H/Benning is a 2.4-mile segment that serves residents, businesses, commuters and visitors between Union Station on the west and the Anacostia River on the east. Ultimately, the H/Benning line segment will be just one piece of an extended east-west line that will traverse the city from beyond the Anacostia at Benning Metro to the Georgetown waterfront.
The eastern turnaround for the line is at Benning Road and Oklahoma Avenue, near the under-construction Car Barn Training Center (CBTC). The CBTC will handle storage and light maintenance of the vehicles, and will also feature community space for local events. The western turnaround is on top of the Hopscotch Bridge, where passengers can disembark and enter Union Station via the parking garage. A future phase for DC Streetcar will pick up at Union Station and travel to the Georgetown Waterfront, primarily along K Street.
The work for H/Benning began in 2008 through the Great Streets Project. Great Streets implemented key improvements on H Street and Benning Road, such as new parking lanes, sidewalks, reconstructed roadways and new street lights. Streetcar infrastructure needs (including streetcar tracks and pole foundations) were also included as part of the roadway reconstruction project. Great Streets was completed in 2011, which helped ignite a revival of the H/Benning retail and entertainment corridor. Final design and construction for the H/Benning corridor began in 2012, kicking off the last 20 percent of work to be done to make the corridor streetcar-ready. Testing of the system and operator training began in 2014. The system was safety-certified and pronounced ready to open in February 2016.