Disembarking from one’s MegaBus or Bolt Bus into the makeshift bus deck of Union Station, a traveler unfamiliar with D.C. is apt to feel a bit lost.
The low-slung ceilings prevent her from spotting the Capitol dome or any other landmark that might orient her. Hordes of other bus riders from Harrisburg and Richmond and New York City are simultaneously being disgorged – as many as 30 buses an hour stop here in peak season. And the sounds and smells from all those idling diesel engines make it hard to hear and breathe.
The bright yellow kiosk – just 100 square feet – is now under development by Cultural Tourism DC, in conjunction with
Union Station Redevelopment Corp.
“It won’t be staffed, but it will be well-lit and open,” says Steve Shulman, executive director of
Cultural Tourism DC, a nonprofit coalition of more than 200 organizations promoting Washington’s heritage, art, history and culture.
The (currently empty) kiosk will offer visitors to D.C. suggestions for things to do if they have just one or several hours; information about the
Heritage Trails that are one of CTDC’s flagship programs; and brochures and other takeaway information from CTDC’s partners.
“This will be a chance for people to get their bearings and learn some of what the city offers,” Shulman says. “There is so much happening here,” and the kiosk will give D.C. guests a chance to pause and find current information about familiar and unfamiliar attractions.
CTDC’s partner organizations range from the
African-American Heritage Preservation Foundation to the
Embassy of Sri Lanka to the Smithsonian’s
National Museum of American History.
CTDC also runs the
U Street Visitor Center next door to
Ben’s Chili Bowl, which guides visitors to interesting dining, shopping and historical spots in the U Street area as well as the city as a whole.
USRC officials estimated that the Union Station bus-deck kiosk will be in service by late spring.
This story has been updated to correct misinformation that implied the kiosk was still under construction. It is not--it is completed--but it has not yet been filled with information. Elevation DC regrets the error.