UNLESS you've been living under a rock, you know that Jan. 20 is Inauguration Day in Washington, and that commuting patterns have been altered drastically to "help things run smoother."
Most federal employees have been given the day off, but many government contractors and most of private industry will be open for business.
If you plan to drive into the District or anywhere near Northern Virginia on that day, forget about it.
Find public transportation--if you can. I say that because even some of the old reliable public transportation modes have turned against you and are making the journey to Washington sound more and more like a nightmare.
Virginia Railway Express, for instance, will not accept regular commuting tickets on Inauguration Day. Instead, it is selling a $25 round-trip ticket.
These trains, six in the morning and seven in the evening, will run pretty close to the regular VRE schedule. However, they will not stop at Franconia/Springfield, Alexandria or Crystal City.
Since VRE first announced this policy, the outcry has been overwhelming from the monthly-ticket holders who are required to work that day. So VRE has agreed to provide a reserved ticket to any monthly-ticket holder who submits a signed form from his employer certifying that he is required to work that day.
Commuters who hold monthly tickets and send the form to VRE will be issued round-trip tickets for the reserved trains on Inauguration Day. In addition, overnight parking will not be permitted in any of the VRE parking lots over the long weekend preceding the inauguration, Jan. 16-20.
Finally, if you were hoping Amtrak would save you, it will not. Amtrak is not honoring step-up tickets for any trains on Monday, which is a federal holiday, or Tuesday, Inauguration Day.
In fact, even if you think you might be willing to pay the full Amtrak fare, check in advance to make sure trains are not sold out.
The Washington Metro system will operate under rush-hour status for 17 hours, 4 a.m.-9 p.m., which means it will cost more to ride during the day. It will also keep the system running until 2 a.m.
Metro parking garages will be open and charge $4 for parking. One other important Metro-related note: Due to the high levels of security for this event, the Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter station on the Green and Yellow lines and the Smithsonian station on the Blue and Orange lines will be closed all day.
Finally, major bridges into the city will be open only to buses and official traffic. These bridges include the Roosevelt, Memorial and inbound Key bridges.
A complete list of bridge and road closings is due to be released soon. If you must be in the area, check the official inaugural Web site, inaugu ration.dc.gov, or any of the hundreds of other sites discussing the commuting nightmare.
Good luck. If you can, stay home and watch the inauguration on television.
Michael Kole of Spotsylvania County commutes to Alexandria. Write him c/o Commuter Crossroads, The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va. 22401; e-mail
Email: newsroom@freelancestar.com.