Metro is adding some of its old trains back in to help decrease wait times between trains.
The D.C. area is in for a couple more weeks of slow commutes on the metro. WMATA has announced the 7000 series trains will remain on the sidelines through at least November 15.
The trains are at the center of a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into a train derailment that occurred on the blue line last month. The agency has determined that issues with the 7000 series train wheel assembly contributed to the derailment and is requiring all 748 7000 series trains to be inspected before returning to service.
Service disruptions have been in effect since October 19, resulting in wait times of up to 40 minutes between trains on some service lines. Two weeks after the accident, WMATA announced service would continue to be delayed for another two weeks. To speed up travel times, Metro is adding 39 old trains into service beginning on November 1.
“Our rail maintenance crews are working hard to get more trains into service so that customers don’t have to wait as long to get where they need to go,” said Metro General Manager, CEO Paul J. Wiedefeld. “We are working as quickly and safely as possible to restore more service in the coming weeks and continue to develop plans for inspections to return our 7000-series railcar fleet to service.”
Metro live train map, Courtesy of Metro (Facebook)
Here are the expected wait times with the newly added trains:
- Red Line: Trains every 15-20 minutes
- Blue Line, Orange Line: Trains every 30-40 minutes
- Silver Line: Trains every 30-40 minutes and full service between Wiehle-Reston East and Largo Town Center
- Green Line: Trains every 20 minutes
- Yellow Line: Trains every 30-40 minutes
If you plan on taking the Metro for the next two weeks, be patient. You can use the live train map to get current wait times for each station along with the number of train cars in use. Metro also has trip planners for buses and trains online and in the app.
