This project will procure four zero-emission buses to extend the U.S. 29 Flash Bus Rapid Transit Service into Howard County. Howard County will construct four new Flash stations serving Columbia, Merriweather Drive, Maple Lawn, and the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. The buses will be purchased with a combination of Federal funding and funds provided by Howard County. The Montgomery County Department of Transportation will operate the service under a Memorandum of Agreement with Howard County. The service operation is anticipated be fully subsidized by Howard County.

Buses will be purchased in FY26, with service anticipated to begin in the Fall of 2026.

The project will transform mobility options along the U.S. 29 corridor with the implementation of a Flash service extension to Columbia in Howard County. This premium, branded, limited-stop bus rapid transit service will improve transit travel time and increase opportunities for a broad range of users, providing direct transit service from points in Howard County to the Silver Spring Transit Center. The project will improve passenger transit mobility by connecting riders to high density housing and employment centers.

The project is receiving a Community Project Funding Grant of $3.35 million from the Federal Transit Administration. $1.45 million will be provided by Howard County via a Memorandum of Agreement with Montgomery County. This funding was appropriated by a supplemental appropriation in FY25.

Howard County Department of Transportation and Public Works; Federal Transit Administration