Blue Line Trains Won't Run On Veteran's Day Because Of The Boss

Blue Line trains won't run on Veteran's Day as Metro attempts to deal with thousands of passengers attending the free Concert for Valor. Blame the Boss, people. 

Up to 800,000 people will be permitted to attend the concert on the National Mall, which will feature Bruce Springsteen, Meryl Streep, Rihanna and John Oliver. Metrorail will run enhanced Saturday service, and the Smithsonian Metro station will be closed. Blue Line riders in Maryland may use Silver Line trains to get downtown.

"All Blue Line service will be replaced with additional Yellow Line service running between Franconia-Springfield and Greenbelt," Metro said in a board presentation. "This service change provides a faster, direct (transfer-free) trip to the Mall for thousands of Virginia riders, as well as more frequent service and more capacity to the Mall for riders in D.C. and Prince George's County."

According to NBC4, "a special shuttle train will operate between National Airport and Arlington Cemetery."

Metro says it will be doing plenty of outreach before the November 11 event, including setting up a special web page and printing brochures. Extra service is expected to cost more than $500,000, which will be paid for by HBO and Starbucks.

The concert will also be livestreamed.

Here’s How Much It Costs to Rent an Apartment Next to a Metro Station

While the Urban Institute’s comprehensive study on DC housing costs on Tuesday stated what most of us already know—that DC rent is damn high and getting higher—the effects of a surging residential market are felt more on the blocks with the best public transportation access. Again, this isn’t a big shock: with nearly 40 percent of DC residents relying on public transportation to get to work, it’s logical that the housing closest to Metro stations comes at a premium.

The Urban Institute’s research found that citywide, 64 percent of rental units now cost more than $1,000 per month, while 35 percent go for at least $1,500 a month. However, when apartments sit on top of train stations, the typical rent for a one-bedroom unit often approaches $2,000 a month, according to RadPad, an online apartment-hunting service that combed listings around the Metro stations with the most rental activity.

The findings aren’t that startling for a metro area in which more than 50 percent of renters spend at least 30 percent of their monthy earnings on housing, but there is a bit of sticker shock to reinforce the fact that rental costs continue to surge. RadPad’s map tops out at the Foggy Bottom-GWU station, where nearby one-bedrooms average $2,723 per month. Dupont Circle, at $2,443, and Mount Vernon Square, at $2,402, are next.

The spiking rents extend beyond the urban core, but tend to drop as the Metro lines push out. A one-bedroom near the NoMa-Gallaudet station runs $2,238; the next station up, Brookland, runs $1,551 a month.

Of course, this map is skewed from sourcing only one company’s listings—that’s possibly why there’s a $998 difference between Anacostia and Congress Heights—but it does reinforce much of what the Urban Institue found in its report and hints that the chunk of people who spend upward of 30 percent of their incomes on rent will continue to expand.

What happens when you get Lion King's cast on your plane

In-flight entertainment can be a bit sketchy sometimes but surprised passengers on a plane in Australia were treated to their own impromptu show by the cast of The Lion King.

The first three rows on Virgin’s Flight 0970 from Brisbane to Sydney burst into a glorious a capella version of Circle of Life, which was handily caught on camera by one cast member.

The eight-person chorus, led by Buyi Zama, were so happy after attending the Brisbane launch of The Lion King musical that they decided to put a smile on everyone else’s faces too by performing Elton John‘s hit song from the 1994 Disney classic.

We like the dad who keeps on pushing his toddler son further and further down the aisle to listen to them. That’s kind of like Rafiki holding up Simba, right?

Via Metro