Mass transit extension to Dulles Airport opens at tough time

By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Associated Press

CHANTILLY, Va. (AP) — It’s taken 60 years and billions of dollars, but mass transit is finally coming to Dulles International Airport outside the nation’s capital. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority is ready to open the second and final phase of its Silver Line Metrorail extension on Nov. 15. The six new stations will for the first time connect the airport and the outer suburbs of Loudoun County to the region’s flagship mass transit system. But the Silver Line extension comes at a time when ridership on Metro remains at roughly half of what it was before the COVID-19 pandemic. Metro officials say the long-term vision of those who pushed for the line will be vindicated as riders return.