DC Circulator

This is a great service. As a visitor, I considered other bus services in the area, but came across the Circulator after reading an article in the paper promoting accessible seating. A member of my family has mobility issues and we found the Circulator to be perfect for our needs. The routing, frequency, accessibility, cost, and helpfulness of the operators were all great features. I hope the service continues and ridership increases to keep the National Mall route going — it is truly beneficial for visitors. Btw, If I planned ahead, I would have looked in the possibility of a metro/​bus pass for the week.

The new route that started in June and makes stops from Union Station to all the monuments for just a $ 1 is awesome. Save your feet and plan to use this bus to not only take you out to the Jefferson Memorial, but also to get back to Capital Hill.

I want to thank the DC Circulator drivers and the company for a great vacation. My daughter and I were in DC early September. She ordered online the trip ticket for a seven day ride off and on privileges for only a $ 11 per person. The bus took you around the mall and also took us to Georgetown. We did not have to wait long for any bus. The drivers were polite and knowledgeable. If I had a wish list it would be that the bus would have gone to the White House and closer to The Capital.

COMPLETELY UNRELIABLE. Never on schedule, and a total sham that it is advertised as coming «every 10 minutes.» Having been in DC for a year and forced to take public transportation, I usually opt for the least expensive and arrive at the stop sufficiently early. However, the majority of time, the bus does not come within 10 minutes, and several times I have waited over 20 minutes, only to have to walk to my destination (usually within less than a mile, but given my recent hip injury it is painful to have to do so to avoid being late to work). The bus itself is fine and usually well regulated in terms of temperature. The bus drivers are kind enough. The schedule is utter sh**.

So coming from NYC, I practically dread the bus. I will not take the bus under any circumstances because I can walk faster than waiting, sitting in traffic, and getting off and needing to walk agin. Or subway = optimal solution.
So obviously, I was not excited about taking any of the buses, but honestly, the only one I ended up taking was the DC Circulator that went to Union Station from Georgetown. And honestly, this bus is probably the best thing ever. The drivers are extremely courteous and helpful (and actually announce the next stop). Plus, the bus is only $ 1, unlike the metro where you pay by distance (which made me feel a little better about the constant NYC MTA price jump every so often…), which could cost you a pretty penny for mediocre service, not to mention the also very creepy tunnels.
The Circulator buses are extremely spacious. This line passes by Georgetown, including GW and Georgetown U, which is really convenient. Plus, it drops you off by New York Avenue, where a lot of museums are, which is very close to the monuments if you don’t mind walking a bit.

REVIEW OF NATIONAL MALL ROUTE
Other reviewers are correct, this is a clean and inexpensive mode of transportation in the District and Rosslyn. Drivers are courteous, they help handicapped people get on and off, wait for people crossing the street, and even wait for people running to catch the bus. If you want to tour the Mall without a tour guide on weekends or during the midday, the Circulator is for you. However if it is rush hour, and you are trying get to your job near the National Mall on time in the morning, or back to Union Station to catch the Amtrak, MARC or VRE in the evening, this is not for you. The driver I had today on the new National Mall route was extremely slow.

I’d give it a 5 if the buses weren’t too hot. Winter or summer, more often than not, they are running a sauna on wheels.

Overall a very inexpensive alternative to the traditional DC metro bus system, there are however pros and cons just like any transportation system, I will list them for easier reading:
PROS
— Super cheap! (Only $ 1 standard fare and even less with a Metro transfer)
— Buses (normally) come more frequently than Metro bus on same overlapping routes
— Drivers are generally friendly and courteous
CONS
— Poor timing, sometimes there are 30 minute gaps between buses despite the falsely advertised «10 minutes or less» especially on weekends and holidays.
— Some drivers drive EXTREMELY SLOW and seem to purposely stop at every red light. Do not take if you are in a mad rush to get somewhere.
— Layover at end-​point stops such as Union Station and Rosslyn, I have seen drivers get off bus to take smoke breaks and chat on their cell phones at these stops.

A truly valuable service for the inner city of DC. The buses are relatively clean and the drivers manage to arrive at destination on time. The lines on which the buses ride make a lot of sense and are really helpful. I would say that the main thing missing is the fact that there is no dedicated app nor does the google app provide support.

I was a fan of the DC Circulator until the day the bus driver shut me in the door while I was trying to get on the bus! Mind you, I wasn’t running to catch the bus or trying to squeeze on, I literally was the first customer who was boarding the bus where there was a whole line of people behind me who also were waiting to board the bus. Clearly the bus driver wasn’t paying attention and I got squished between the doors, which hurt!
Thankfully that was just one incident and the rest of my trips on the Circulator have gone much better than that incident. I typically take the Circulator from the Rosslyn Metro station to Georgetown. However, if it is rush hour, I opt just to walk over the Key Bridge into Georgetown because it is much faster to walk because the bus just gets stuck in traffic.
Most recently, I took the Circulator bus from Union Station to the AMC movie theater in Georgetown. While the trip was a lot more straight forward than walking, taking the Metro, switching lines, and then walking again; however, it took forever! The bus was stuck in so much traffic along K Street, it was literally a parking lot. As I continued to sit on the bus and time ticked away, I really wish I had opted for the Metro option. While I know Metro has delays and issues of its own, for the most part, Metro seems to be much quicker at getting places during rush hour than the bus sitting in traffic and not being able to get through any of the intersections and the bus driver leaning on the horn every other minute.
While the Circulator is much better than the Metrobus because the buses are newer, cleaner and the routes are much easier to figure out than the Metrobus, it’s not always the fastest option.

A truly indispensable service given the chronic awfulness of D.C. Metro.
These buses are only $ 1/​ride, come every ten minutes, and with friendly bus drivers. So unlike DC’s regular bus system.
Only wish they had more routes.

