One of the first customer experience improvements riders will see on September 7 is brand new stainless-steel faregates. These new faregates allow for quicker and easier access to the Metrorail system and feature larger displays and enhanced safety features. SmarTrip cards produced in 2012 or earlier contain chip technology that is incompatible with these new faregates, so make sure to check your card now. Visit wmata.com/cardreplacement to see if your card needs to be replaced and view replacement options.

Riders will also be returning to the stations at the same time Metro is adding more buses and trains, and offering discounts. Some of these changes include free bus transfers to/from rail, $2 weekend one-way Metrorail fares, extended Metrorail weekend hours, and increased service. For complete details visit wmata.com/changes.

Crews have installed elevator glass for the main elevators, and new station signage has been placed on the platform. Platform edge lighting that alerts riders to approaching trains, one of Metro’s longstanding and defining safety features, has been tested and is fully functioning. Light fixtures have been installed in the pedestrian tunnel for better customer visibility. Riders returning to the station will enjoy the new granite and tile that has been laid on the platform and new tile in the mezzanine. In one week, crews will be cleaning the station and completing items on the station punch list to prepare the station for customer arrival.

Customer safety is a priority, and in the last few weeks crews at College Park-U of Md have been focused on making sure that station security and safety features are in place. Fencing has been installed around the Area of Safe Dispersal (ASD) to keep customers safe. Platform edge lights alerting riders to oncoming trains have been installed and are fully functioning. Mezzanine lighting to increase visibility has also been installed. New public information displays (PIDs) with larger, 55-inch digital screens have been installed on the platform.

Crews finished work on station features that will help riders access information inside the station. New 55-inch Passenger Information Display Screens (PIDS) that scroll through next arriving trains, service alerts and other announcements have been installed, and information cube structures with digital information displays have been hung from the platform ceiling. New slip-resistant tiles have been placed on the floor of the station manager’s kiosk. Moving into the final week of the project, crew members are cleaning and painting the station, installing escalator railings and door frames, and installing the glass on the wind screens on the passenger shelters to protect them from weather elements.

Crews at Hyattsville have been working to ensure that safety and security features are installed and functioning. Work has continued on the Area of Safe Dispersal (ASD), an important new safety feature at the station that provides an area of safety for riders, including pouring concrete for the stairs and installing fencing around the perimeter to keep customers safe. Other station safety features such as pedestrian tunnel lights and blast-proof receptacles have been installed. Concrete joints have been sealed and concrete cracks have been filled to ensure structural safety. Many electrical components that support station safety and security have been installed and optimized. Passengers will find better visibility when they return to the station, with new passageway lighting and LED lighting on handrails installed on escalators.