Metro News Release
For immediate release: July 3, 2009
Takoma Metrorail station to remain open Friday and Saturday
Station will close at 10 p.m. Sunday, reopen next day
The Takoma Metrorail station will remain open Friday, July 3, and Saturday, July 4, but will close at 10 p.m. Sunday, July 5, to allow investigators to continue their work aimed at determining the cause of last month’s Metrorail train crash. The station will be open all day on the July 4th holiday from 7 a.m. to 3 a.m. with trains moving at close to normal speeds. Trains will continue to move one at a time at reduced speed between Takoma and Fort Totten Metrorail stations.
On Saturday, July 4, Metrorail will operate near rush-hour level service from 4 p.m. to midnight. Trains will run on their usual routes on all five rail lines and the Smithsonian Metrorail station will be open, a change from previous years. Additionally, free parking will be available for about 60,000 automobiles at Metro-owned facilities.
Metro will operate additional eight-car trains to carry more passengers throughout Saturday, July 4, in an attempt to alleviate crowded conditions. If trains get backed up, it is possible that some may be offloaded 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.
Riders on July 4th should expect crowded conditions, especially in the hour leading up to the 9:10 p.m. fireworks on the National Mall and again after the fireworks show is completed. After the fireworks, customers should expect to wait up to 90 minutes to be able to get back into a Metrorail station, as is typical after large events such as the July 4th fireworks.
In addition, all trains on all color lines will continue to pull 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.
While the Takoma Metrorail station is closed Sunday, July 5, the Red Line will be divided into two segments, with trains running between the Glenmont and 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.
Media contact for this news release: Lisa Farbstein at 202-962-1051.
For all other inquiries, please call customer service at 202-637-7000.
News release issued at 10:01 am, July 3, 2009.