The 7th Street–Georgia Avenue Limited, designated as Route D4X, is a daily limited stop bus route that is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority between Silver Spring station of the Red Line of the Washington Metro and Archives station of the Green and Yellow lines of the Washington Metro. The line operates every 10–12 minutes at all times. Trips are roughly 50 minutes long. This line provides additional limited-stop service for route D40 daily between 6:00 AM and 10:00 PM during weekdays and 6:00 AM and 9:00 PM during the weekends, serving select stops along Georgia Avenue and 7th Street.
Route Route D4X operates between Silver Spring station and Archives station providing limited stop service along Georgia Avenue. While it was still route 79, it and the S9 (now D6X) were the only MetroExtra routes to have full-time service with all other MetroExtra routes operating only during weekday or weekday peak periods prior to the MetroExtra branding being discontinued due to the 2025 Better Bus Network Redesign. It was also one of the few Metrobus routes with dedicated bus lanes. Route D4X operates out of Montgomery division.
Route D4X Stops
Bus stopDirectionConnectionsMontgomery County, MarylandSilver SpringBus Bay 221Southbound station,Northbound terminal Metrobus: C87, D40, D60, D6X, M20, M52, M54, M70, P30 Ride On: 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 28, Flash BRT (Blue, Orange) MTA Maryland Bus: 915, 929 Shuttle-UM: 111 Peter Pan Bus Washington Metro: MARC: Brunswick Line MTA: Purple Line (Planned)Georgia Avenue / Blair Road Northbound Metrobus: D40, D60Washington, D.C.Georgia Avenue NW / Eastern Avenue NWSouthbound Metrobus: D40, D60Georgia Avenue NW / Aspen Street NWNorthbound Metrobus: D40, D50, D5XGeorgia Avenue NW / Butternut Street NWSouthbound Metrobus: D40, D50, D5XGeorgia Avenue NW / Tuckerman Street NWNorthbound Metrobus: D40Georgia Avenue NW / Piney Branch Road NWSouthbound Metrobus: D40Georgia Avenue NW / Missouri Avenue NWNorthbound Metrobus: D40Georgia Avenue NW / Rock Creek Ford Road NWSouthbound Metrobus: D40Georgia Avenue NW / Kennedy Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: C81, D40Georgia Avenue NW / Decatur Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: D40Georgia Avenue NW / Kansas Avenue NWSouthbound Metrobus: C75, D40, D74Georgia Avenue NW / Upshur Street NWNorthbound Metrobus: C75, D40, D74Georgia Avenue NW / New Hampshire Avenue NWGeorgia Avenue-PetworthNorthbound Metrobus: C63, C75, D40, D44, D74 Washington Metro: Georgia Avenue-PetworthBus Bay BSouthbound Metrobus: C63, C75, D40, D44, D74 Washington Metro: Georgia Avenue NW / Irving Street NWNorthbound Metrobus: C61, C63, D40Georgia Avenue NW / Columbia Road NWSouthbound Metrobus: C61, C63, D40Georgia Avenue NW / Howard Place NWHoward UniversityBidirectional Metrobus: D40 Georgia Avenue NW / Florida Avenue NW Northbound Metrobus: C51, C53, C57, D407th Street NW / T Street NWSouthbound Metrobus: C51, C53, C57, D407th Street NW / Rhode Island Avenue NWShaw-Howard UNorthbound Metrobus: D32, D40 Washington Metro: 7th Street NW / R Street NWShaw-Howard USouthbound Metrobus: D32, D40 Washington Metro: 7th Street NW / L Street NWMount Vernon Square/7th Street-Convention CenterNorthbound Metrobus: D40 Washington Metro: 7th Street NW / M Street NWMount Vernon Square/7th Street-Convention CenterSouthbound Metrobus: D40 Washington Metro: 7th Street NW / H Street NWGallery Place-ChinatownBidirectional Metrobus: D20, D2X, D24, D30, D34, D36, D40, D80, D94 Washington Metro: 7th Street NW / Pennsylvania Avenue NWArchives-Navy Memorial-Penn QuarterBidirectional Metrobus: D10, D1X, D40 MTA Maryland Bus: 610, 640, 650, 705, 810, 820, 830, 840 PRTC OmniRide MTA Maryland Commuter Bus OmniRide Commuter Washington Metro: 9th Street NW / Constitution Avenue NWArchivesNorthbound station,Southbound terminal Metrobus: D10, D1X, D30, D40, D60 MTA Maryland Bus: 610, 640, 650, 705, 810, 820, 830, 840 PRTC OmniRide MTA Maryland Commuter Bus OmniRide Commuter
History
Before WMATA implemented the Better Bus Redesign network, Route D4X was previously known as Route 79. Prior to route 79, the only express route that operated along Georgia Avenue was the Brightwood Express Line under route 73. Route 73 was the main express route operating along Georgia Avenue running between the intersection of Eastern Avenue & King Street and L'Enfant Plaza station via Georgia Avenue NW, Sherman Avenue, 9th Street NW, and 7th Street NW. However, in 2000, route 73 was discontinued and replaced by routes 70 and 71.
