Ardwick Industrial Park Shuttle Line
| F12 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ardwick Industrial Park Shuttle | |||
 | |||
 Route F12 at Landover Station | |||
| Overview | |||
| System | Metrobus | ||
| Operator | Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority | ||
| Garage | Landover | ||
| Livery | Local | ||
| Status | In Service | ||
| Began service | December 3, 1978 | ||
| Route | |||
| Locale | Prince George's County | ||
| Communities served | New Carrollton, Landover, Hyattsville, Dodge Park, Kentland, Columbia Park, Cheverly | ||
| Landmarks served | New Carrollton station, Metro East Office Park, Ardwick Industrial Park, Landover station, Columbia Park, Kentland, Kent Village, Cheverly station | ||
| Start | New Carrollton station | ||
| Via | Pennsy Drive, Landover Road, Martin Luther King Highway | ||
| End | Cheverly station | ||
| Length | 35-37 minutes | ||
| Service | |||
| Level | Mondays-Fridays Only | ||
| Frequency | 35-60 minutes | ||
| Operates | 5:40 AM – 7:39 PM | ||
| Ridership | 112,510 (FY 2024)[1] | ||
| Transfers | SmarTrip only | ||
| Timetable | Ardwick Industrial Park Shuttle Line | ||
| |||
The Ardwick Industrial Park Shuttle Line, designated Route F12, is a weekday-only bus route operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority between the New Carrollton station and Cheverly station on the Orange Line of the Washington Metro. The line operates every 35–37 minutes during peak hours and 60 minutes all other times, weekdays only. F12 trips are roughly 30 minutes.
Background
[edit]Route F12 operates weekdays only between New Carrollton station and Cheverly station from 5:40 am to 7:23 pm operating 35–37 minutes during peak hours and 60 minutes all other times. Route F12 gets its buses out of Landover Division. Prior to 1989, route F12 would get its buses out of Southern Avenue division.
History
[edit]Route F12 was created as a brand new Metrobus Route by WMATA on December 3, 1978, when New Carrollton & Landover stations opened. Route F12 was designed to operate between New Carrollton & Landover stations, via Ardwick Industrial Park on Weekdays only via Garden City Drive, Pennsy Drive, Ardwick-Ardmore Road, Jefferson Avenue, Polk Street, and Pennsy Drive. When operating to New Carrollton, it would make a right turn from the intersection of Ardwick-Ardmore Road onto the intersection of Pennsy Drive because Ardwick-Ardmore Road is only a one-way street between the intersections of Garden City Drive & Pennsy Drive and will operate along Corporate Drive and Garden City Drive to serve New Carrollton. Route F12 will also serve an extra loop serving Metro East Office Park after serving New Carrollton.[2]
On December 11, 1993, route F12 was extended from Landover station, to operate up to Cheverly station, in order to replace the segment of the former route F3 routing between Cheverly station & Columbia Park subdivision of Landover when route F3 was discontinued. Route F12 would keep operating its same routing between New Carrollton & Landover stations but would operate between Landover & Cheverly stations, via Pennsy Drive, Old Landover Road, Landover Road, Martin Luther King Jr. Highway, Columbia Park Road, East Marlboro Avenue, Flagstaff Street, Kent Village Drive, and Columbia Park Road.[3]
In February 2020, WMATA proposed to discontinue route F12 as part of fiscal year 2021 budget due to low ridership.[4] However WMATA later backed out the elimination.[5]
All service was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic beginning on March 18, 2020.[6][7] The line resumed service on August 23, 2020 with reduced frequencies.[8] Full service was restored on September 5, 2021.[9]
On December 17, 2023, the F13 was changed to operate along Forbes Boulevard and Business Parkway on all trips, eliminating service on Philadelphia Way.[10]
As part of WMATA's Better Bus Redesign taking place on June 29, 2025, the F12 was taken over by TheBus and was merged with Route 27 and renamed into Route P44. The route follows the F12 portion between New Carrollton station and Landover Road & Fire House Road, then operates via Fire House Road, Kent Village Drive, Columbia Park Road, and Martin Luther King Jr Highway before resuming TheBus 27 routing to Downtown Largo station.[11]
References
[edit]- ^ "Metrobus FY2024 Annual Line Performance Report" (PDF). wmata.com. Retrieved February 17, 2025.
- ^ Feaver, Douglas B. (November 30, 1978). "Bus Routes Change Sunday to Link with Orange Line". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
- ^ Pierre, Robert E. (December 9, 1993). "METRO SHUFFLING ITS BUS SCHEDULE". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved November 4, 2019.
- ^ "MARYLAND Proposed Metrobus Service Changes" (PDF). Retrieved February 12, 2020.
- ^ Barthel, Margaret. "Metro Backs Away From Significant Bus Service Cuts". WAMU. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
- ^ "Metro announces additional COVID-19 changes, including reduced service beginning Monday | WMATA". www.wmata.com. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
- ^ "METRO SERVICE LEVELS & HOURS FURTHER REDUCED TO SUPPORT ESSENTIAL TRIPS ONLY, STARTING WEDNESDAY | WMATA". www.wmata.com. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
- ^ "Metrobus Service Changes beginning August 23 | WMATA". www.wmata.com. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
- ^ "Improved frequency and changes to Metrobus service begin Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021". Retrieved August 16, 2021.
- ^ "Metrobus Changes Begin Sunday, December 17, 2023 with 24/7 DC Bus Service". WMATA. Retrieved May 16, 2025.
- ^ "Metro Board of Directors approves Better Bus Network Redesign, new bus routes to start next summer". WMATA. Retrieved January 23, 2025.