Welcome to Fairfax County Commuter Services (FCCS), a program of the Fairfax County Department of Transportation. FCCS helps:
- commuters find the right travel options to ease their trip to the workplace;
- employers to offer commuting perks, benefits and support to their employees, and recognition programs to be seen as a leader in forward-thinking HR and sustainability initiatives;
- developers to create commuting options for future residential and commercial tenants; and
- residential properties to encourage alternate transportation modes to their residents.
In addition to providing free technical support to agencies and developers, FCCS has dedicated staff to help commuters navigate the transportation options to make life quicker, less stressful and healthier. Is public transit an option for you? Need to know where the nearest park-and-ride lot is located? Looking to beat those HOV tolls? Need a guaranteed ride home? Please email FCCS staff or call 703-877-5900 to get started today!
For Commuters
Calculating the cost to commute is not a linear formula of 2 + 2. There are:
- Direct Costs: Tolls, Tickets/Passes/Fares, Parking, Gas
- Indirect Costs: Vehicle wear and tear
- Time: Direct but expensive? Local with traffic lights? Traffic conditions?
- Environmental Concerns
- Stress/Convenience
For some, the extra effort of slugging pays off with a free commute on HOV lanes. Others would prefer to read or relax while someone else does the driving on transit. We've spelled out some commuting options below, including alternate commutes and non-commutes (teleworking).
Nervous about leaving your car and needing to get home in an emergency? Register for Commuter Connections Guaranteed Ride Home program and leave the worry with us!
For statewide commuting resources, see ConnectingVA from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, which offers rewards for taking greener trips with coupons, discounts and more.
In addition, see the American Public Transportation Association's commuter tools:
In Fairfax County, two train systems serve commuters:
- Metrorail, with four lines:
- Silver Line - Dulles Airport/Loudoun/Tysons
- Orange Line - Vienna/GMU
- Yellow Line - Huntington
- Blue Line - Franconia/Springfield
- Virginia Railway Express, with two lines:
- Fredericksburg Line
- Manassas Line
- For regional connections, Amtrak utilizes VRE stations at Burke Centre (Manassas Line) and Lorton (Fredericksburg Line)
Two primary bus operators serve Fairfax County commuters:
- Fairfax Connector - with more than 100 routes
- Metrobus - operated by WMATA
Additional bus service can be found in:
- Arlington County - Arlington Transit
- Alexandria City - DASH
- Fairfax City - CUE Bus
- Prince William County - OmniRide
- Loudoun County - Local and Commuter Transit
Fairfax County recently opened two commuter parking garages, allowing commuters to park for free and catch Connector and Metrobus service from Monument Garage (Infographic; Video) in Fairfax and Springfield Garage on Old Keene Mill Road in Springfield.
The County also operates nearly 30 free park-and-ride lots to encourage commuters to take transit or rideshare.
Commuters can find paid parking garages at Metro Stations (operated by WMATA) for $4.95/day at Innovation Station, Van Dorn, Vienna/Fairfax - GMU, West Falls Church and Wiehle-Reston East.
For a regional look at park-and-ride lots, check out VDOT's Park and Ride page.
For commuters who are seeking options that includes driving, Fairfax County Commuter Services encourages ridesharing, including slugging, carpool and vanpool.
Carpooling may happen among neighbors, co-workers or even strangers! Fairfax County facilitates "slugging," a type of ridesharing where commuters meet at a central location and drive together from its park-and-ride lots. The new parking garages in Springfield and Monument (Fairfax) have dedicated lanes for slugging. From Springfield, sluggers generally drive to the Pentagon, NW Washington (State Department) and SE Washington (Navy Yard), allowing carpoolers access to the HOV lanes for free. For more information, including a link to the Commuter Connection ridematching database, visit our Carpooling page.
Vanpooling is a popular option, especially among commuters who travel long distances. Vans may be owned, leased or provided by an employer. For more information and resources on how to start a vanpool, visit our Vanpooling page.
Check out the Commuter Connections' Pool Rewards incentive program to help kick start your ridesharing journey today!
