Traffic & Transit
Metro Shutdown To Close 2 Stations, Disrupt Rail Service At More Alexandria Stations
Metro will shut down two stations for nearly a month, and one Metro line will not run at Alexandria stations.
ALEXANDRIA, VA — Alexandria's Metro stations will experience disruptions in Metrorail service for part of the summer, according to an update provided to the Alexandria Traffic and Parking Board Monday.
Metro will shut down the Franconia-Springfield and Van Dorn Street stations on the Blue Line from July 5 to 26. During that time, Blue Line service will end at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Metro station. That means riders will need to switch to the Yellow Line to continue to Potomac Yard, Braddock Road and King St-Old Town.
Blue Line service will resume at the Potomac Yard, Braddock Road, King St-Old Town, Van Dorn St and Franconia-Springfield stations on July 27.
Find out what's happening in Old Town Alexandriafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
During the shutdown, Metro will provide shuttle buses every eight to 10 minutes. The local shuttles will serve Franconia-Springfield, Van Dorn Street, Eisenhower Avenue and King St-Old Town. An express shuttle will run from Franconia-Springfield directly to the Pentagon.
Hours for shuttle buses will be 5 a.m. to midnight Mondays to Thursdays, 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and 7 a.m. to midnight on Sundays. Shuttles will be ADA accessible.
Find out what's happening in Old Town Alexandriafor free with the latest updates from Patch.
According to Metro's website, the shutdown is due to work on rail renewal, fastener and tie replacement, ballast tamping and grout pad replacement. The transit agency chose a three-week shutdown instead of 10 weekend closures and 10 weeks of early weekday closures to complete the construction work. Parking lots and garages will remain open at Franconia-Springfield and Van Dorn Street station while rail service is shut down.
Riders should also expect single-tracking on the Yellow Line between Huntington and Braddock Road on the weekends of July 12 and 13 and July 19 and 20. Trains will run every 18 minutes.
The single-tracking is due to construction work to improve the train control room and rail infrastructure, replace the roof at the platform service building, make lighting repairs and update station signage and facilities.
The Alexandria & USA Birthday Celebration on July 12, one of the city's biggest events, will happen amid the shutdown and Yellow Line single-tracking.
Patch has reached out to a city spokesperson for information on how the city's outreach plans to address the Metro shutdown's commuter impacts.
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