New Route 79 In response to growing demand along Georgia Avenue, plus to reduce overcrowding on routes 70 and 71, WMATA launched Route 79 under their new MetroExtra brand on March 19, 2007 as a limited stop express service providing service on high ridership lines. Route 79 was the first MetroExtra route introduced by WMATA which would operate between Silver Spring station and Archives station during weekday peak-hours only. The new route will only serve 16 stops northbound and 15 stops southbound.
The original run of route 79 used the 2007 New Flyer C40LFRs out of Bladensburg division. Although, route 79 started using other buses throughout the years, when the C40LFRs undergoes maintenance.
Changes On September 25, 2011, new midday service was added to route 79 which operates every 10–12 minutes.
On March 24, 2013, new Saturday service was added to route 79. The line would operate every 15 minutes between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. only.
On December 29, 2013, new Sunday service was added to route 79 also operating between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. operating every 15 minutes.
During WMATA's FY2021 budget year proposal, WMATA proposed to raise the MetroExtra fare from $2.00 to $3.00 at all times. However, WMATA also proposed to operate route 79 up to 10:00 p.m. instead of 7:00 p.m. daily.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the line was reduced to operate on its Saturday supplemental schedule during the weekdays beginning on March 16, 2020. On March 18, 2020, the line was further reduced to operate on its Sunday schedule. On March 21, 2020, weekend service was also suspended and replaced by the 70.
On August 23, 2020, southbound route 79 service was rerouted to operate along 7th street instead of 9th street in order to streamline service. Weekend service was also restored.
On June 10, 2021, WMATA proposed to increase the 79 to operate every 12 minutes daily between 7:00 AM to 9:00 PM daily as part of WMATA's Pandemic Recovery Plan.
On September 5, 2021, the 79 was increased to operate every 12 minutes daily between 7AM and 9PM daily.
Cash Free pilot On June 24, 2018, route 79 began a six-month cash free pilot for WMATA. According to WMATA, route 79 was selected for the pilot due to its proximity to retail stores and Metrorail stations to purchase or load SmarTrip cards, as well as alternative bus service for cash-paying riders. Passengers wishing to pay with cash would have to ride the local route 70 instead.
Controversy The pilot had passengers worried overall. Non SmarTrip riders will lose access to one of the most heavily used bus lines in the system.
DC Councilmember David Grosso sent a letter to WMATA General Manager Paul Wiedefeld, urging him to consider the implications of cashless bus service stating:
Metro also asked the public's feedback on cashless payment and can be expanded onto other MetroExtra routes and future limited stop routes. However, riders are not in favor of the cashless experiment. Metro Accessibility Advisory Committee Chair Phil Posner told the Metro Board in an WTOP interview:
Maryland Metro Board Member Michael Goldman also said:
The Metro Board took in all surveys by November 2018 and will consider if they should extend the cashless payment.
In December 2018, WMATA announced that the cashless payment pilot will be extended for another six months on route 79 with a full permanent adoption being decided in 2019. In May 2019, WMATA announced that the cashless payment pilot will end on June 23, 2019. Regular fares will still be applied to the route.
Better Bus Redesign In 2022, WMATA launched its Better Bus Redesign project, which aimed to redesign the entire Metrobus Network and is the first full redesign of the agency's bus network in its history.
In April 2023, WMATA launched its Draft Visionary Network. As part of the drafts, WMATA proposed to extend the 70 and 79 to Waterfront station via 7th Street NW, Maine Avenue SW, and M Street SW, keeping the same routing between Silver Spring station and Archives station. The route was named Route DC107 in the drafts.
During WMATA's Revised Draft Visionary Network, WMATA renamed the DC107 to Route D42 and was cutback to Archives station with late night service being extended to L'Enfant Plaza station, taking the current routing of Route 70. Service to Buzzard Point and Waterfront would be served by the proposed Route D14. A new Route D4X was also introduced to do limited stops along Georgia Avenue NW and 7th Street NW, following the same routing as Route 79. All changes were then proposed during WMATA's 2025 Proposed Network.
On November 21, 2024, WMATA approved its Better Bus Redesign Network.
Beginning on June 29, 2025, Route 79 was renamed into the D4X, keeping the same routing.
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