John Matthews
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON — On Wednesday, Stephen Strasburg rose up to save the day. On Thursday – at least before the game – the hero is Exelon.
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser announced that the parent company of Pepco is stepping in to foot the bill for Metro to stay open an extra hour Thursday evening, to accomodate Nationals fans attending Gave Five of the National League Divisional Series against the Cubs.
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser made the announcement during the Grand Opening of the new District Wharf neighborhood in Southwest DC.
“Tonight, Washington, DC will host the Nationals’ NLDS championship game and the exciting opening of The Wharf,” said Mayor Bowser. “We want everyone attending these events to enjoy their experience and have a safe ride home at the end of the night. Go Nats and enjoy The Wharf!”
After Metro’s regular closing time, four stations — Navy Yard-Ballpark, Waterfront, L’Enfant Plaza, and Capitol South – will remain open for “entry only.” All other Metro stations will be available for “exit only.”
With the additional hour of service, the last Green Line train is now scheduled depart Navy Yard-Ballpark Station in the direction of Greenbelt at 12:22 a.m. The last Green Line train to Branch Avenue will depart Navy Yard-Ballpark Station at 12:48 a.m.
In the event of a rain delay, Metro will provide any updates regarding last train times through ballpark announcements, on Twitter (@wmata and @metrorailinfo) and via MetroAlerts email and text messages.
Without an announced plan for Metro to stay open late, public response early Thursday was loud and negative, with angry messages flying across the Twitterverse.
“This is the kind of situation that sticks in people’s minds,” Washingtonian Magazine Editor-At-Large Harry Jaffe told WMAL. “Bad optics, bad financing and it’s just not a good way to treat people.”
But now that the transportation problem has been solved, all we need now are some timely hits. First pitch is at 8:08pm.
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