The Military Road Line, designated Route C81, is a daily bus route operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority between the Sibley Memorial Hospital and Fort Totten station of the Red, Green and Yellow Lines of the Washington Metro. The line runs every 20minutes between 6am and 9pm and 30minutes after 9pm. Trips takes roughly 45minutes.

Background

Route C81 operates daily between Sibley Memorial Hospital and Fort Totten station daily. This line mainly connects Northwest and Northeast by bus without having to ride the train and provides service along Nebraska Avenue NW, Military Road NW, and Kennedy Street NW. Route C81 operates out of Bladensburg division.

Former Route E4 Stops

Bus stopDirectionConnectionsMontgomery County, MarylandFriendship HeightsBus Bay JEastbound station,Westbound terminal Metrobus: 31, 33, L8, N2, N4, N6, T2 Ride On: 1, 11, 23, 29, 34 Friendship Heights Village Bus Washington Metro: Western Avenue / Livingston Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: L8 Ride On: 1, 11Western Avenue / 41st Street NWEastbound Metrobus: L8 Ride On: 1, 11Washington, D.C.McKinley Street NW / Western AvenueWestbound Metrobus: L8 Ride On: 1, 11McKinley Street NW / 39th Street NWBidirectionalMcKinley Street NW / Connecticut AvenueBidirectional Metrobus: L2McKinley Street NW / Chevy Chase Parkway NWBidirectionalMcKinley Street NW / Nevada Avenue NWBidirectionalMcKinley Street NW / Broad Branch Road NWBidirectionalMcKinley Street NW / 33rd Street NWBidirectionalMcKinley Street NW / 32nd Street NWBidirectional30th Place NW / Nebraska Avenue NWBidirectional Metrobus: M430th Place NW / Legation Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: M430th Place NW / Military Road NWBidirectional Metrobus: M4Military Road NW/ 30th Street NWWestbound Metrobus: D31, D33, D34, W45Military Road NW / 29th Street NWEastbound Metrobus: D31, D33, D34, W45Military Road NW / 28th Street NWWestbound Metrobus: D31, D33, D34, W45Military Road / 27th Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: D31, D33, D34, W45Military Road NW / Glover Road NWEastbound Metrobus: D31, D33, D34, W45Military Road NW / Oregon Avenue NWWestbound Metrobus: D31, D33, D34, W45Military Road NW / 16th Street NWWestbound Metrobus: D31, D33, D34, S2, S9, W45Missouri Avenue NW / 16th Street NWEastbound Metrobus: D31, D33, D34, S2, S9, W4514th Street NW / Missouri Avenue NWWestbound Metrobus: 52, 54, 59, D34, W4514th Street NW / Oglethorpe Street NWEastbound Metrobus: 52, 54, 59, D34, W4514th Street NW / Nicholson Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: 52, 54, D34, W4514th Street NW / Montague Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: 52, 54, D34, W4514th Street NW / Longfellow Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: 52, 54, D34, W45Kennedy Street NW / Colorado Avenue NWWestbound Metrobus: 52, 54, 59, D34, W45Kennedy Street NW / 14th Street NWEastbound Metrobus: 52, 54, 59, D34, W45Kennedy Street NW / 13th Street NWBidirectionalKennedy Street NW / Georgia AvenueBidirectional Metrobus: 70, 79Kennedy Street NW / 9th Street NWBidirectionalKennedy Street NW / 8th Street NWBidirectionalKennedy Street NW / 7th Street NWBidirectionalKennedy Street NW / 5th Street NWBidirectional Metrobus: 62, 63Kennedy Street / 4th Street NWBidirectionalKennedy Street NW / 3rd Street NWEastbound3rd Street NW / Kennedy Street NWWestboundMissouri Avenue NW / 2nd Street NWBidirectionalMissouri Avenue NW / New Hampshire Avenue NWBidirectional Metrobus: 64Riggs Road NE / North Capitol StreetBidirectional Metrobus: 60, 64, K2, K6Riggs Road NE / Blair Road NEWestbound Metrobus: 60, 64, K2, K6Riggs Road NE / Rock Creek Church Road NEEastbound Metrobus: 60, 64, K2, K6First place NE / Riggs Road NEWestbound Metrobus: 60, 64, K2, K6, R1, R2First place NE / Ingraham Street NEEastbound Metrobus: 60, 64, K2, K6, R1, R2Fort TottenBus Bays E and KBidirectional Metrobus: 60, 64, 80, E2, F6, K2, K6, K9, R1, R2 Washington Metro: Galloway Street NE / 4th Street NEEastbound Metrobus: 80 (Southbound only), E2 (Southbound only), F6 (Eastbound only)South Dakota Avenue NE / Kennedy Street NEEastboundRiggs Road NE / South Dakota Avenue NEBidirectional Metrobus: R1, R2Riggs Road NE / Chillum Place NEBidirectional Metrobus: K9, R1, R2Chillum Place NE / Kennedy Street NEEastboundChillum Place NE / #5312EastboundChillum Place NE / 11th Street NEEastboundChillum Place NE / Eastern AvenueEastboundEastern Avenue / Jamaica Street NERiggs ParkWestbound station,Eastbound terminalNicholson Street NE / 8th Street NEWestboundNicholson Street NE / 6th Street NEWestboundNicholson Street NE / Riggs Road NEWestbound Metrobus: R1, R2Riggs Road NE / Nicholson Street NEWestbound Metrobus: R1 (Southbound only), R2 (Southbound only)

History

Route E2, E3, E4, E5, and E8 all operated as part of the Military Road–Crosstown Line through the years starting from Friendship Heights station. Route E4 originally operated up to University City Apartments in Lewisdale, Maryland but was shorten to Riggs Park in the 1970s. Routes E2, E3, and E4 terminated at Friendship Heights while E5 and E8 were shorten to Friendship Heights in 1984.

