streetcar rolls past the
Francis Asbury Memorial at the southern end of Mount Pleasant in 1924.
Streetcar era Route 40 and 42 began operation in 1872 as the Mount Pleasant Streetcar Line, a
horsecar service. The horse-drawn cars were replaced between 1896 and 1900 by
electric streetcars operated by the
Metropolitan Railroad. The line was acquired in 1902 by the
Washington Railway and Electric Company, which merged to become the
Capital Traction Company in the 1930s, and operated as
DC Transit after 1956. Route 40 operated from Mount Pleasant through
downtown Washington, D.C., to
Seat Pleasant, Maryland; while Route 42 ran from Mount Pleasant to the
Kingman Park neighborhood in eastern D.C. Both routes began at Mount Pleasant and ran to H Street, turning east there, south on
14th Street NW, and east on
F Street NW along the F Street Line. At
5th Street NW, Route 40 turned south, continuing east around the north side of the
Capitol and along
East Capitol Street to 15th Street NE, while Route 42 turned north and east past
Washington Union Station on the East Washington Line, ending at
D Street NE and 13th Street NE. Route 40 ran east to Seat Pleasant via East Capitol Street NE, Southern Avenue NE, 63rd Street NE, Eastern Avenue NE, 61st Street NE, Dix Street NE, 63rd Street NE, Southern Avenue NE, and
East Capitol Street NE. On March 27, 1976, when
Farragut North station,
Metro Center station,
Judiciary Square station, and
Union Station opened, routes 40 and 42 began serving each of the stations in the middle of the routes. On January 17, 1977, when
Dupont Circle station opened, routes 40 and 42 served the Dupont Circle station in the middle of their routes. On September 24, 1978, route 42 was extended southeast of its original terminus at the intersection of D and 13th Street NE in Kingman Park to terminate at the new
Stadium–Armory station; route 40 began serving the new station. Routes 40 and 42 were shifted slightly to serve the
District of Columbia General Hospital next to Stadium Armory. Several short routes were introduced to add service along stretches of routes 40 and 42: 44, alongside route 42 between Stadium–Armory station and
Mount Pleasant; 45, alongside the 40, 42, and 44 between Mount Pleasant and the
Bureau of Engraving; and 46, alongside the 40, 42, and 44 between Mount Pleasant and the
Kennedy Center. Between the 1980s and 1990s, route 45 was discontinued and replaced by routes 40, 42, 44, and 46. In March 1995, routes 40, 44, and 46 were discontinued; 42 was truncated to connect
Mount Pleasant and
Metro Center. The segment of 40, 42, and 44 between Metro Center station and Washington Union Station was replaced by the
Sibley Hospital–Stadium Armory Line (
D1, D3, and D6). The segment of 40, 42, and 44 between Union Station and
Stadium–Armory station was replaced by the D6 and the
96 and 97. The remaining segment of 40 between Union Station and
Capitol Heights station was replaced by the 96 and 97. On December 28, 2008, a new route 43 was introduced to operate alongside 42 between
Mount Pleasant and
Farragut Square, skipping
Dupont Circle station via the
Connecticut Avenue underpass. Route 43 began operating during the weekday peak-hours in the peak direction to alleviate crowding on the 42. In 2019, WMATA proposed to add daily service on Route 43, which alternated with Route 42 trips serving Dupont Circle. Route 42 would continue to operate early mornings and late nights daily, and evenings on Sundays only. The changes were recommended in a WMATA technical memorandum of October 2018: "Metrobus Service Evaluation Study: Mount Pleasant Line: 42, 43 and
Connecticut Avenue Line: L1, L2." The memo also said that sending more buses under Dupont Circle would avoid congestion and reduce travel time for passengers continuing past Dupont Circle in each direction. THe memo also suggested altering running time to provide a more realistic schedule and to reach at least 80% on-time performance. Recent on-time performance for the line was: During the
COVID-19 pandemic, route 43 was suspended and route 42 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. On August 23, 2020, route 43 was extended to
Gallery Place station and
Metro Center station via the 42 routing along H Street, I Street, 9th Street, F Street, and 11th Street. Route 43 also added daily service operating every other trip from the 42, travelling underneath
Dupont Circle and skipping
Dupont Circle station. Service will run between 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. In February 2021 during the FY2022 budget, WMATA proposed to eliminate the 42 and 43 routing between
Farragut Square and
Gallery Place station due to alternative services. It however would operate every 12 minutes daily. On September 5, 2021, routes 42 and 43 were rerouted to operate to the
Kennedy Center via 18th Street, 19th Street, and Virginia Avenue NW to replace Route 80 service. Service to Gallery Place and Metro Center was eliminated. 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. As part of WMATA's Better Bus Redesign beginning on June 29, 2025, routes 42 and 43 were combined and named the D72. The D72 follows the 43’s route between Mount Pleasant and Farragut Square, then turns onto I Street NW before terminating at
McPherson Square station along H Street NW. Also: during rush hour and early morning weekend hours, the line was extended from Mount Pleasant to
Van Ness–UDC station via Park Road NW, Porter Street NW, and Connecticut Avenue NW. Service to Dupont Circle was replaced by an extended Route H8 (renamed into the D74), which terminates at
Potomac Park. Service to Kennedy Center was replaced by a
rerouted 32 (renamed the D10). ==References==