Pope Francis’ visit to Washington, D.C. this week is expected to draw
tens of thousands of visitors to the city and create traffic congestion
across the region. Depending on where your office is located, this
could have a significant impact on your commute.
While the Federal
Government will remain open during the pope’s visit – Tuesday evening
through Thursday – OPM has strongly encouraged agencies
to allow employees to use any workplace flexibilities available to them,
especially telework. In the D.C. area, 70 percent of Federal employees
are eligible to telework and those who take advantage of that option
this week will be helping to alleviate congestion and ensure public
safety while remaining fully productive, despite the logistical
challenges associated with the pope’s visit.
If you do not yet
have a plan in place for telework or using other flexibility options,
talk with your supervisor. Additionally, if you are on an alternative
work schedule, consider whether you can move your day off to give
yourself flexibility during the visit. There are a number of options,
and we encourage supervisors to be as flexible as possible.
Decreasing
the number of commuters into and leaving the city this week will help
alleviate traffic congestion and stress on public transportation. If you
are required to commute to the city during this time, be sure to allow
plenty of extra time. If you are driving, check the street closures
ahead of time, and if you are using public transportation, keep
an eye out for alerts and changes in schedules from the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority.
And, as always, watch local news outlets
for additional changes and alerts. You can get up-to-date information on
the papal visit and the areas of the city that will be affected at PopeFrancisVisit.com.
Brenda Roberts is the Deputy Associate Director for Pay and Leave at the Office of Personnel Management.
