With the passage of the 1965 act, planners focused on the District of Columbia, ignoring bolder, regional schemes. Then in 1966, Congress transferred planning power from a federal agency to a public authority: the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). WMATA representatives from the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia sought a regional system with service in every direction. Beginning with existing rights-of-way, planners examined several alternatives, modeling the patronage that each would attract. In early 1968, the authority approved a 98-mile regional system, naming it Metro.