We are booked at the Hyatt Regency Baltimore for Jan. 17th - 21st and want to get into DC on Monday and Tuesday for inauguration events. We%26#39;re a group of 5 adults and 3 school-age kids. What will be the best way to get there? I had planned on using Amtrak but they are completely booked.
Will the MARC train run those days? If so, how to get to the train from the hotel? Are shuttles an option, or will we just be trapped on the highway for hours trying to get into DC?
I haven%26#39;t been to Baltimore or DC before and I know this trip will be a challenge. Thanks for any info.
Inauguration Day Transportation
';Will the MARC train run those days? If so, how to get to the train from the hotel? Are shuttles an option, or will we just be trapped on the highway for hours trying to get into DC?';
The MARC service will not run on January 19 as it is the Martin Luther King holiday and they don%26#39;t have service then.
In the past they have run trains on Inauguration Day, it is not a federal holiday. But they haven%26#39;t announced specific plans yet.
Just be aware that all of the hotels in downtown Baltimore are full that week for the inauguration. You are among thousands staying there trying to get into town for the festivities, presumably along with thousands of Baltimore residents with the same idea...go EARLY, as early as you can, is my advice...
Inauguration Day Transportation
Expect no more or fewer MARC trains than normal on Inauguration Day on Tuesday.
If they can somehow max out the length of their trains by adding a car or two, I%26#39;m sure that%26#39;s the approach they%26#39;ll take.
Camden Station is a very short walk (0.4 mile) from the Hyatt. http://tinyurl.com/6ak44v
There is no advance planning, as MARC is unreserved. You should have no problem if you don%26#39;t mind the possibility of standing an hour. First train to DC at 5:10 a.m. Good luck!
http://tinyurl.com/8mnwd
';Expect no more or fewer MARC trains than normal on Inauguration Day on Tuesday.';
Have I missed the announcement? I%26#39;ve been checking their web site and haven%26#39;t seen anything. Usually on ';quasi holidays'; for lack of a better term, day after Thanksgiving for example, they run an ';S'; (Special) schedule, not the regular schedule. That%26#39;s what they did in 2005 for the inauguration, I%26#39;m hoping they have enough sense NOT to do that this time around...
Thanks for the info. We will probably try to be up at 4 am to catch the 5:10 train on Inauguration day. But will be sure to check closer to the date that they are not running a special schedule.
I%26#39;ll have to figure out an alternate plan for MLK day.
vmars,
MLK Day: With eight people, I%26#39;d look to hire a driver and large van, or hop into two taxis (about $90 each way). With fewer people, Amtrak would be far more cost-effective, but in your case you%26#39;re multiplying the fares by eight people. So Amtrak may not be worth the savings--plus you%26#39;d want to taxi it to Penn Station anyway to catch the train.
You could do it with mass transit taking the light rail from Camden to the Airport (27 minutes/$1.60), then catch the B30 Metrobus to Greenbelt (30 minutes/$3.10), then connect with Metrorail (26 minutes to the Mall/$2.35). So it%26#39;s $7.05 each way pp, figuring about 1 hr 45 mins total travel time since you%26#39;ll need to wait for two connections.
IF,
MARC only pulls out the ';S'; (reduced) schedule on days where ridership would be substantially *lower* than normal--the day after Thanksgiving, Columbus and Veteran%26#39;s Day. Or when it%26#39;s mandated by poor weather or an emergency.
By all indications, Inauguration Day 2009 promises to be just the opposite. The Inaugural crowds staying in the DC-Baltimore corridor needing rail transportation will likely more than make up for the officeworkers whose buildings are subject to administrative closing.
MARC did (intend to) run a normal schedule on the Thursday for Inauguration Day 2005 until an accident occurred north of Union Station that morning--causing MARC to cancel a number of trains the rest of that day and announce an ';S'; schedule the following day. See http://tinyurl.com/54t46r for an ';advance'; look at the past for what was supposed to happen on 1/20/05.
