Metro News Release
For immediate release: October 10, 2007
Safety Exercise, Weekend Track Maintenance and Rail Car Testing to Affect Metro's Yellow, Orange and Green Lines
A safety exercise, track maintenance and rail car testing on the Yellow, Orange and Green lines this weekend (October 12-14) will cause inbound and outbound trains to take turns sharing one track.
Yellow Line Safety Exercise
On Saturday, October 13, from opening (7 a.m.) to noon, the Yellow Line will be closed between the King Street and Fort Totten Metrorail stations while Metro and local emergency response personnel perform a multi-jurisdictional disaster drill exercise over the Potomac River. The safety exercise will simulate smoke and fire on board a train which becomes “disabled” over the Potomac River.
Metro will operate a special shuttle train between the Huntington and King Street Metrorail stations. The shuttle train will be sharing one track due to track maintenance at the Huntington Metrorail station. Once the shuttle train arrives at the King Street Metrorail station, passengers will need to transfer to a Blue Line train at King Street to reach their final destination.
Customers should add at least 30 minutes to their travel time because of this exercise.
Yellow Line Track Maintenance
Metro will operate shuttle train service between the Huntington and King Street Metrorail stations because of switch maintenance work at the Huntington Metrorail station. Inbound and outbound trains will share one track between these locations from 9 p.m., Friday, October 12, to closing (midnight), Sunday, October 14.
On Saturday, October 13, following the completion of the safety exercise over the Potomac River, all Yellow Line trains will operate between the Fort Totten to Franconia-Springfield Metrorail stations through closing (midnight), Sunday, October 14.
Orange Line Track Maintenance
Metrorail customers traveling between the New Carrollton and Cheverly Metrorail stations on the Orange Line should add up to 30 minutes of travel time for their trips this weekend because of track maintenance. Inbound and outbound trains between these locations will share one track from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday, October 13, and Sunday, October 14. To help expedite rail travel into downtown Washington, every other Orange Line train will terminate at the Cheverly Metrorail station and return to the Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Metrorail station.
Green Line Track Maintenance
Metrorail customers traveling between the College Park and Prince Georges’s Plaza Metrorail stations on the Green Line should add up to 15 minutes of travel time for their trips this weekend because Metro is providing Verizon Wireless track access to conduct normal contractual maintenance and emergency work on its cables. Inbound and outbound trains will share one track between these locations from midnight to closing (3 a.m.) Friday, October 12, and Saturday, October 13.
Green Line Rail Car Testing
Metrorail customers should add 10 to15 minutes of travel time on the Green Line for their trips because of new railcar testing. Inbound and outbound trains operating between the Greenbelt and College Park Metrorail stations will share one track while new trains are tested from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, October 13, and Sunday, October 14.
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News release issued at 12:00 am, October 10, 2007.