WMATA Releases Preliminary Inauguration Day Service Plan

From WMATA.com:

For immediate release: November 20, 2008

Metro outlines preliminary plans for Inauguration Weekend

Metrorail to open at 4 a.m., and close at 2 a.m. on Inauguration night

Metrorail will operate rush hour service for 15 consecutive hours (4 a.m. to 7 p.m.), will stay open for two extra hours (until 2 a.m.), offer free parking at Metro-owned facilities and will be one important transportation alternative for people who are planning to attend the Inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama on Tuesday, January 20, 2009.

“America's subway system will provide vital transportation services to and from all Inaugural activities in the region,” says Metro General Manager John Catoe. “We expect the crowds to be huge with hundreds of thousands of people expected to be in the nation's capital not only for Inauguration Day, but for the days preceding it, as well.”

Metro officials expect extremely crowded conditions on Inauguration Day. “We expect that our stations and trains will be packed as people head to the Inauguration, and we expect to see even tighter conditions afterward,” Catoe said. “People should expect to be waiting in long lines to get back into Metro stations after the Inauguration, perhaps for a half hour or more. People should consider staying downtown for lunch, for a movie, or to visit museums.”

Metro also is designing commemorative farecards, One-Day Passes and SmarTrip cards that riders will be able to purchase and use in the days leading up to, during, and after the Inauguration. The paper farecards are expected to be in vending machines by late December. The $10 commemorative SmarTrip card will be available in early January.

Metro will also introduce an Inauguration Web page on Friday, November 21, dedicated to providing information and updates leading up to Inauguration Weekend. People will also be able to sign up for special e-alerts, dedicated to the Inauguration, and will only be issued when Metro has news relating to service for the Inauguration, and, perhaps more importantly, when there may be service disruptions during the course of the four-day weekend.

The U.S. Secret Service has deemed the Inauguration as a special national security event and due to security measures, the Archives-Navy Memorial/Penn Quarter Metrorail station on Metro’s Green and Yellow Lines, will be closed all day on Inauguration Day, Tuesday, January 20. In addition one of two entrances to the Smithsonian Metrorail station on the Blue and Orange Lines will also be closed. The Smithsonian station entrance on the National Mall will be closed. The Independence Ave SW entrance will remain open.

Metro officials are well aware that there will be increased ridership throughout the weekend leading up to the Inauguration. Here is information that visitors will need to know.

Metrorail Service and Parking at Metrorail Stations

In anticipation of crowded trains, Metrorail will operate continuous rush hour service from 4 a.m. to 7 p.m., on Inauguration Day, Tuesday, January 20, and have extra personnel on hand to help patrons get to and from the events. Off-peak fares will be charged all day.

Parking will be free at all Metrorail operated lots throughout Inauguration weekend, from Saturday, January 17 through Tuesday, January 20, 2009. Metro has nearly 59,000 parking spaces and they are expected to fill up. Reserved parking rules will not be in effect.

Dates Metrorail Hours Special Metrorail Service Parking
Saturday, Jan. 17, 2009 7 a.m. to 3 a.m. Regular Saturday Schedule Free
Sunday, Jan. 18, 2009 7 a.m. to midnight Regular Sunday Schedule Free
Monday, Jan. 19, 2009 (Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday) 5 a.m. to midnight Saturday Holiday Service Free
Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009 (Inauguration Day) 4 a.m. to 2 a.m. Rush-Hour Service Through 7 p.m. Free

Metrobus Service

Metrobus will operate on a normal Saturday schedule. However, with the anticipated street closures around the National Mall and Pennsylvania Avenue for the parade, all Metrobuses will be prepared for detours. Bus customers are encouraged to plan significant extra time to travel through these areas. No vehicular traffic, including buses, is expected to be able to pass close to the U.S. Capitol, nor will vehicles be able to cross Pennsylvania Avenue.

Dates Special Metrobus Service
Saturday, Jan. 17, 2009 Regular Saturday Schedule
Sunday, Jan. 18, 2009 Regular Sunday Schedule
Monday, Jan. 19, 2009 (Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday) Regular Weekday Service (service plan may change)
Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009 (Inauguration Day) Saturday Service (expect major delays downtown)

MetroAccess Service

MetroAccess will operate identical hours to Metrorail and Metrobus over the Inauguration Weekend and through Inauguration Day. MetroAccess customers are encouraged to plan significant extra time to travel due to increased traffic throughout the service area. With the anticipated street closures around the National Mall and Pennsylvania Avenue for the parade on Inauguration Day, all MetroAccess users should be prepared for detours. MetroAccess customers are reminded to reserve their trip by 4:30 p.m., the day prior to travel.

