Metro Bus Routes

This line layer was created from the GTFS data feeds from the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority (WMATA) to represent the new WMATA bus transit routes for the Better Bus Network Redesign(BBNR). Lines in this layer represent individual bus routes; they were generalized from the GTFS format where lines depicted individual services.

On June 29, 2025, WMATA implemented a brand new Metrobus Network – known as Better Bus. Read more about this update from BBNR info page.

Each line represents the route that a specific bus follows during its daily service. The unique field, shape_id, is derived from the GTFS to identify the route, while route_id (route_shortname), direction, and variation fields use familiar letter or number designations for buses, with distinct IDs for each route. This layer was developed as part of the WMATA Better Bus Network Redesign and will be updated as necessary to reflect changes in the transit system. Learn more about GTFS feeds at wmata.com/about/developers.

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) has added DC attribution for Roadway Blocks and Roadway Subblocks to the Metro Bus Stop dataset. Use BLOCKKEY, SUBBLOCKKEY, and ROUTEID to relate back to DC government data. Learn more about DDOT's roadway centerline data at opendata.dc.gov/pages/roadway-centerlines.