Heather Curtis
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON – Safe Track Surge 15 will have the New Carrollton, Landover, Cheverly, Deanwood and Minnesota Avenue stations on the eastern side of the Orange Line shut down from Tuesday through June 15. Trains from Stadium Armory will be diverted to the Blue Line.
Metro will be providing free shuttle busses between the closed stations and to open stations on the Blue Line. The transit agency’s also adding more trips on Metrobus F12 between Cheverly and Landover, and on F13 between Cheverly and New Carrollton.
The Prince George’s County’s Department of Transportation will provide a free direct shuttle between the Orange Line Landover station and the Blue Line Morgan Boulevard station every 15 minutes during weekday peak periods from 6 to 10 a.m. and 3 to 7 p.m.
“What we have found up until this surge, of course we’re on surge number 15, is that commuters are pretty savvy, and with the additional shuttle buses that Metro is providing, and with the supplemental busses that Prince George’s County is providing that it actually has been a manageable commute for most,” said Paulette Jones, spokesperson for the Prince George’s County Department of Transportation.
Metro Spokesman Dan Stessel said they haven’t had any capacity problems with shuttle buses during past surges, and they can add buses depending on demand.
Most riders who take trains at New Carrollton, Landover and Cheverly drive to the stations and park there according to Stessel. “When you have that kind of a ridership pattern, it’s relatively easy for those customers to simply divert to another Metro station,” he said.
People who normally park at New Carrollton may consider going to the Greenbelt station instead.
Riders who take MARC trains to New Carrollton and transfer to Metro there are encouraged to stay on the MARC train until Union Station where they can get on Metro.
Surge 15 is the second to last Safe Track surge and will replace rotting wood ties that hold the rails in place.
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