23T were introduced; neither served Langley, resulting in discontinuation of route 23C. The segment between Tysons-Westpark Transit Station and Tysons Corner Center was temporarily served by route 23W until Silver Line services began. Since 2016, daily operations have been maintained by routes 23B and 23T while the 23A has handled early morning and late night trips.
In WMATA's Fiscal Year 2011 budget proposal, elimination of route 23C was recommended in favor of expanding route 23A due to transfer restrictions at Langley. This change would end service to Douglas Park (via Walter Reed Drive and Arlington Mill Drive), which remains covered by Arlington Transit route 77.
The FY2014 budget plan proposed restructuring the 23 line by redirecting route 23A along Dolley Madison Boulevard instead of Chain Bridge Road to serve Salona Village Shopping Center and terminate at Tysons Corner Center rather than Tysons-Westpark Transit Station. This adjustment aimed to alleviate bus bunching with Fairfax Connector routes operating along Chain Bridge Road.
To facilitate Silver Line integration, changes included truncating route 23A on March 30, 2014; launching routes 23B and 23T; providing alternate Langley coverage through routes 15K and 15L; and operating a temporary shuttle service (route 23W) between Tysons-Westpark Transit Station and Tysons Corner Center.
On June 26, 2016, midday, evening, and weekend service were added to routes 23B and 23T, effectively replacing most daytime service formerly provided by route 23A.
Starting December 30, 2018, due to construction on the West Glebe Road bridge in Alexandria, routes were rerouted via West Glebe Road; concurrently, routes 23A and 23B discontinued service through Avalon Bay at South Glebe Road.
During the COVID-19 pandemic period, routes 23A, 23B, and 23T operated under a Sunday schedule while weekend services were suspended. Service resumed on August 23, 2020: route 23A returned to full weekday operations for the first time since 2016 while routes 23B and 23T operated exclusively on weekends.
As part of WMATA’s FY2022 budget considerations presented in September 2020, reductions in weekend frequencies for all three routes were proposed due to budget constraints linked to decreased federal funding.
Weekday operations for routes 23B and 23T were fully reinstated on June 6, 2021; simultaneously, route 23A reverted to early morning and late night service only. Beginning September 5, 2021, frequency improved to every twenty minutes daily.
In reaction to an increase in Omicron variant COVID-19 cases, weekday service was temporarily reduced to Saturday levels but fully restored on February 7, 2022.
Under WMATA's Better Bus Redesign effective June 29, 2025, this line retained its path between Tysons Corner Center and South Glebe Road but shifted its routing along Richmond Highway serving Potomac Yard station while ending service to Crystal City station and Shirlington. The line was redesignated as A70 with trips alternating between Ballston–MU station and Tysons Corner.
Incidents
- On October 4, 2010, a collision occurred between a pick-up truck and a 23A bus on South Glebe Road close to the I-395 interchange. Two individuals in the truck were taken to the hospital, while no passengers on the bus sustained injuries.