Metro announced Sunday it is significantly scaling back service during the work week "as the COVID-19 outbreak continues to disrupt all aspects of life in the region."
Here is the service plan for the week of Monday, March 23 to Friday, March 27:
Metrorail:
Trains will operate every 20 minutes on all lines except the Red Line. Red Line trains will operate every 15 minutes.
Stations serviced by multiple lines will see trains arrive every 7-10 minutes. For example, Rosslyn, served by the Blue, Orange and Silver lines, will have train service to D.C. about every 7 minutes.
The Smithsonian and Arlington Cemetery stations will remain closed until further notice to keep non-essential cherry blossom travel off the rail system.
Metrobus:
Local
Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
Buses will run on a modified Sunday schedule. Supplemental trips will not operate; however, some routes that provide weekday-only service to essential federal workplaces have been added to the schedule.
Visit wmata.com for a list of routes that are – and are not – operating this week.
Beginning Tuesday, all Metrobus customers will enter and exit the bus using the rear doors only, except customers who require use of a wheelchair ramp. Metro is also temporarily suspending fare collection on Metrobus, because all farebox and SmarTrip equipment is located at the front door.
MetroAccess:
All subscription trips remain canceled. Please limit all travel to only the most essential.
“Metro will do everything we can to protect the everyday heroes who are driving buses, running trains, monitoring stations and helping people with disabilities. Our frontline colleagues make a choice each day to leave their homes at a time of great anxiety and uncertainty. They do it out of a sense of duty – and to support this community. In turn, I ask the community to support them by staying home,” Metro General Manager/CEO Paul J. Wiedefeld said in a release.
A Metrobus driver tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Saturday.
Metro has asked the public to limit their use of public transit to essential travel only.
“We all need to think of transit service as a limited resource because, right now, it is. If you are boarding a bus when you could walk, that increases the likelihood of the bus reaching capacity and having to bypass a stop where a doctor might be waiting to get to her shift,” Wiedefeld said.
Metro said too many people continue to use Metrobus, and if continued usage for non-essential trips becomes a public health concern, it may consider discontinuing all bus service.
"Simply put: public health concerns take priority over individual transportation needs," the release said.
