“Providing customers with more travel options and more frequent service delivers on our priorities for the region,” Metro General Manager Randy Clarke said in a statement, adding that the system is ma
king infrastructure investments for the long term and moving toward “safer, more reliable service.”
The time between Orange Line trains will drop on weekends from 20 minutes to 15 minutes, Metro said. Silver and Blue line trains will also run at that increased frequency on weekends. Weekday frequencies are currently 15 minutes on those lines, Metro said.The weekend changes mean stations covered by more than one Metro line will see “even more frequent service times,” Metro said.
“That makes a difference,” Metro spokeswoman Sherri Ly said, pointing to a significant boost in capacity. Clarke said in a statement that he hears “over and over that more frequent service and more 7000-series trains on the tracks are a top priority, and that’s what we’re working to deliver.”The coming eight-month shutdown of Yellow Line service will be accompanied by more frequent Green Line trains during both weekdays and weekends, Metro said. Green Line trains will run every eight minutes, rather than every 15 minutes, Metro said. The overhaul will close Yellow Line service through May 2023.
Another project to link the new Potomac Yard station to existing tracks will close stations south of the National Airport station for six weeks, Metro said. Free shuttles and bus services have been put in place to help riders get around during the closures, which will run from Sept. 10 through Oct. 22, Metro said.