For users of the Foggy Bottom Metro station, yesterday was a big day -- after months of commuter backups and having to climb immobilized escalators, the station's third escalator was re-opened after a full replacement. more ›

The escalators at the Bethesda Metro station are the second longest set of single-span uninterrupted escalators in the Western Hemisphere, only slightly shorter than their sisters at Wheaton. So when they stop running, people are none too pleased, even though their calves are probably a little more muscular. more ›

Trouble on the escalators at the Foggy Bottom Metro station is a common and reliable source of rider frustration. And, for as long as I can remember, people have been pining for somebody to take a stand and make the rules of escalator etiquette totally clear to others. more ›

We hope you're fond of that Walt Whitman quote inscribed along the north entrance of the Dupont Circle Metro station -- because you'll be seeing a lot more of it, starting early next year. more ›

The Rosslyn Metro station is one of the deepest in the system, with two platforms that sit at 97 and 117 vertical feet below street level. Getting to those platforms takes a little while -- normally, a ride from the top of the station's main escalators takes about two and a half minutes. This morning, it took a little bit longer. more ›

Here's a piece of news that should come as a relief to anyone who spent their Tuesday morning stuck within a huge backup inside the Foggy Bottom Metro station -- the first "next generation" escalator at the station is scheduled to go into service on Monday, July 11, with work on the second one beginning immediately thereafter. more ›

UPDATE: Well, that sure was quick -- Ben Giles, who reported out the Examiner story cited in this post, tweeted this morning that the mezzanine/platform escalator on the K Street side of the Farragut North station has reopened. Huzzah! more ›

We can all have a Peep-based laugh or two about the scary Foggy Bottom escalator collapse, since no one was seriously injured. But what precisely caused the escalators to fail on February 18? more ›

A pair of DCist readers have been kind enough to let us know what they saw during this morning's incident at the Foggy Bottom Metro station, where an escalator violently collapsed, creating a gaping hole at its base. more ›

The escalators at the Foggy Bottom Metro station have gotten a deservedly bad rep, lo these past few years. Complete shutdowns, like this one in 2008, have been a regular occurance, leading to plenty of grumbles from frustrated riders. So while we're sure that a year-long rehabilitation process is hardly going to stifle some of those complaints, at least when it's over, we'll have three new escalators -- and a staircase, to boot. more ›

Yeah, so are we. But here are a pair of gadgets which might provide you with a fun-yet-topical break from your study of the Dostoyevskian report. more ›

How does that Mitch Hedberg joke go? An escalator can never break -- it can only become stairs. You would never see an "Escalator Temporarily Out Of Order" sign, just "Escalator Temporarily Stairs. Sorry for the convenience." Seems at least for the time being, we'll have to repeat that mantra in our head as we encounter every broken Metro escalator. more ›

WMATA's board of directors held committee hearings this morning, and, yet again, discussion about controversial SmarTrip reforms has been tabled and will be revisited further at a future date to be determined. It's another delay in a series of postponements in the debate surrounding whether or not to alter the price of SmarTrip cards and possibly eliminate negative balances. more ›

We know that a lot of you are fed up with Metro's escalator troubles. We understand that Interim General Manager Richard Sarles' assertion that major overhauls are on the way probably rings a little bit hollow. But that's really no reason to start climbing up the facing of the one of the longest escalators in the system. (Apologies for the Alex Proyas-level of darkness, but you know, YouTube and all.) more ›

Last week, we re-tweeted a message from why.i.hate.dc/District Daily's Dave Stroup noting that the Q Street entrance to the Dupont Circle Metro station actually had two working escalators for the first time in weeks (months?). It was exciting news for regular commuters who have been forced to hoof it down (or worse, up) to the cavernous station for some time. The only question is, how long might it last? more ›

Unsuck DC Metro looks back in time at a novel proposal ever so briefly considered by WMATA, one that never loses its commonsensical appeal: Screw the broken escalators, let's have stairs! A look at the minutes from the 2006 Customer Service, Operations and Safety Committee meeting finds that Metro could save some $1.2 million in annual operating expenses by replacing escalators with stairs -- you know, turning the escalators off -- at some 14 Metro stations. Stations with three or more escalators were only to see one set of escalators turned into stairs (but why?), while stations with those 12 kilometer-long escalators like Tenleytown would be unaffected (but why not?). more ›

Hey Virginia, are you taking notes? more ›

We've often joked in the past about the poor reputation of Metro's escalators and elevators. Rare is the Metrorail trip that does not include a loudspeaker announcement informing customers of all the latest elevator outages. Station escalators seem so often out of order, we've even suggested giving up and calling them by a more accurate name: stairs. But this morning, via the Examiner, Metro is reporting that its escalators reached a 95.5 percent performance rate in January of this year. That's a significant improvement over the low of 88.3 percent availability in the summer of 2006. Elevator service has similarly improved, reaching 97.1 percent in January. more ›