South Capital Street Limited Line
| Company type | Bus route |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transportation |
| Founded | 1991-12-28 |
| Defunct | 2018-06-24 |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. , United States |
Area served | Washington metropolitan area |
| Owner | Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority |
The South Capital Street Limited Line, known as Route W9, was a bus route managed by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority that operated during weekday peak periods. It connected L'Enfant Plaza station, which serves the Blue, Yellow, Orange, Green, and Silver metro lines, with the Douglas A. Munro Coast Guard Headquarters Building and Livingston (AM peak only). This service primarily aimed to facilitate direct transit between downtown Washington, D.C., and the Coast Guard Headquarters. The route was discontinued on June 24, 2018, due to low patronage and the U.S. Coast Guard's decision to end its financial support effective July 1, 2018.
History
Initially launched as the Defense Facilities Shuttle Line on December 28, 1991, coinciding with the opening of Anacostia station, the W9 operated between Anacostia station and the Defense Intelligence Agency Headquarters. Its path included stops at Naval Support Facility Anacostia and Bolling Air Force Base, predominantly traveling along South Capitol Street. This route provided weekday peak-hour service tailored for government personnel, offering a direct connection to the Green Line without requiring walking.
Following heightened security measures after the September 11 attacks, military installations restricted Metrobus access onto their premises. As a result, W9 buses were required to stop outside Navy and Air Force base gates, compelling passengers to either walk up to a mile or utilize internal shuttle services. In 2005, the Defense Intelligence Agency introduced its own shuttle with authorized base entry, which contributed to a decline in W9 ridership.
Due to decreasing usage—averaging only 98 daily passengers—and unsatisfactory performance indicators, WMATA proposed discontinuing W9 in its Fiscal Year 2007 budget:
| Performance Measures | W9 | WMATA Guidelines | Pass/Fail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Passengers | 98 | <300 | Fail |
| Passengers Rev/Mile | 1.1 | <1 | Pass |
| Passengers Rev/Trip | 4 | <8 | Fail |
| Subsidy/Passenger | $9.96 | >$4.00 | Fail |
| Cost Recovery | 6.5% | <13% | Fail |
The W9 route ceased operation on September 24, 2006, with service replaced by the DIA shuttle and route W4 along South Capitol Street.
After completion of the new Douglas A. Munro Coast Guard Headquarters Building in 2013, WMATA reintroduced a MetroExtra W9 line—the South Capital Street Limited Line—running during weekday peak hours between L'Enfant Plaza station and the Coast Guard Headquarters via South Capitol Street. Concurrently, route A4 was extended from Anacostia station to serve the headquarters, and route W5 was rerouted accordingly. These services were funded through a five-year agreement with the Coast Guard, expiring June 30, 2018. Notably, before 2013, the South Capital Street Limited Line name had been associated with route A9.
In March 2018, contract renewal discussions commenced; however, the Coast Guard elected not to continue subsidizing W9. Instead, it prioritized maintaining service through extensions of routes A4 and W5 at reduced frequencies. The new contract—comprising one base year plus four option years—began July 1, 2018, preserving A4 and W5 connections to St. Elizabeth's.
WMATA's Fiscal Year 2019 budget incorporated funding for both A4 and W9 service levels but acknowledged revenue shortfalls resulting from the Coast Guard’s withdrawal of funding for W9. Public outreach conducted earlier in 2018 revealed that over 95% of W9 riders were Coast Guard personnel. The decision to discontinue W9 aligned with Federal Transit Administration Title VI and Environmental Justice guidelines.
At that time, W9 averaged merely 242 daily riders compared to an anticipated ridership of 432 and exhibited poor performance regarding cost recovery and subsidy per passenger:
| Performance Measure | Route W9 | WMATA Guideline | Pass/Fail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Weekday Riders | 242 | 432 | Fail |
| Cost Recovery | 6.8% | 16.6% | Fail |
| Subsidy per Rider | $13.15 | $4.81 | Fail |
| Riders per Trip | 13.4 | 10.7 | Pass |
| Riders per Revenue Mile | 3 | 1.3 | Pass |
Factors contributing to low ridership included W9’s limited stops and its lack of service to nearby Anacostia station, which is closer to the headquarters than its nearest Metro stop at Waterfront station.
On June 24, 2018, WMATA formally terminated Route W9 following contract renewal negotiations with the Coast Guard. Routes A4 and W5 assumed responsibility for serving the Coast Guard Headquarters area, while routes A8 and A9 continued coverage along South Capitol Street segments previously served by W9.