Washington DC logistics for paying respects to RBG Thursday 9/24

September 23, 2020 5:56 PM

A friend and I will be driving from NYC to DC tomorrow (Thursday, September 24) to pay our respects to RBG at the Supreme Court building. I'm looking for suggestions specific to DC driving/parking/public transportation for how best to navigate once we arrive.

According to this Supreme Court notice, the public is welcome tomorrow from 9 am to 10 pm.

We know to expect vehicle and foot traffic, standing in long lines, street closures, etc. We know about sunscreen, water, snacks, etc. We're comfortable driving in cities and using public transportation. Driving from NYC is non-negotiable (we're driving back the same day) so please don't suggest we take the train or bus. Ability to walk long distances is temporarily compromised (standing is ok) so that's a limitation once we arrive.

What we're looking for are hyper-local tips like "Don't bother trying to drive or park in DC tomorrow, better to park the car in AAA (suburb? outer borough equivalent?) and take BBB (commuter rail, metro, etc.) to CCC (station/stop close to the Supreme Court building)." Or "If you're going to drive into DC, better to arrive by this time and look for parking here and then take taxi/Lyft/something else to the Supreme Court building."

Thanks!

posted by Majorita to Travel & Transportation around Washington, DC (5 answers total)

Best answer: Coming down from NYC, take 95 -> the BW parkway -> the beltway (495) and park at the New Carrollton Metro station. Ride the Orange Line to Capitol South. Walk north on First St past the Library of Congress. About two blocks.

(Before leaving, stop at the Belmont-Paul Women's Equality Museum, if it's open. One of my favorite hidden gems of DC.)
posted by basalganglia at 6:21 PM on September 23, 2020 [2 favorites]

The Belmont-Paul museum has not reopened yet, but other than that basalganglia's plan is a good one. Traffic and parking in DC proper has been much easier during the pandemic since so many people are working from home, but if you're not familiar with the city it will be much easier to park at New Carrollton and take the Metro the rest of the way down.
posted by fancypants at 6:24 PM on September 23, 2020

Do you have to drive back the same day? It’s a really long drive and the traffic volumes on the 95 corridor make it a stressful trip. It could be 5 hours on the return, depending on rush hour and where you’re coming from. (For comparison one time we were in the District, we visited relatives in Silver Spring and left around 8 to miss the worst of the traffic. And that was around 4 hours with minimal stops.)
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 6:55 PM on September 23, 2020

Traffic isn’t an issue as feds are still working from home.

I would just park in the garage
posted by sandmanwv at 5:46 AM on September 24, 2020

Traffic isn’t an issue as feds are still working from home.
I haven't been to that side of town in a couple weeks, but I wouldn't count on traffic itself being that much lighter - don't know where all these people are going/working, but inside the beltway rush hour is still very much a thing, although it doesn't last as long.

You'll probably encounter less traffic and stand a better chance of parking in a garage than you would have this time last year, but I'd still consider the Orange Line from New Carrollton just so you don't have to think about it.
posted by aspersioncast at 8:32 PM on September 24, 2020