Metro News Release
For immediate release: October 21, 2004
Metro announces upcoming weekend track work to support the Blue Line extension to Largo
Weekend of track work will shut down three Blue Line stations from Friday, October 22, at 8 p.m., to Monday, October 25, at 5 a.m.
In preparation for the opening of the Blue Line extension to Largo, MD, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (Metro) will conduct a major track circuit project this weekend on the Blue Line between Stadium Armory and Addison Road-Seat Pleasant resulting in a partial shutdown of the Benning Road, Capitol Heights and Addison Road-Seat Pleasant Metrorail stations on the Blue Line. Customers are advised to plan accordingly for their weekend travel on this portion of the Blue Line.
From Friday, October 22, at 8 p.m., to Monday, October 25, at 5 a.m., Metro will complete the installation of the new automatic train control system to control train operations from Stadium Armory through the Addison Road-Seat Pleasant Metrorail stations. This work must be done because when the Addison Road-Seat Pleasant station was constructed, the automatic train control and track systems were not designed to handle rail service beyond Addison Road-Seat Pleasant.
To perform this work, Metro will institute the following weekend service pattern: All Metrorail Blue Line service will be suspended between Stadium- Armory and Addison Road-Seat Pleasant, resulting in the closure of the Benning Road, Capitol Heights, and Addison Road-Seat Pleasant Metrorail stations during the dates and times outlined above.
Metrorail Blue Line service will operate only between the Franconia-Springfield and Stadium-Armory Metrorail stations.
Metro will run up to 15 free shuttle buses operating every 5 minutes between the Stadium-Armory and Addison Road-Seat Pleasant Metrorail stations with stops at the Benning Road and Capitol Heights Metrorail stations. Customers who normally board at Benning Road and Capitol Heights will need to take a free shuttle bus from those stations to either Stadium-Armory or Addison Road-Seat Pleasant stations, depending on their direction of travel.
To alert customers about this work, regular station and train announcements will be made throughout the Metrorail system. Additional information will be available on Metro’s Web site at www.metroopensdoors.com.
The 3.1-mile, two-station, $456 million extension of the Blue Line from the current Addison Road-Seat Pleasant Metrorail station to the Largo Town Center station with an intermediate station at Morgan Boulevard achieves a number of "firsts" in Metrorail history. It is the first segment to be added to the 103-mile adopted regional system, bringing it to a total of 106.1 miles; and it’s the first of four segments of the Metrorail system in Prince George’s County, MD, to extend beyond the Capital Beltway. The Trip Planner, located on Metro’s Web site, will not reflect the impact of this track work on its schedules. Customers should allow more time for their trips because of this work. For more information on traveling by Metrobus or Metrorail, customers may call 202/637-7000 or TTY 202/638-3780.
News release issued on October 21, 2004.