In a city like Washington, where when people mention party planning, you’re never quite sure if they mean a lively event with music and martinis or feuding politicos, I recently had the occasion to plan two very exciting parties (not the kind with feuding politicos). One was for the kickoff of our new Rides in the City Web site and the other for a milestone (never mind which milestone) birthday for myself. The quandary I found myself in was how to plan a party (or in this case, two parties) using transit, promoting transit, and allowing for guests to use transit when possible.

Most people, when party planning think “Open bar or cash bar?” “Will people feel obligated to bring gifts?” or “Do I have to invite Cousin Harold?” Ah, but not me! I think, “How can I make sure everyone gets to the party by taking the train or a bus and not driving?” If you really think about it, planning a transit accessible party is actually quite practical, considering drinking and driving and parking issues. But how to go about it?

I took my query to happy hour to pick the girls’ brains about just how to do it. Stacey declared that some people would just not take transit, no matter what options I provided for them while Alison insisted that everyone who lived in the city, as well as the closer-in suburbs would definitely take Metro. Erika reminded me that the first step for both events was, in fact, choosing an appropriate location, very close to a Metrorail station. But was I biting off more than I could chew and would I end up choking on my giant bite?

I had already managed to choose my two venues. For the Rides party, I had chosen the Clarendon Ballroom, just steps from the Clarendon Metro station. For my birthday party, I had chosen the historic Churchill Hotel in Dupont Circle, also conveniently located near Metrorail, at the Dupont Circle Station. Alison had suggested putting the Metro stops on the invitations to both parties, which would already put the idea of taking the train in people’s minds.

Next, I decided to run all errands for the party using transit only, leaving my car at home, including picking up a very large cake. Was I going overboard or would I find myself hanging over the front of the ship yelling, “I’m the king of the world!”? I just hoped I wouldn’t end up like the poor girl in “MacArthur Park”, singing “someone left the cake out in the rain”—with Washington weather, you never can tell.

As the dates neared (both parties were in the same week), I found myself maniacally riding just about any form of transit available. I met with caterers, vendors, and a D.J. Let me tell you, it was no picnic getting to outer (Mongolia) Fairfax without my car, but I powered through.

The day of the Rides party, I found myself running around like a nut, and, I will admit, I’m sure I looked like one (not to mention an ego maniac) riding the Metro to Clarendon with a life-sized cardboard cutout of myself. Thank goodness it was only two stops and I didn’t have to pay fare for both of us. The party seemed to go off without a hitch with a number of guests “bragging” to me that they had taken the bus or the train or biked to the event. I was so proud!

With that event behind me, I had only to look forward to my birthday party. I was especially excited because I had a friend from Ohio who was flying into National, taking Metro to the hotel and not using anything but transit while she was here. Another couple from Philly was taking the train to Union Station and then the Metro. Both said it was because I put the Ride Guide Web site on their invitation. I began to think I was rubbing off on my friends. Just what the world needs—little transit nerds everywhere!

The night of the party was great, although my sister, my own flesh and blood, arrived late, complaining that she couldn’t find parking and eventually had to pay $12 to put her car in a garage. I smirked and her and said, “If you had taken Metro...” (to which she gave me an expletive and a hand gesture that might get you mauled in Italy). Fortunately, we had enough cocktails to get her calmed down and a hotel room for her to sleep it off before driving home the next morning.

All in all, I found that it is not only possible, but extremely easy, to plan a party (or two, in my case) using only public transportation. I’m sure this system wouldn’t work as well if you were living in Frederick, but luckily I had the public transportation resources of the DC metropolitan region at my well-manicured fingertips. I had, in effect, become a party animal—and this kind of party animal is much more fun than the kind that involves donkeys and elephants.