Major construction on the Red Line between North Bethesda and Friendship Heights will conclude this weekend, wrapping up nine weeks of work that began July 6.
Full Red Line service will resume Monday, Sept. 7, restoring rail service to the Grosvenor-Strathmore, Medical Center and Bethesda stations. Metro said the project was completed on time and on budget.
“We appreciate our customers and community partners for their patience throughout this project,” Metro General Manager and CEO Randy Clarke said. “This work delivers immediate improvements for customers today at Grosvenor-Strathmore while laying the foundation for a better-connected transit network in the future.”
At Bethesda, crews constructed a new 6,000-SF mezzanine on the platform in preparation for the Maryland Transit Administration’s Purple Line, which is expected to begin service in late 2027. The mezzanine will provide a future connection between Metro and the Purple Line while creating another entrance to the station.
The structure includes two new escalators, two elevators, a station manager kiosk and faregates. Approximately 60 tons of steel and 220 cubic yards of concrete were used during construction. Work on the mezzanine, including the bridge to the elevator banks, will continue behind protective barriers for approximately 18 months. Metro said the remaining work will not require additional station closures.
At Grosvenor-Strathmore, crews completed a full platform rehabilitation that included upgraded lighting, new passenger information displays, replaced platform tiles, upgraded shelters and benches, improved drainage and rehabilitated platform edges. Crews poured 280 cubic yards of concrete, installed 16,000 SF of tile, 108 new globe lights, 288 platform-edge lights, six wind shelters and 26 digital information screens.
Additional structural, electrical and station rehabilitation work was completed throughout the closed section of the Red Line. According to Metro, completing the project through one extended summer closure allowed the work to be finished in approximately two months instead of requiring two years of weekend and overnight closures.
Metro transported more than 1.2 million customers through free shuttle bus service during the construction period. Temporary bus lanes created by the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration and Montgomery County Department of Transportation will be removed following the project’s completion. Temporary Park and Ride spaces at Metro’s Western Division Bus Garage, located at the former Lord & Taylor building, will also close.
Metro thanked Maggiano’s and Bethesda Bagels for donating cookies and bagels that were distributed to customers during the final days of the station closures.
