The Red Line service of the Washington, D.C. Metro will increase operation times starting Monday, Dec. 5 according to a statement released from the transit agency on Friday, Dec. 2.
All Red Line trains will operate every eight minutes during peak hours, from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. All other services will still run on a 10-minute timer, except during scheduled track work. The benefit is a result of the agency adding more 7000-series trains to its service following a derailment in October 2021.
”The Red Line service improvements are the next step toward restoring Metrorail service to budgeted levels following pandemic service reductions and the railcar shortage caused by the removal of 7000-series trains from the tracks last year,” said name?
The change is part of Metro’s plans to alleviate crowding and improve service. The slow pace in operations comes from a massive industry-wide shortage.
“While railcar availability has been the main challenge to improving frequencies for customers, Metro is also being affected by industry-wide shortages of rail and bus operators that the agency is aggressively working to address,” according to Metro.
The Red Line of the Metro operates in two directions, North towards Shady Grove and South towards Glenmont. Both routes go in the direction of Maryland and the city. Therefore, the Tenleytown-AU Station, which is on the red line, will be directly impacted. However, with the benefit of increased operations, students can have an easier commute.