During the years, the E5 and E8 were discontinued and route E6 operated as part of the Chevy Chase Line. Prior to 2015, route E2 would operate between Friendship Heights station and Ivy City (Okie & 16th Streets NE), route E4 would operate between Friendship Heights and Riggs Park (Eastern Ave & Jamaica St NE) during the weekday peak hours only, and route E3 would operate on midday and weekends only between Friendship Heights and Ivy City via Riggs Park as a combination to route E2 and E4. During most hours of the day, route E2 would operate between Friendship Heights and Fort Totten station only and only serves Ivy City during the weekday peak hours, and early morning and late night periods through the week.

Beginning on September 24, 2006, route E3 midday service was eliminated and replaced by full route E2 and route E4. Route E4 and the full route E2 now operated during all days during the weekdays while the E3 only operated during the weekends. Route E2 kept its short trips between Friendship Heights and Fort Totten which only operated during times when the E3 did operate.

In 2012, WMATA proposed to eliminate routes E3 and E4 and shorten route E2 between Friendship Heights station and Fort Totten station. Service between Fort Totten and Riggs Park/Ivy City would be replaced by an extended route D4 and F6 reroute. According to WMATA, this was to reduce running time and improve on-time performance, provide a level of service along the different portions of the line east and west of Fort Totten commensurate with the significantly different passenger demand on the two portions, and allow for a more even frequency of service on the western portion of the line where the greatest demand occurs.

In 2014, WMATA proposed to split the E2 and E4 into two separate routes. Route E4 will keep its current routing to Riggs Park with short trips operate between Friendship Heights station and Fort Totten station while route E2 will operate its current routing between Fort Totten and Ivy City. This will improve reliability of service by operating shorter routes and create a better balance of capacity and demand throughout the line. It will be every 16–20 minutes for all three routes during a.m. and p.m. peak periods, and every 36–40 minutes for all three routes off-peak and weekends and will have timed transfers at Fort Totten to minimize wait time.

On June 21, 2015, route E2 and E4 were split into two different bus lines. Route E4 kept the Military Road–Crosstown Line name while route E2 was renamed into the Ivy City–Fort Totten Line also being shorten between Fort Totten station and Ivy City on its current routing. Route E4 was also given weekend service fully replacing route E3 as well. A small section of route E3's routing along Sargent Road and Eastern Avenue wasn't replaced as stops along the route are in walking distance to routes E2 and E4 bus stops.

Route E4 will have frequencies between Friendship Heights and Fort Totten every 8–10 minutes during AM and PM peak periods and every 18–20 minutes off-peak and weekends.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the route 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. Weekend service was later suspended on March 21, 2020. Additional service and weekend service was restored on August 23, 2020.

On June 10, 2021, WMATA proposed to increase the E4 to operate every 20 minutes daily between 7:00 AM to 9:00 PM daily as part of WMATA's Pandemic Recovery Plan.

On September 5, 2021, service was increased to operate every 20 minutes daily between Friendship Heights and Fort Totten station.

Due to rising cases of the COVID-19 Omicron variant, the line was reduced to its Saturday service on weekdays. Full weekday service resumed on February 7, 2022.

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 modifying the Military Road Line into two routes. The first proposed route was named Route DC200 and was to operate between Fort Totten station and Sibley Memorial Hospital, following the current Route E4 routing between Fort Totten station and the intersection of Military Road NW & 30th Street NW, then would follow the current Route M4 routing to Sibley Hospital via Military Road NW, Nebraska Avenue NW, Loughboro Road NW, MacArthur Boulevard NW, and Arizona Avenue NW. Another route proposed was Route DC203 and would operate between Fort Totten station and Friendship Heights station, operating closely to the current E4 via Riggs Road NE, Missouri Avenue NW, and Military Road NW. Service to Riggs Park was partially taken over by Route DC209, which is proposed to operate between West Hyattsville station and Ivy City via Riggs Park. Service along Western Avenue NW, McKinley Street NW, and 30th Place NW would be discontinued in this proposal.

During WMATA's Revised Draft Visionary Network, WMATA retained the DC200 and DC203 and renamed them to Routes C81 and C83 respectively. The C81 would remain the same from the draft proposal, but Route C83 would be changed to operate alongside the C81 and almost match the current E4, operating along Riggs Road NE, Missouri Avenue NW, Kennedy Street NW, 14th Street NW, Military Road NW, Connecticut Avenue NW, McKinley Street NW, and Western Avenue NW, partially restoring service on McKinley Street NW. Route C83 would only operate during the weekdays. Route DC209 was not included in the revised proposal, with Riggs Park service instead taken over by Route P32 between Fort Totten station and College Park–University of Maryland station. All changes were then proposed during WMATA's 2025 Proposed Network.

During the proposals, Route C83 was changed again to operate between Friendship Heights station and Barnaby Woods via Western Avenue NW, McKinley Street NW, Nevada Avenue NW, Nebraska Avenue NW, Utah Avenue NW, and Oregon Avenue NW, almost replicating the former Route E6. Route C81 was also changed to operate every 20 minutes daily, and have the route operate on South Dakota Avenue NE and Galloway Street NE before and after serving Fort Totten station. Service to Riggs Park was also instead served by the proposed Route C71, which operates between Fort Totten station and Washington Union Station via Riggs Park and Ivy City.

On November 21, 2024, WMATA approved its Better Bus Redesign Network.