Station Closures Due To Security

To accommodate security precautions related to the Inauguration, the parade, and inaugural balls on Inauguration Day, the following Metrorail station entrances will be closed:

• Archives-Navy Memorial/Penn Quarter (Green/Yellow Line) Metrorail station.

• Smithsonian (Blue/Orange Line) Metrorail station Jefferson Drive SW entrance only. The Independence Ave SW entrance will be open.

Metro Transit Police Security Initiatives

The Metro Transit Police Department and the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) are collaborating to enhance security at Metrorail stations and on trains and buses during Inauguration Weekend. The TSA will provide Metro with additional teams of TSA officers with canines to patrol stations and trains to supplement Metro’s team of explosive ordnance detection officers and canines.

“We are taking precautionary measures to assure our customers that we are doing everything we can to ensure they can use our system without incident,” said Metro Transit Police Chief Michael Taborn. “Our customers are likely to see members of our special response teams of officers carrying additional weaponry with a canine accompanying them and they are likely to see uniformed TSA officers with their canine teams on patrol as well.”

The Metro Transit Police strongly recommend that customers bring as little as possible with them when traveling through the Metrorail system to cut down on the possibility that items are left behind, resulting in the need for Metro or TSA officers to respond to reports of unattended items.

On Inauguration Day, all Metrorail station restrooms will be closed for security reasons.

Customers are encouraged to report any suspicious behavior, unusual activity or unattended items to a uniformed Metro employee, police officer, or by calling the Metro Transit Police at 202-962-2121.

Customer Tips, Reminders

Metrorail riders should purchase either a One-Day Pass or be sure to have enough fare value on their SmarTrip cards or farecards to make a round trip so as not to have to stand in line to add fare more than once. Each passenger must have his/her own fare card or SmarTrip card.

Metro will sell the commemorative fare media prior to Inauguration Weekend. Metro’s One-Day Pass, available for $7.80 each day, will be valid throughout the four-day Inauguration Weekend. If possible, customers should purchase their farecards in advance.

Metro will publish a commemorative walking guide and map illustrating the closest locations of various Metrorail stations to the inaugural swearing-in ceremony and Presidential Parade. This brochure will be available at all Metrorail stations and will be posted on the Metro Web site. Metro officials will be seeking sponsorship from private companies interested in advertising inside the commemorative walking guide. One million copies of the walking guide will be printed.

Tickets for the Inauguration are expected to be coded in a way that will advise ticket-holders to use designated Metrorail stations to get to their seating/viewing location. Once that information is available, it will be posted on Metro’s Web site.

Customers should expect that many rail station escalators will be turned off to help meter large crowds for safety.

Due to the changing nature of this event and heightened security, all information is subject to change. As more information becomes available, it will be updated on Metro’s Web site.


Presidential Inauguration Metrorail Ridership History

Date
Presidential Inauguration Metrorail Ridership
Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2009 Barack Obama Inauguration ?
Thursday, Jan. 20, 2005 George W. Bush’s Second Inauguration 583,803
Saturday, Jan. 20, 2001 George W. Bush’s First Inauguration 601,839
Monday, Jan. 20, 1997 Bill Clinton’s Second Inauguration 454,918
Wednesday, Jan. 20, 1993 Bill Clinton’s First Inauguration 811,257

For those that might be interested, here is what the WMATA inaugural commemorate SmartTrip and farecards will looks like.

Frustrates me that they will run Saturday bus service...I guess once again they assume because the Feds have the day off, the rest of the world does too. And then they wonder why no one will use public transit, especially buses.

