Metro News Release

For immediate release: June 29, 2009

Takoma Metrorail station to close Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday nights at 10 p.m., reopen in time for morning rush hour at 5 a.m.

Investigation continues into cause of last week's accident

FAQs related to train accident

The Takoma Metrorail station will close at 10 p.m. for at least the next three nights--on Monday, June 29, Tuesday, June 30 and Wednesday, July 1--as investigators continue their work to determine the cause of last week’s train accident. The station will reopen in time for the morning rush hour.

When the Takoma Metrorail station is closed from 10 p.m. to midnight, the Red Line will be divided into two segments with trains running from the Glenmont to Silver Spring Metrorail stations and between the Fort Totten and Shady Grove Metrorail stations. Shuttle buses will take riders around the accident investigation work, stopping to pick up and drop off riders at Fort Totten, Takoma and Silver Spring Metrorail stations. 

Red Line trains will remain restricted to a maximum speed of 35 mph, so riders on that line should plan to build up to an additional 30 minutes into their trips. Trains will move even slower through the area between the Fort Totten and Takoma Metrorail stations. Speeds on the Red Line will be slower than usual as the investigation into last week’s fatal train accident continues. Red Line trains will be very crowded.

If trains get backed up, some may be offloaded during the morning rush hours to turn trains around. This maneuver will allow Metro to get some trains to Glenmont, which in turn can provide more service for people traveling from Glenmont or Silver Spring into downtown Washington.

In addition, all trains on all color lines are pulling to the front end of all platforms, so riders should check the passenger display signs located both on the platform and at the mezzanine level to determine where they should stand as they wait to board a train. Eight-car trains will fill the entire platform. However, customers will notice that when six-car trains pull into a station that there will be about 150-feet of empty platform space behind the train, so when the signs indicate that a six-car train is pulling into a station, customers should move toward the center or front of the platform for easy boarding.

Media contact for this news release: 202-962-1051.
For all other inquiries, please call customer service at 202-637-7000.

News release issued at 1:12 pm, June 29, 2009.