Morning Notes

Woman Fatally Shot Near Inova Fairfax Hospital — “A man shot and killed his ex-girlfriend in a parking lot in Northern Virginia, and police arrested the suspect in Maryland after a short manhunt Friday evening, police said. The victim had a protective order against the suspect, but he showed up outside the medical office in Annandale where she worked, police said.” [NBC4, WUSA9]

Metro Police Start Fare Evasion Crackdown in D.C. — “Metro police will crack down on fare evasion in the District starting Monday, issuing fines of up to $100 or arresting people who refuse to pay for rides. Until now, Metro Transit Police officers have only been able to ask fare evaders to pay their fare or leave the station, according to Metro.” [Washington Post]

Warm Weather Leads to More Pollen — “This year, abnormally warm weather has boosted average tree pollen counts to near-record levels in the D.C. area. The counts have already climbed into the high range on eight days this year. So far, the peak daily count was 1,171 pollen grains per cubic meter of air measured in early March.” [Washington Post]

County Seeks Input on Bicycle Parking Updates — “The Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) will host a virtual meeting on the updated Bicycle Parking Guidelines on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at 6 p.m.” The county is developing guidelines for “rate of short-term to long-term bike parking spaces, acceptable rack and facility design and location guidance, and optional enhancements to improve user comfort.” [FCDOT]

Senators Warn Against Adding Long National Airport Flights — “The four U.S. senators from Virginia and Maryland are urging Congress to keep the current rules for long distance flights from Reagan National Airport (DCA) as they are.” The senators reiterated that the airport is “already overburdened” and adding more long-distance flights could affect the larger Dulles and Baltimore airports. [WTOP]

Transportation Officials Give Update on Richmond Highway Projects — “Vanessa Aguayo, project manager of the Richmond Highway Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project, and Virginia Department of Transportation’s (VDOT) Dan Reinhard, lead project manager for the Richmond Highway Corridor Improvements project, provided updates March 14 at the Mount Vernon Springfield Chamber of Commerce Business Breakfast.” [On the MoVe]

Former McLean HS Student Publishes Debut Novel — “Small-town skullduggery, eccentric characters, humor and a gritty tone are staples of Southern crime fiction and former Great Falls resident Peter Malone Elliott was happy to indulge in them all in his debut novel, ‘Blue Ridge.'” [Gazette Leader]

Local Volunteers Bonded by Helping Feed People — “It may look like Mona Tatum works at an outdoor market along Route 1 in Alexandria. But the bounty in front of her of fresh fruits, vegetables, protein, and so much more, stems from a remarkable story of friendship between Ed Moore and Deacon James Myers…A friendship that blossomed four years ago during the pandemic’s darkest days.” [WJLA]

It’s Monday — Expect mostly sunny skies and a high near 51, with a west wind blowing between 9 and 14 mph, gusting up to 23 mph. In the evening, the sky remains mostly clear with a low temperature around 34. A northwest wind of 11 to 13 mph will continue, gusting as high as 22 mph. [Weather.gov]