Wow, nice cards, I'll have to get one of those myself, and I saw the article, the TSA will be also helping out the WMATA MTPD with general patrols and security measures, including restroom closure, and they will have radiation detection devices as well. I also notice that Metro Transit Police have a new guy in command, Michael Taborn, Polly Hansen must have retireds, but I hope inauguration Day runs smoothly for Metro and Amtrak, which makes me wonder, since Obama is from Chicago, I think some of his fans may travel down from Chicago to Unuion Station via Amtrak;s Capitol Limited (P030/P029), that would be interesting

Robert Paniagua wrote:Wow, nice cards, I'll have to get one of those myself, and I saw the article, the TSA will be also helping out the WMATA MTPD with general patrols and security measures, including restroom closure, and they will have radiation detection devices as well. I also notice that Metro Transit Police have a new guy in command, Michael Taborn, Polly Hansen must have retireds, but I hope inauguration Day runs smoothly for Metro and Amtrak, which makes me wonder, since Obama is from Chicago, I think some of his fans may travel down from Chicago to Unuion Station via Amtrak;s Capitol Limited (P030/P029), that would be interesting

Polly Hansen is somewhere else in the WMATA organization, just not MTPD chief anymore.

I believe she is now like their "Director of Public Safety" or some such position...

“We expect the crowds to be huge with hundreds of thousands of people expected to be in the nation's capital not only for Inauguration Day, but for the days preceding it, as well.”

Thousands? You might have to bump that up to millions, pal.

Side note? I wonder if Amtrak/Greyhound will provise extra service for this event...

I don't know, maybe the bus lines will provide more service, I don't know about Amtrak service to be increased, you might want to ask that Amtrak question over at the Amrak Forum

"Robert Paniagua"
I don't know, maybe the bus lines will provide more service, I don't know about Amtrak service to be increased, you might want to ask that Amtrak question over at the Amrak Forum

Over all, I don’t think the affect on Amtrak or Grayhound will be all that significant as most will be arriving in Washington aboard charter busses.

Most of the Hotels and Motels within 100 miles of Washington are fully booked for the weekend of the inauguration.

Forget 100 miles... I'm told that the hotels all the way out in Harrisonburg, Virginia (roughly 150 miles out) are booked up that weekend as well...

"SchuminWeb"
Forget 100 miles... I'm told that the hotels all the way out in Harrisonburg, Virginia (roughly 150 miles out) are booked up that weekend as well...

I said most because I encountered a similar situation in western Indiana one night. The folk at the desk in a Holiday Inn on IN I-70 told me all of the room were filled from Indianapolis to Terra Haute. I drove north to IN US-40 and turned in the first independent road side motel got a room no problem.

Crowds will not likely be as large as previously predicted

Inauguration Day Crowd Estimate Reduced by Half

By Mary Beth Sheridan
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, December 22, 2008

Marv95 wrote:

“We expect the crowds to be huge with hundreds of thousands of people expected to be in the nation's capital not only for Inauguration Day, but for the days preceding it, as well.”

Thousands? You might have to bump that up to millions, pal.

Side note? I wonder if Amtrak/Greyhound will provise extra service for this event...

I realize this isn't rail, but Greyhound could have some problems getting to their station in DC that day. The Washington Greyhound Terminal is located about 1/2 mile north of Union Station. As people who are familiar with DC know, Union Station is close (about 1/2 mile north) of the U.S. Capitol. The crowds in the Union Station/Greyhound Terminal area could be a headache for Greyhound. FWIW, the other Greyhound stations in the DC area are located in Silver Spring (about 1/2 mile from the Metrorail/MARC station), New Carrollton (co-located with the Metrorail/MARC station), and Franconia-Springfield (located in the same complex as the Metrorail/VRE station a very short walk away).

On a different note, Amtrak has an announcement on their website saying that in the afternoon on 1/20/09, access to Union Station will be limited to ticketed Amtrak, MARC, or VRE passengers. What that means for Metrorail Red Line passengers, I don't know.

That shouldn't be a problem, the entrances for the Metro station are actually just outside of the station building.

HokieNav wrote:That shouldn't be a problem, the entrances for the Metro station are actually just outside of the station building.

True, but I'm not sure how Union Station personnel prevent Metrorail Red Line customers from entering Union Station unless they rope off the physical entrances to the station itself. Thinking about the setup of the Metrorail station there, it will be particularly tricky to restrict access at the north entrance/exit. Even if you do so, you create a bottleneck near the Metrorail station booth/escalators between the Metrorail area and Union Station proper.

It's possible TPTB will only allow Metrorail passengers exiting at Union Station to use one of the exits and/or Amtrak/MARC/VRE passengers entering the station via Metrorail to enter only at one of the entrances.