Alexandria Commuters Encouraged To Prepare For Metro Shutdowns

ALEXANDRIA, VA — In just over two weeks, Alexandria commuters will be faced with a Metro shutdown reminiscent of the 2019 summer-long shutdown.

To prepare for the new Potomac Yard Metro station, there will be no Metrorail service from Sept. 10 to Oct. 22 at the six Yellow and Blue Line stations south of Reagan National Airport — the Braddock Road, King Street-Old Town, Eisenhower Avenue, Huntington, Van Dorn Street and Franconia-Springfield stations. At the same time, Yellow Line service will be suspended between Pentagon and L'Enfant Plaza between Sept. 10 and May 2023 for work on the Yellow Line tunnels and bridge over the Potomac River. The City of Alexandria is encouraging commuters to make a plan for the shutdowns.

First Phase of Shutdowns

The first phase of the Metro shutdowns will shut down six stations to perform cutovers of the new Potomac Yard Metro station tracks to existing Metrorail tracks. During this phase, commuters can use free shuttle buses, fare-free DASH Bus service, Fairfax Connector bus service, free Metroway service between Braddock Road, Crystal City, and Pentagon City stations through October, and fare-free Virginia Railway Express in September. In October, Virginia Railway Express will remain free between Backlick Road, Franconia-Springfield, Alexandria, Crystal City, L’Enfant Plaza and Union Station. There will also be free parking at the Van Dorn Street, Franconia-Springfield and Huntington stations during the Sept. 10 to Oct. 22 shutdown.

Shuttles from Sept. 10 to Oct. 22

Blue Line Express between Franconia-Springfield and Pentagon

Yellow Line Express between Franconia-Springfield and Pentagon

Blue Line Local serving Franconia-Springfield, Van Dorn Street, King Street-Old Town, Braddock Road and National Airport

Yellow Line Local serving Huntington, Eisenhower Avenue, King Street-Old Town, Braddock Road and Crystal City.

The shuttles will connect riders to Metro's Blue Line or Green Line at Crystal City or National Airport. Additional Blue Line service will run with trains every seven to nine minutes between National Airport and New Carrollton, or every 15 minutes after 9:30 p.m. Green Line trains will run every eight minutes, or every 10 minutes after 9:30 p.m. However, these service levels will be dependent on Metro returning its 7000-series trains.

Downtown DC shuttles (weekdays rush hours only from Sept. 10 to Oct. 22)

• Shuttle serving Crystal City, Pentagon City, Smithsonian, and L'Enfant Plaza every 12 minutes from 6:20 a.m. to 9:25 a.m. and 3:20 p.m. to 8:10 p.m.
• Shuttle serving Pentagon, Smithsonian, and Archives stations every 12 minutes from 6:20 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and 3:20 p.m. to 8 p.m.
• Shuttle (former 11Y bus route) serving Mount Vernon, Alexandria, and Potomac Park every 20 minutes in the peak direction only from 5 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. and 3:10 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. (to DC in morning and to Virginia in afternoon).

Buses

In Alexandria, DASH Bus routes serving impacted stations are:

• Line 35: Service between Van Dorn Street Metro, Yoakum Pkwy, Beauregard Street, and Pentagon Metro
• Line 103: Service between Braddock Road Metro, Russell Rd, Glebe Rd, and Pentagon Metro
• Line 104: Service between Braddock Road Metro, Cameron Mills Dr, Parkfairfax, and Pentagon Metro

Other travel alternatives recommended by the City of Alexandria during the shutdown are Capital Bikeshare, water taxi, ridesharing, and e-scooters.

The Potomac Yard Metro station will be located between the National Airport and Braddock Road stations on the Yellow and Blue Lines. After the six-week closure of stations south of Reagan National Airport, Metro will conduct additional testing and training on weekends and overnight to determine when service can start at the new station. The station is expected to open later in the fall.

Second Phase of Shutdowns

During the second phase of shutdowns, Metrorail service will reopen at the Braddock Road, King Street-Old Town, Eisenhower Avenue, Huntington, Van Dorn Street and Franconia-Springfield stations. However, there won't be Yellow Line service between Pentagon and L'Enfant Plaza. Instead, Yellow Line stations will be served by the Blue and Green Lines. The Blue Line will run every 12 minutes between Franconia-Springfield and Largo Town Center and every 12 minutes between Huntington and New Carrollton (every 15 minutes after 9:30 p.m.). Service will be less frequent if the 7000-series trains do not return by this time.

The Yellow Line bridge and tunnel rehabilitation will continue through May 2023. Metro will be performing long-term repairs to wear and corrosion on the bridge and remediate water infiltration and cracks in the tunnels. Crews will also upgrade the fire suppression system on the bridge, replace the bridge bearing and expansion joints, and rewire miles of communications cabling.

Commuters can use the Metro travel alternatives and GoAlex web pages to plan for travel alternatives.