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When federal and regional officials were planning the Metro system, it took intense pressure from D.C. community and government leaders to persuade them to build a line serving low-income neighborhoods in the center of the city. Those neighborhoods, along what’s now known as the Green Line, are no longer so poor. But looking at Metro’s revenue, it’s clear why the Green Line wasn’t the highest priority of the system’s planners.
The map above, courtesy of Metro’s planning blog, shows average daily fare revenue by entry station. The cash cows are clustered in two areas: the downtown employment centers and the ends of the Red, Orange, Blue, Silver, and Yellow lines in the suburbs. The lowest-revenue stations are located mostly in outlying District neighborhoods and in the inner suburbs, particularly on the Green, Orange, and Blue lines.
Here’s the breakdown between morning peak and evening peak. First, the morning. (These maps are interactive, but they’re also a tad wider than the page, so you’ll have to scroll around a bit.)
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