Washington Metro - how to use it?

2024 Author: Harold Hamphrey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:06

When traveling around the US capital, you must definitely go down to the subway to take a photo of the subway in Washington. The stations are not decorated in any way, the lighting is very dim, there are no bright advertising. But here are the deepest stations, there are high-speed elevators, and part of the tracks is on the surface and overpasses.

The subway is always crowded during rush hour, but it is still more convenient and cheaper than a car, because it can sometimes be very difficult to find a free parking space in the city.

Metro lines

There are six subway lines:

1. Red Line (Glenmont - Shadi Grove) - connects two counties: Montgomery and Columbia with the state of Maryland. There are ground and underground sections on the Red Line. 44 trains run along the route, consisting of 27 stations, with a daily interval of 6 minutes, an evening interval of 12 minutes.
2. Orange line (New Carrollton - Vienna) - located in the counties of Fairfax, Arlington and Prince Jordes. There are 30 trains on the route of 26 stations.
3. Blue Line (Franconia-Springfield - Largo Center) - this line contains common sections, as well as common stations with the Orange, Yellow and Silver lines.
4. Green Line (Branch Avenue - Greenbelt) - 21-station route connecting Prince Jordes County, D. C. and Maryland. The Green Line has 8 stations in common with the Yellow Line and transfer stations to all other lines.
5. Yellow line (Vienna-New Carolton) - consists of 17 stations that serve 30 trains. Located in Fairfax, Arlington, Washington, and Prince Jordes County.
6. Silver Line (East Falls - International Airport) - opened in 2014, a significant part of the route is combined with the Orange and Blue lines.
7. Purple line is a line under construction in Maryland.

Metro lines often cross each other, so that passengers have the opportunity to change and get to the right place.

Metro travel

Metro Hours: Opens at 5:00 on weekdays and 7:00 on weekends. Subway closes at midnight.

SmartTrip card is required to ride the subway, it can have an amount from 2 to 45 dollars. Fares range from $2 to $6 per ride depending on destination and time of day. Fares are always higher during peak hours from 5.30 to 9.30 and from 15.00 to 19.00. The fare for a day is $14.

The fare is automatically read from the card when you exit the subway. The same card can be used repeatedly by adding money to it in the vending machinetickets.

The SmartTrip card costs $5 and must be registered before the card can be replaced if stolen or lost. Replacing the card costs $5, the entire amount on the card will be saved.

Children under the age of 4 can use the metro services absolutely free of charge if an adult travels with them for full payment. Children over 5 years old pay full price.

Special discount student passes are available for DC students.

Older people over 65 and disabled people enjoy a reduced fare of half the regular fare.

Rules and tips

Note:

• It is forbidden to drink and eat in the subway.
• Disabled people must move in special chairs.
• The busiest days are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
• A call button (in case of emergency) is located at the end of each carriage and at each station. To talk to the dispatcher, you need to dial the number "0".

How to use the Washington Subway?

The following information will also be helpful:

• Trains are always very crowded during peak hours, so if possible, it is better to reschedule the trip to a quieter time.
• There are fare discounts between peak hours.
• Because there are always a lot of people on the subway, traveling with large luggage will not be very convenient.
• Metro stations are marked with brown squares with the letter "M", in the same way stations are marked on touristmaps.
• You must select your final destination in the fare machine to calculate the fare.
• Entrance to the metro is through turnstiles with a white or green arrow. The ticket must be inserted into the turnstile with the arrow pointing upwards, then removed. The ticket cannot be lost because it is required to exit the subway. The travel card has the property of degaussing when held near a mobile phone.
• On the escalator, you need to stand on the right side so that people on the left side can move freely.
• Some metro stations have two platforms for different directions. Stations with the same platform serve trains that travel in different directions. In order to avoid confusion, it is necessary to carefully study the guide signs and follow the scoreboard.

How to understand the subway?

In order not to get lost in the Washington metro, you need to know a few simple rules:

• On the main carriage of the train, the color of its line and the final station of arrival are lit. To understand where the train is going, you just need to know the starting and ending stations of the line. Trains of different colors arrive on the same platform.
• The names of all stations are written on the information boards, the information board is always working, where there is all the information about the arrival of the train.

Washington Metro News

A three-year capital project is now planned to upgrade platforms at 20 stations. The cost of the project is expected to be300 to 400 million dollars.