On Sept. 11, Alexandria Transit geared up to provide crucial assistance.

Date published: 11/11/2001

As soon as news of the attack arrived, someone was on the phone to the city of Alexandria command center, asking how DASH could help. It was less than an hour before a call came for assistance.

Alexandria Transit sometimes gets calls for help during major emergencies, explained its general manager, Sandy Modell. When firefighters spend hours battling a blaze, for example, a bus on the scene can serve as a portable rest shelter for rescue workers. At other times, as on Sept. 11, DASH provides emergency transportation.

Alexandria firefighters--but not all their vehicles--were needed at the Pentagon. The city command center asked for three buses to transport the firefighters to the Pentagon and to serve as emergency ambulances if necessary.

"DASH people immediately volunteered," said Modell. "I was very proud of our people."

The command center's request was only the first call for assistance that DASH received that day. After they delivered the firefighters, the buses sent to the Pentagon weren't needed as substitute ambulances, but there was a lot more emergency transportation required.

Amtrak and Virginia Railway Express trains leave Washington for Virginia via a tunnel under First Street on the east side of Capitol Hill, and the Secret Service closed the tunnel and sent agents through it to inspect it, stopping passenger train service till mid-afternoon.

At the same time, the Washington Metro stopped operating its Yellow Line across the Potomac because it crosses the river on a bridge under the flight path of planes entering and leaving National Airport.

The rail service disruptions left thousands of passengers stranded in Washington. DASH sent about six buses to Washington's Union Station to bring people to the King Street station in Alexandria.

DASH is a small system, with 49 buses and about 70 drivers, so it doesn't have a lot of surplus capacity. However, the attack occurred just as many buses were returning to the garage after the morning rush hour. The maintenance department took 15 to 18 buses, ran them through the service lane, gassed them up and had them ready for service in one hour, said Modell.

Date published: 11/11/2001