Metro is releasing its shuttle bus plan for this December’s construction work downtown on the Blue, Orange, and Silver lines.
Per WMATA: Free local and express buses will replace trains during the 11-day construction project. Shuttle frequency will be every 8-10 minutes on weekdays and 8-12 minutes on weekends and holidays. Certain express shuttles won’t run on weekends and holidays. Shuttles will use the existing bus lanes on H and I streets to speed travel.
Dec. 20-26
From Dec. 20-26, Farragut West, McPherson Square, and the lower level (Blue, Orange, Silver service) at Metro Center will be closed. Shuttles will replace trains between Foggy Bottom and Federal Triangle.
Shuttles include a local, stopping at all affected stations, and three express shuttles: Foggy Bottom to Federal Triangle, Foggy Bottom to Gallery Place, and Foggy Bottom to Farragut North (weekday rush hours only). Orange Line customers traveling toward Foggy Bottom and beyond must transfer to the Silver Line at Clarendon.
Dec. 27-30
From Dec. 27-30, Farragut West, McPherson Square, lower level (Blue, Orange, Silver service) at Metro Center, Federal Triangle, Smithsonian, and the lower level of L’Enfant Plaza (Blue, Orange, Silver service) will be closed.
Shuttles will replace trains between Foggy Bottom and Federal Center SW. Shuttles include a local, stopping at all affected stations, and three express shuttles: Foggy Bottom to Federal Center SW, Foggy Bottom to Gallery Place, and Foggy Bottom to Farragut North (weekday rush hours only). Orange Line customers traveling toward Foggy Bottom must transfer to the Silver Line at Clarendon.
Construction includes replacing grout pads, replacing fasteners and studs, welding open joints, upgrading platform edge lighting, and more. One longer closure avoids 10 weekends of track work in the same area.
Metro strategically picked closure dates to minimize customer impact. Typically, ridership is 40% lower than usual this time of year. Metro has reached out to several community and business groups to let them know about the upcoming work.