Earlier today, WMATA announced that the entire DC Metrorail system will be shut down Wednesday for emergency inspections and would not reopen until 5:00 am on Thursday.
This announcement comes after a tunnel fire broke out on the tracks between Foggy Bottom and Federal Triangle early Monday morning. According to Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld at a press conference Tuesday afternoon, the fire was revealed to have a similar cause from the L’Enfant Plaza smoke early last year that lead to one death and dozens of injuries.
Wiedefeld went on to state that all 600 cables in tunnels throughout the system needed to be inspected in order to prevent any more incidents of a similar nature. Although it could be done without a complete shutdown, Metro has repeatedly stressed the importance of customer safety and said that this is the fastest method.
Metro Board Chairman Jack Evans also pointed out that this is the first time Metro has shut down to non weather related problems since the service first began in 1976. Because this is an unprecedented event in Metro’s history on such short notice, reimbursement methods for those with monthly passes have not yet been decided yet although Wiedefeld mentioned Metro would be looking into the issue.
On average, Metro serves about 700,000 customers per day. As of now, Metrobus and other local bus systems have not officially announced any special plans to accommodate the influx of extra passengers however both Maryland Transportation Administration and Ride On has stated that they are assessing the issue. Like many, the news caught the bus services by surprise as Metro didn’t even announce the shutdown until late Tuesday.
Rideshare service Lyft has already taken advantage of the situation and reached out to it’s DC driver community to request more vehicles on the road. Passengers who are new to Lyft can use the code METROHELP for $20 off their first ride. Meanwhile Uber has stated they will cap surge pricing at 3.9.
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser in a press conference that was held a few hours after the announcement stated that the Capital Bikeshare program would be offering free 24 hour membership. In addition, the DC Department of Transportation would be suspending many construction projects and Capitol Police would deploy more traffic control officers and helicopters than usual.
Metro later tweeted that parking would be free in all Metro owned lots and garages for those carpooling and taking the bus.
If all goes to schedule, the rail system will open back up again on 5:00 am, Thursday morning, returning to full service.
This article was last updated 8:16 PM. It is now no longer being updated. To read a follow up on this incident, click here.
