Sometimes, the big news is all about what didn't happen. And so it was for transit agencies like Virginia's Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission, which provides commuter-coach and other transit services about 25 miles southwest of Washington, DC. PRTC typically operates most of its services into DC and the surrounding core area. On Inauguration Day, however, they and other transit providers connected with outlying Metrorail stations serving the city center making public transportation an attractive choice for those making their way toward the Capitol for the swearing-in ceremony. Adding to the attractiveness, fares were free for the day, compliments of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Eric Marx, director of planning and operations, says that the agency prepared for a worst-case scenario based on predictions for traffic jams of epic proportion. Some experts had predicted that as many as 25,000 private coaches and buses would descend upon the city and that traffic might back up for 100 miles around Washington, DC. That didn't happen.

"The good news is that we ended up with plenty of park-and-ride capacity and minimal highway traffic," says Marx. "We were able to serve everyone who wanted to take the bus. Our intense planning efforts paid off."

In the end, PRTC carried about 13,000 passengers that day, about 40 percent more than on a typical weekday. Not that it was a cakewalk. PRTC concentrated on serving five park-and-ride lots on four routes. The agency started its day at 4 a.m., and it put every bus it could into service to make sure passengers would make it into Washington in time for the festivities. Passengers kept the coaches hopping again after the inauguration, from about 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. when everyone was taken care of. The only snag came when charter buses began staging at a key Metrorail station waiting for returning passengers, causing a bit of congestion. Still, Marx says, most everyone was in a good mood, and passengers seemed happy to have a warm MCI® Commuter Coach or bus waiting for them on a cold day.

Several passengers sent letters of thanks, with one going so far as to call the bus service a highlight of the trip. Another complimented the operators for being helpful and friendly, especially to those who were unfamiliar with the area. Still another called the service "boring" — meaning their trip was uneventful.

Marx has a theory as to why everything went so smoothly and the crowds were so manageable. "We think that far more people than expected filtered into the area days ahead of time. While hotel rooms filled quickly following the election, many people rented houses and rooms on places like Craigslist.org, and that may have really helped avoid a surge."

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