Stumbled upon this transportation service on Frommer’s DC travel guide on the last night of our trip and was so happy that I did! We already had the SmarTrip card from traveling on the Metro around the DC area, but noticed that there is no Metro train service to Georgetown. Please note, this review is for the Dupont Circle — Georgetown — Rosslyn (in VA) bus route. It seems there are 5 different «Circulator» routes. This bus service route runs every 10 minutes every day, Sun-​Thur 7am-​Midnight and on Fri-​Sat until 2am.
The DC Circulator bus was comfortable, clean and safe. It usually costs $ 1 to ride, but with the SmarTrip card, the discounted rate is .50¢ per ride. There are you other discounts as well (transfer, students, etc). We were staying at the Dupont Circle hotel and the bus and Metro was pretty much across the circle, which was super convenient! I’m not sure if it was just super busy when we were there July 4^th weekend, but the traffic in Georgetown slowed the service a little when we went on a Saturday evening.
Would highly recommend taking this if traveling to Georgetown from Dupont Circle! This route also travels to Rosslyn, VA (if you plan on staying right across the water in VA).
Website for info:

The $ 1 fare is a big attraction. The buses are quite nice; clean and with a lot of space. Definitely better than Metro or Rideons.
The downsides are that this isn’t a very bus-​friendly city, and the routes are limited. The Georgetown route moves extremely slow even when it’s not rush hour, not because it’s doing anything wrong, but because of the lights, traffic, construction, and overall undrivable roads. The routes cover areas that are otherwise hard to traverse, but there’s nothing that gets you from Georgetown to Dupont, AdMo, or anything else in Northwest, and there are plenty of other places where we could use a bus route and don’t have one (even from the more comprehensive Metrobuses).
The Circulator has its uses, if you’re going the right way.

Auf englisch sind die Leute ja ein bisschen hin– und hergerissen. Ich kann nur sagen, der Circulator ist die beste und günstigste Möglichkeit, sich Washington zu erobern. Für lediglich einen Dollar bringen einen die verschiedenen Linien zum Beispiel nach Georgetown, zum Dupont Circle oder auch zur Mall — pünktlich und zügig.

This is mostly about the Georgetown Circulator.
1) It stops in every damn corner when going on K Street. It’s probably faster to walk. It drives me crazy that it’s so slow. I wish they didn’t stop in EVERY single corner. It would be great if there was a regular Georgetown Circulator and then an Express Georgetown Circulator.
2) In the summer it’s super hot. Apparently they have some sort of fan/​AC, but it’s not really an AC. It’s usually crowded during rush hour and your makeup will melt. One of the drivers made a jest that it ‘s because they are European buses. I don’t care, just get a real AC.
3) Rude employees that are totally misinformed.
4) NOT PET FRIENDLY, even though their website clearly says that you can bring your dog if it’s in a carrier.
—FROM THEIR WEBSITE
Animals on the Circulator
Are animals allowed on the bus?
Yes, service animals are allowed on the DC Circulator buses. All other animals or pets must be contained in a crate or container.
I was denied service today on the circulator because I had my dog – though she was in her carrier. This isn’t the first time I’ve had trouble. Some of them are under the impression that only service dogs are allowed. I’m so tired of DC Circulator not properly training their bus driver. EDUCATE THEM please.
If you ride the circulator with your pet in a carrier, make sure to have the FAQs opened on your phone and show the driver. They won’t believe you even if you tell them that this is allowed.
Because there are so many issues with the DC Circulator, I just end up doing Über 99.9% of the time.

I’m a HUGE fan of the DC Circulator. It is so much better than WMATA. When I worked in Rosslyn I took the Dupont to Rosslyn route everyday. It’s only $ 1! Really, you can’t beat that. Cheaper than metrobus. They are generally clean and drivers courteous. My only gripe is that sometimes the buses are timed badly. So two buses will come right in a row and then no bus for 20 minutes. I do LOVE that you can transfer to another Circulator bus for free within 2 hours. This is especially useful if I wanted to jump off on the way home and grab something from a store. WMATA should allow this! Keep in mind the routes are limited, but they get you where you need to go generally pretty quick so if you are going somewhere on a circulator line highly recommend.

It’s a dollar folks and it moves fast.
Word to the wise: Remember it goes in a circle so you may not find your return spot across the street from your arrival spot.
Convenient pick up/​drop off locations and a swift journey from the convention center to Georgetown make this a must use arm of transportation.

I love the DC Circulator! It’s convenient, timely and clean. And it’s only $ 1! It’s the cheapest public transit around. Specifically, I generally use the 21^st and Pennsylvania stop to get to the Chinatown area or I will take it on rainy days to Georgetown. The bus drivers are always friendly. I definitely recommend the DC Circulator!

The previous review is still accurate a year later. Maybe they’ve gotten a little more reliable. I finally heard about their mobile page to track the busses:
They don’t advertise it for some reason.

The DC Circulator is the one bright spot in the otherwise shittastic public transit system we have in DC/​MD/​VA. I love that it only costs $ 1, and I love not having to freak out over missing the bus because I know the next one will be here in 10 minutes. If I want to treat myself to a nice lunch in Foggy Bottom or Georgetown, I get to ride a nice clean bus and laugh at all the schmucks who have to spend almost as much on cab rides or parking as they did on their meal.

This is how mass transit should be — WMATA should take a lesson from these folks! They make it easy for me to get from point to point. The staff is super friendly and you can’t beat the $ 1 fare! Not to mention, there is a bus every 15 minutes.
I totally recommend it from Navy Yard/​Ballpark to Union Station after games. Avoid the Green Line at night, the crowded platform and the inevitable metro delays.