Metro To Close 5 Silver Line Stations For Summer Shutdown Project

TYSONS, VA — Metro will close additional Northern Virginia stations for the summer-long platform rehabilitation project. Train service will not run at the closed Orange and Silver Line stations between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend.

The original plan would have only shut down the Vienna, Dunn Loring and East Falls Church stations. Metro's updated plan suspends Silver Line service and closes the West Falls Church, McLean, Tysons Corner, Greensboro, Spring Hill and Wiehle-Reston stations. Orange Line train service will run between Ballston-MU and New Carrollton. Shuttle buses will connect riders from closed stations to the Ballston-MU station.

Metro says the platform rehabilitation work at the Vienna, Dunn Loring, West Falls Church and East Falls Church stations will be accompanied by a separate Silver Line project. The Silver Line work is related to the future openings of the phase two stations under construction. The phase two stations, which will extend Metro to Dulles International Airport and into Loudoun County, aren't expected to open until 2021, according to the Washington Post.

The additional station closures allow Metro to move forward with construction work while it sees ridership decreases from the new coronavirus pandemic, the Post reported. The pandemic has prompted Metro to reduce service and close 19 stations until further notice. Among the closed stations are Clarendon, Virginia Square, East Falls Church, McLean and Greensboro. Metro has confirmed 40 cases of the new coronavirus among workers and identified their work locations and case status.

Details of free shuttle bus service and other alternatives during the shutdown are now available. An Orange Line shuttle will have stops at Vienna, Dunn Loring, West Falls Church and Ballston-MU, while an Orange Line express will provide direct service between Vienna and Ballston-MU. The Silver Line shuttle will stop at Wiehle-Reston East, Spring Hill, Tysons Corner and Ballston-MU.

The parking lot at East Falls Church, surface parking at West Falls Church, and parking lot 1 on the north side of the Vienna Metro closed on March 15 for construction equipment staging. Metro anticipated these closures could last seven to nine months. Free parking will be available during the summer shutdown at the Vienna and Dunn Loring stations. West Falls Church will have 1,100 daily parking spaces in the parking garage.