Washington DC’s Silver Line offers better airport-downtown connection

Washington DC has come one step closer to connecting its international airport to the city’s Metrorail system. After five years of construction the Metrorail system opened the first phase of its new Silver Line, extending public transit service to Reston, Va., within about five miles of Dulles International Airport.

As a temporary measure to close the gap, Dulles Airport launched the Silver Line Express bus service to transport passengers from the new Wiehle-Reston East station to the airport. When combined with Metrorail fares, a trip on the Metrorail system between Dulles and any point on the Metro's lines costs $11 or less. That is a lot cheaper than the average taxi fare of $ 62 for an airport-downtown ride.

Washington Dulles International Airport is currently one of the few large US airports without a transit link. That will change in 2018, as the next phase of the new Silver Line will be opened.