Since CSX (Camden/Brunswick Lines) and Amtrak (Penn Line) own the rails on which MARC operates--not to mention MARC%26#39;s current shortage of equipment--it%26#39;s very unlikely MARC would be able to run any more trains than normal and could only add cars to shorter trains. And MARC would take a horrible drubbing in the media they don%26#39;t need if they were to run fewer trains on a day where they have no reason to expect lower ridership. So that%26#39;s why I%26#39;m fairly confident when I say no more or fewer trains than normal on 1/20/09.
';Have I missed the announcement? I%26#39;ve been checking their web site and haven%26#39;t seen anything.';
I%26#39;m sure MARC will make an announcement, but one more procedural in nature to guide those who don%26#39;t normally take their trains. A nice plus would be to offer special ticket purchasing options to avoid huge lines (they would be wise to enlist the downtown hotel concierges).
I really appreciate the detailed information. Thanks.
All of this is really uncharted territory. Never before has there been an event of this scale in Washington, documented by the absence of hotel rooms in outlying areas two months beforehand. To give some indication, other TA posts suggest that there are few if any rooms to be found within a 100-mile radius of DC.
The local experts who feel they know everything about MARC, Metro or the area%26#39;s highways like the back of their hands will undoubtedly learn something new on January 20.
With up to of a million people forecasted to travel into the area, there will be untold numbers disappointed to miss at least one of their planned activities because what they felt was a viable plan--getting up extra early, parking in a Metro station parking lot, or even assuming that there%26#39;s space for a ticketholder on a MARC train--find that it just ain%26#39;t happening.
Unless you%26#39;re relying solely on your feet or possibly the Metro to get you to your activities, there is no guarantee you%26#39;re going to be able to make it to where you want to be on time--or at all. Nobody contributing to TA (myself included) knows exactly what%26#39;s going to happen, and unfortunately 20/20 vision will only come with hindsight on this one.
I hate to cast a shadow of gloom and doom for visitors to such a wonderful and momentous occasion and I hope I%26#39;m wrong--but forewarned is forearmed. Try to get your MARC ticket the day before. You should be able to buy one at Penn or Union Station if you take the Amtrak in on Monday. And then try to get on the first train to DC Tuesday morning. Hopefully there will be some sort of organized controls for waiting passengers if the trains are full so they can deal with them on a first-come, first-served basis.
Best of luck!
INAUGURATION DAY SERVICE
Presidential Inauguration Day is January 20, 2009, and MTA is working with event planners to accommodate the large crowds expected to attend. MTA will operate special MARC Train and Commuter Bus service that day as well as the prior day which is Martin Luther King Day.
MARC Train
Inauguration Day: Penn, Camden and Brunswick lines will operate between 5 AM and 9 AM and between 4 PM and 9 PM. MTA monthly and weekly passes, 10-trip tickets and previously purchased one-way tickets will not be accepted. All trains will be reserved and tickets must be purchased in advance. For the Penn Line, there will no service north of Penn Station.
Martin Luther King Day: Penn Line will operate on a regular schedule; Camden and Brunswick lines will operate on a limited schedule. Regular fares apply and passes will be accepted.
Commuter Bus
Inauguration Day: Buses will operate to Metrorail stations between 4 AM and 9 AM and between 4 PM and 9 PM. MTA monthly and weekly passes and 10-trip tickets will not be accepted. Special tickets may be purchased from drivers.
Martin Luther King Day: Buses will operate to Metrorail stations between 5:30 AM and 10 AM and between 4 PM and 9 PM. MTA monthly and weekly passes and 10-trip tickets will not be accepted. Special tickets may be purchased from drivers.
Details about schedules and tickets will be available Friday, December 12 at www.mtamaryland.com.
KEY POINTS
1. you need to get your tickets in advance!!!
2. No service North of Penn Station
Thank you so much for the update. I may have missed getting the advanced tickets without this info. Will check their site for ticket details on Friday.
Regarding this topic, please see the attached post:
鈥ashingtonpost.com/getthere/鈥?/a>
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