Do you bike to work? Do you bike to transit and take your bike with you on the bus or train? Or do you use a bike room or bike locker at a parking garage or park-and-ride lot? Do you use Capital Bikeshare to help with that first mile/last mile of your commute? FCDOT has plenty of resources for people who bicycle and walk as part of their travels - visit the Active Transportation page for more information.
One way to alleviate congested roadways is to change the time of "rush hour." Aside from telecommuting and hybrid schedules, here are some innovative ways organizations are allowing their employees to beat the Beltway blues:
- Flexible work day (start and leave early or late) to avoid peak travel
- Compressed work week - logging 80 hours in 9 days instead of 10
For Employers
The Fairfax County Employer Services Program will help your business and employees find transportation solutions that will not only make your company more successful but improve the economic vitality and quality of life for the entire region. The Employer Services Specialist will work on-site with you to help you realize the bottom-line benefits of commute alternatives.
How Your Company Benefits from Commute Alternatives:
- Improved employee productivity
- Improved morale
- Easier recruitment and retention
- Reduced parking and office space needs and costs
- Easier access and traffic flow at work site
- Reduced absenteeism and late arrivals
- Public recognition as a good corporate citizen
How Your Employees Benefit from Commute Alternatives:
- Reduced commuting time and expenses
- Reduced wear-and-tear on personal vehicles
- Less stress
- More productive time while riding to and from work
- Flexible work schedules
- Access to HOV lanes
How Your Community Benefits from Commute Alternatives:
- Easier travel on streets and highways
- Increased economic vitality
- Economic development benefits
- Cleaner air
- Improved overall quality of life
Join the Partnership for a Stress Free Commute
SmartBenefits® "Plus50" - Get a free $50 SmarTrip® card and try commuting by transit.
Post commute alternative information on your Web site, intranet, newsletter, and employee bulletin board.
The Employer Services Program can provide helpful services to your company free of charge:
- Development of tax-free commute benefit programs (SmartBenefits®)
- Development of a telework program
- On-site transportation assessments
- Confidential employee commute surveys
- Mapping of employee residence patterns
- Computerized ridematching
- Corporate relocation assistance
- On-site rideshare promotions and displays
- Help with carpool and vanpool formations
- Assistance in implementing alternative commute programs and incentives
- Coordination with nearby companies to establish commuter programs
- Training an on-site Employee Transportation Coordinator (ETC)
- Development of incentive programs
- Transit schedules, route maps and park-and-ride information.
- New employee commute options information
- Assessment of parking options
- Program follow-up and evaluation
SmartBenefits® "Plu$50" is an incentive program that offers employees a free $50 SmarTrip® card just to try transit. Your employees may be eligible if they are new to bus or rail service and do not already own a SmarTrip® card. The "Plu$50" program will send them a SmarTrip® card via your office and works with your team to load the free $50 benefit.
Learn more about the SmartBenefts Plu$50 program
The Fairfax County Department of Transportation partners with Best Workplaces for Commuters (BWC) to recognize employers who have excelled in implementing green commuter programs, including ridesharing, transit benefits, biking and walking, teleworking, alternate work schedules and other strategies.
BWC Videos:
- 2024 Best Workplaces for Commuters Honorees and Ceremony - February 2025
- Building Sustainable Commuter Programs - Insights from Fairfax County - October 2024
- Fairfax County BWC Gorove Slade - June 2023
For the list of previous honorees and application information, visit: https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/transportation/commuter-services/bestworkplaceforcommuters
For Developers
As the Fairfax County community grows, it is important to mitigate the effects and impacts of development in the county, including how they relate to transportation and traffic. Fairfax County works with developers to reduce the number of single occupancy vehicle (SOV) trips being taken by improving access to transit, providing facilities for biking and walking, and encouraging ridesharing. Implementing these strategies can lessen the traffic impacts of new developments, all while making our community a safer, cleaner, healthier and more equitable place to live.
To learn more about Transportation Demand Management (TDM), visit