Strides in Improving Reliability
Thanks to its funding partners, Metro is now 
engaged in the largest capital improvement program since its original construction. Two years ago, MetroForward was launched – an aggressive, $5 billion, six-year investment program to rebuild the system. MetroForward is investing in what Metro’s customers value most: safety, reliability, and good customer service. With continued investment, it is projected that Metro will continue to make progress on the intensive MetroForward “catch up” phase in the years ahead. MetroForward has already delivered:
- An aggressive escalator rehabilitation program;
- Continued improved elevator availability;
- Station repairs at Judiciary Square, Shady Grove, Rockville, White Flint, Twinbrook and Union station;
- 461 new MetroAccess vehicles in service;
- Over 200 new replacement or rehabilitated buses in service;
- Electrical upgrades to accommodate additional eight-car trains on some lines; and
- Replacement of over 14.7 miles of rail; 36 No. 8 guarded switches; 16,000 ties; 11,731 cross ties; 62,723 linear feet of running rail; 20,745 fasteners; 8,849 insulators; and 9,829 linear feet of grout pads.
In the next six years, as shown in the Capital Improvement Program, Metro will be rehabilitating and replacing over 150 escalators and 85 elevators; retrofitting track and replacing track circuitry; rehabilitating third rail, running rail and track pads; installing track turnouts; upgrading radio system infrastructure; modernizing its fare collection system; replacing two bus garages and rehabilitating three more; rehabilitating three rail yards; and annually replacing 100 Metrobuses and rehabilitating 100 more. Metro is also replacing its 1000 and 4000 series railcars and preparing for Silver Line operations by expanding its fleet with the 7000 series railcars, the most advanced in the industry.
In addition to rehabilitating and replacing Metro’s existing vehicles, systems and infrastructure, Metro is also upgrading its future operations. In September 2012, Metro opened the new Shepherd Parkway Metrobus Division, a state-of-the-art garage that will expand Metro’s ability to maintain its new vehicles. The facility is Metro’s first building to receive a U.S. Green Building Council LEED Silver certification. Notably, Metro is moving forward with the delivery of two additional bus garages to replace the aging facilities at Southern Avenue and Royal Street, which will enable the expansion of the bus fleet.
Metro is also preparing for future operations of the Silver Line to Dulles by expanding and training its workforce, and adding capacity for maintenance at its rail yards.
While Metro is improving service and reliability through MetroForward, and building for the future, there are further improvements required to meet the growth expected in the region. Metro certainly must achieve a state of good repair (SOGR), then sustain this achievement over the long term – an effort which will require significant resources that have yet to be identified or allocated. Meanwhile, the funding for MetroForward itself is periodically threatened by federal budget negotiations and without a reliable sustained source of funding, Metro will likely be unable to continue making strides to improve reliability.
Metro will face new challenges as well. As new rail lines open – the Silver Line opening will increase the size of the rail system by 25 percent – Metro will need to increase investment in capital maintenance to sustain a steady state of maintenance (SSOM) on these new assets. Metro is currently working to understand the scope of effort and scale of additional capital funding required for the long term needs of the Silver Line. To better organize these challenges utilizing lifecycle decision making, an Asset Management Plan is being developed that will be synchronized with this strategic plan to guide investment decisions.
For more information:
Download both the full Momentum plan and the Executive Summary.
Regional support is important to making Momentum a reality! A number of regional stakeholders have already endorsed Momentum. Please sign on and add your name to endorse Momentum and send the message that public transit is vital to the National Capital Region.
What is the difference between “replacement of over 14.7 miles of rail” and replacement of “62,723 linear feet of running rail”?
Still does nothing to answer why there are 20 minute headways on weekends.