Metro to Perform Structural Repairs

Metro announced this week that it will perform structural repair work between the Silver Spring and Forest Glen Metrorail stations, as well as replace drainage pumping stations and discharge line piping at the Wheaton station, as the agency looks to complete its Platform Improvement Project this year.

Metro said that the repair work, which will be completed during weekend shutdowns and single-tracking, includes:

Replacement of drainage pumping stations and discharge line piping at critical locations, including Medical Center, Wheaton, Metro Center, Federal Triangle, and L’Enfant Plaza stations;
Tunnel leak mitigation work between the Silver Spring and Forest Glen stations, and between Tenleytown and Friendship Heights;
Tunnel ventilation pilot project’s final phase between the Cleveland Park and Woodley Park stations; part of Metro’s effort to improve tunnel safety by upgrading the ventilation system and responsive to a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) directive following the 2015 smoke incident at L’Enfant Plaza.

Metro also announced the following station shutdowns elsewhere in the Metrorail system, as part of the agency’s Platform Improvement Project:

New Carrollton, Landover, Cheverly, Deanwood, and Minnesota Ave. stations will be closed from May 22 to September 5, with no rail service. Free shuttle bus service will be available at the five closed stations. Stadium-Armory Station will be the eastern terminus of the Orange Line during this time. Metro will demolish and reconstruct the aging concrete platforms at three outdoor stations — New Carrollton, Landover, and Cheverly. Two adjacent stations — Deanwood and Minnesota Ave. — will also be closed during this time and will receive upgraded safety and customer experience improvements. Taking advantage of the shutdown, at the same time, aerial structures will be repaired and strengthened at numerous locations in the area.
Potomac Yard Station construction will require a six-week shutdown of rail service, south of Washington National Airport station to build new tracks that “tie in” the new station with the existing Metrorail system, from September 10 to October 22. Engineering, testing, and commissioning needed to integrate the track, power, communications, and signal systems into the system will also be conducted during this time. This will be followed by additional testing and training to determine when service can begin.
Yellow Line service will be shut down between Pentagon and L’Enfant Plaza stations, closing the Yellow Line crossing of the Potomac River for seven to eight months, beginning September 10. During that time, crews will rehabilitate the Yellow Line Bridge spanning the Potomac River and repair the steel-lined tunnels between Pentagon and L’Enfant Plaza stations, both of which date to the original construction of more than 40 years ago. Exact service plans will be released later this year as construction plans are finalized.

“In order to maintain a healthy system, Metro needs an aggressive capital program. We will continue working with our regional partners to advance construction and rehabilitation projects that ensure a state of good repair for critical regional infrastructure. While service outages can be disruptive, we know they are foundational for maintaining safe and reliable service,” Metro General Manager and Chief Executive Officer Paul J. Wiedefeld said in a press release. “We have a lot of work to do this year and we will tackle [the] major state of good repair projects while also introducing new service. We are committed to providing our customers with reliable alternatives and frequent updates on the work as it is conducted.”

Earlier this month, Metro’s oldest SmarTrip cards expired, as the agency is wrapping up the installation of new faregates in the Metrorail system. The Takoma, Forest Glen, and Wheaton Red Line stations have the new faregates, and installation is currently underway at Silver Spring.