DC Circulator

The concept of a separate downtown bus was included in a 1997 report by the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC). The report called for "a simple, inexpensive, and easily navigable surface transit system that complements Metrobus and Metrorail." The next year, representatives of the Commission, the District of Columbia Department of Transportation, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, and the Downtown D.C. business improvement district met to plan what would become the Circulator.

After selecting First Transit as the system operator, the DC Circulator started service in July 2005 with two routes: one along K Street from Union Station to Georgetown, and a second from the Walter E. Washington Convention Center to the Southwest Waterfront.

Additional routes were later added to serve the National Mall (2006), the 14th Street Corridor (2009), the Washington Navy Yard (2009), Rosslyn to Dupont Circle (2010), and the Skyland Town Center development in Southeast Washington (2011). The two lines that served the National Mall and the Southwest Waterfront were discontinued in 2011 due to low ridership and redundant service. The National Mall route was reinstated on June 15, 2015. The route was operated in collaboration with the National Park Service.

A report released in March 2011 calls for developing better routes to replace those that had served the National Mall and Southwest Waterfront and adding new service to the U Street Corridor, portions of Upper Northwest, and neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River.

In 2018, RATP Dev replaced First Transit as the operator of the Circulator.

From February 2019 through September 2019, DC Circulator rides were free under Mayor Bowser's Fair Shot initiative. The $1 fare was reinstated in October. Rides were free again after March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic until the $1 fare was reinstated again on October 1, 2021.

Phaseout

On July 29, 2024, the District Department of Transportation announced that the service would be drawn down throughout the remainder of the year, and eventually discontinued on December 31. Reductions including the discontinuation of most late-night services, elimination of the Rosslyn – Dupont Circle route, and increased headways, are planned to begin on October 1. The announcement cited decreasing ridership and transportation budget cuts as the reasons for ending the service.

On October 1, 2024, the Rosslyn – Dupont Circle route was discontinued entirely, and late night service on the Woodley Park – Adams Morgan and Georgetown – Union Station routes were discontinued. Additionally, all routes were now scheduled to operate every 20 minutes. WMATA responded to the route discontinuation by increasing weekend frequencies on the Ballston – Farragut Square Line (at the time designated as route 38B, now the A58) which operated a similar route to the discontinued Circulator route.

This line connected Eastern Market and L'Enfant Plaza through Navy Yard & the DC Wharf District. Service will be replaced in WMATA's Better Bus Network Redesign.