Prince George’s officials hope several proposed bus routes and route expansions in south county will ease commutes and parking for residents, and plan to set up a public task force to work on the final approved routes.

Officials from the county’s Department of Public Works and Transportation met Jan. 18 with residents in the Fort Washington and Oxon Hill areas at Oxon Hill Library to gather feedback on the new bus routes.

Residents and staff of Fort Washington Manor, a senior apartment community off Indian Head Highway that is one of the new stops proposed along Route 35 of TheBus, the county’s bus transportation system, have been pushing for a new bus route nearby since the community opened almost six years ago.

Dolores C. Henderson, 78, who lives at Fort Washington Manor, said even for seniors who still drive, parking is often a hassle at certain locations.

“I am ecstatic,” she said. “Even though I drive, I would like the option to take the bus and to not have to drive. [With the new route] I don’t have to work so hard to get to places.”

Route 35, which currently runs from Southern Avenue Metro Station to National Harbor, will expand to include a portion of Indian Head Highway at Fort Washington Manor with the possibility to extend to the Tantallon area in Fort Washington.

The route will run predominantly on Oxon Hill and Livingston roads, from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

Donna Powers, resident services director for Columbia-based Equity Management, which runs Fort Washington Manor, said the community has about 170 senior residents.

The county provides other transportation services at reduced rates to seniors and county residents with disabilities, such as Call-A-Cab and Senior Transportation Services.

But Powers said those services are not enough for elderly county residents.

“There is no spontaneity with these types of services,” Powers said. “They do not address quality of life. Many of our residents just want to make a quick trip to the grocery store when they’re running out of milk or want to go shopping.”

Another proposed bus route, Route 37, also has been approved to serve the Brandywine area up to the Charles County line and allow riders to feed into existing bus routes in the Clinton area such as routes 30 and 32, according to county officials.

Susan Hubbard, a spokeswoman for the county’s Department of Public Works & Transportation, said Route 37 and the expansion to Route 35 together will cost about $3 million annually.

The routes are scheduled to operate 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, starting in July, she said.

Hubbard said officials plan to hold several meetings with the public task force, and present the group’s findings to the general public with the routes finalized in April or May. She said the Department of Public Works and Transportation will conduct a public hearing.

A third proposed bus route, Route 36, which will connect the Oxon Hill Park and Ride lot near National Harbor to the Glassmanor community of Oxon Hill and Allentown Road in Camp Springs and link to Route 35 at the Oxon Hill Park and Ride, is in the early stages of planning, but has not been funded, according to county officials.

Hubbard said Route 36, which would operate 14 hours per day, would cost about $631,000 annually for two buses to run on the route, and about $950,000 for three buses.

The proposed routes are part of the county’s five-year Transportation Service and Operations Plan, which identifies existing and future transit demands in Prince George’s, evaluates the effectiveness of existing bus networks, and includes recommendations to improve unmet transportation needs and services.

In an email to The Gazette, Hubbard wrote the new service routes are necessary because “there are unmet service needs within the area [where the buses will service] and there has been increased development in South County.”

The launch of the new Route 35 will occur around the same time that improvements will be made to Oxon Hill Road as part of a $14 million, 2.5-mile construction project south of National Harbor to Fort Foote Elementary School. Improvements will include bike lanes and sidewalks added to both sides of the road, on-street parking space, and traffic circles.

Hubbard said construction on Oxon Hill Road might cause some minor disruptions to bus service. She said the county has not made a decision yet on whether Route 35 will stop at the future Tanger Outlets across from the National Harbor.

“A stop at the Outlet is not scheduled now, but when the Outlet opens, it will be something to be considered,” she wrote.

County Councilman Obie Patterson (D-Dist. 8) of Fort Washington, whose district includes the three proposed routes, coordinated the Jan. 18 meeting with DPW&T officials. He said it was important for residents to be included in the planning process for the routes.

“If you don’t have a car and without some form of bus transportation, it’s tough [to get around south county],” Patterson said. “This will make an impact on people who don’t have cars.”

Charlene M. Dukes, president of Prince George’s Community College, who attended the meeting, said the new routes will also aid students who need to get to their classes at any of the college’s five campus sites.

Sarah Cavitt, a Fort Washington resident and former Prince George’s County Planning Board member, said she hopes the new bus routes will also take into consideration residential areas where a large number of elderly or people with disabilities live by themselves.

“For many of us, if we decide to retire in place and can no longer drive but we’re still in our homes, there should be some type of public transportation available,” she said.

Her husband, William Cavitt, who is president of the Indian Head Highway Area Action Council, said he wants county officials to consider placing stops along Fort Foote Road, and supports having more stops along central services centers such as Harmony Hall Regional Center, the Tucker Road Community Center, and a proposed Southern Regional Tech/Rec Complex.

“Most of the population in that area is off of Fort Foote Road if not Oxon Hill Road,” he said. “It makes sense [to have a bus route there] because that’s where the people are. It’s unreasonable for residents in the Fort Foote loop to be walking and catching a bus at Oxon Hill Road.”

Henderson said she plans to join the county’s task force on the proposed bus routes.

“It’s been a long time coming,” she said. “The residents at Fort Washington Manor will be happy with the outcome.”

mliu@gazette.net