For Immediate Release: February 12, 2021
The City of Alexandria is sharing information on construction activity and modifications to Metrorail Blue and Yellow Line service impacting Alexandria travelers between Saturday, February 13 and Sunday, May 23. Work scheduled during this period will result in significant station infrastructure improvements as part of WMATA’s Platform Improvement Project; upgrades to signal and power systems along the Blue Line; and installation of the Potomac Yard Metrorail Station pedestrian bridge.
Metro will temporarily suspend service along the Blue Line to facilitate work associated with the Platform Improvement Project. The Arlington Cemetery station will be closed for platform reconstruction and the installation of more energy-efficient LED lighting, slip-resistant tiles and new digital signage to improve customer communication. The Addison Road station on the Blue Line in Maryland will also be closed for similar improvements. Metro is providing free shuttle buses between the Pentagon, Arlington Cemetery and Rosslyn stations for riders. Travel between Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. is available on the Yellow Line via the Pentagon, and the Orange or Silver Lines via the Rosslyn station.
The tracks between Braddock Rd. and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport will be closed while Metro conducts work related to the future Potomac Yard Metrorail Station. Metro will provide free shuttle bus service between stations for riders during Metro operating hours. The closure will allow station construction crews to construct temporary shoring towers adjacent to the station headhouse and knuckle pier, and then lower the pedestrian bridge into place by crane over the otherwise active Metro tracks. Metro will also install signal upgrades to enable the new station to join the Metrorail system.
Franconia-Springfield and Van Dorn St. stations will also be closed over the holiday weekend for power system upgrades along the Blue Line. Travelers can connect to the Yellow Line via free bus shuttles between these stations and the Eisenhower Ave. station. Free express shuttle service will also be provided between Franconia-Springfield and Pentagon stations. Additionally, the Franconia-Springfield and Van Dorn St. stations are currently scheduled to be closed weekends through Sunday, March 14 for signal upgrades.
Metro will begin running a temporary extension of Yellow Line service in Northern Virginia that travels to the Van Dorn St. and Franconia-Springfield stations. This additional train service will originate at the Mt. Vernon Square station, then follow the Yellow Line to the King St.-Old Town station, and deviate onto rail serving the Van Dorn St. and Franconia-Springfield stations. Service along this Yellow Line extension will be limited to Monday through Friday until the track work impacting the Franconia-Springfield and Van Dorn St. stations is complete.
Construction activity and track closure schedules may be subject to change. Travelers are encouraged to consult Metro’s modified Spring 2021 system map, and Metro’s Status and Alerts and Planned Metrorail Track Work webpages for potential schedule adjustments prior to travel.
The platform closure supports WMATA’s Platform Improvement Project, a multiyear project to repair or replace outdoor platforms throughout the system after decades of deferred maintenance. The City supports this program to ensure the system’s structural integrity.
The City reminds residents and visitors planning to use Metrorail services during this time that Federal law requires the use of face masks in all Metro stations and on buses, shuttles, and trains.
Visit wmata.com/Platforms for more information about the Platform Improvement Project.
Visit alexandriava.gov/GOAlex for updates, travel alternatives and other resources during scheduled station closures.
For inquiries from the news media only, contact Andrea Blackford, Senior Communications Officer, at andrea.blackford@alexandriava.gov or 703.746.3959.
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