SmarTrip Update

Received an e-mail from my coworker Diana which read, "Are you jealous?" Attached was a press release which read:

(Alexandria, VA) Alexandria Transit Company (ATC) announced today that all DASH buses are now equipped with new SmarTrip fareboxes. ATC is the first local transit system, in partnership with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), to accept SmarTrip farecards on their buses.

After screaming "WHAT!?!" I turned and congratulated Diana on the happy news. I read on in the press release and found something even cooler:

The remaining local bus systems, including the Fairfax Connector, ... will begin their installations over the next few months. [emphasis added] It is anticipated that the installations on all participating systems will be completed by July 2007.

You mean to tell me that we could actually have SmarTrip on Fairfax Connector buses before Clara has a sibling?! NO WAY!!

I rushed to the Fairfax Connector website to see if they had an update. Of course they don't. I've commented on their supreme lameness before . Regardless, we have the Alexandria DASH folks to thank for this most wonderful news!

Click here for the full text of the DASH press release.

Special thanks to field reporter Diana for contributing to this report. But not too much thanks. After all the contents of the e-mail were "Are you jealous?"