WMATA officials have announced passengers will be charged off-peak fares for the remainder of the day on Metrorail after emergency repairs caused massive disruption on the Red Line earlier today.

WMATA says the line was shut down after a 54-inch long tear was discovered in a piece of track near the Judiciary Square Station. They observed “This was the first time in Metrorail’s 28-years that a rail has ever split in this horizontal fashion,” describing it as “unprecedented” and “rare.” WMATA reports that

The piece of damaged track, which was installed one year ago, was last given an ultrasound inspection in August and a visual inspection on Wednesday. The investigation is focusing on the installation and manufacture of the track itself as well as the procedures and records of the track inspection company.

WMATA says the broken rail was discovered when a small piece made contact with the third rail, causing smoke to attract the attention of inspectors, noting that “A total of three trains passed over the fractured rail.” They also note that “Two hundred Metro managers broke from a pre-scheduled meeting” to help guide customers around the problem at downtown stations.”

Although WMATA is certainly not without faults (earlier this week employee negligence caused unnecessary flooding on the Green Line and there have been a string of incidents involve overzealous employees arresting and harassing the public) they certainly seem to be trying, kicking off a new training program for employees. Furthermore, their response today to the broken track seems to be as thorough and rapid as could be expected, although the cause of the broken track is still unclear.