The Washington D.C. representatives on the Metro Board of Directors say that they’ll veto a proposal to extend late night service cuts for another year during Thursday’s vote.

Because the Metro board operates with a “jurisdictional veto,” the measure can’t survive without at least one D.C. vote. And according to Jack Evans, Metro board chair and Ward 2 councilmember, neither he nor Corbett Price will vote “yes.” If they follow through, late-night service would return starting July 1, 2019.

But Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld insists that the system must continue to close at 11:30 p.m. on most weeknights and 1 a.m. on the weekends to deal with ongoing maintenance. He will fight for his request at the board meeting.

“This is all about preventing SafeTrack 2.0. The current hours are necessary to continue the preventive maintenance programs that have already significantly improved reliability and safety for Metrorail customers,” Metro spokesperson Dan Stessel told DCist over email. “We look forward to making the case on Thursday.”

And their case may win out. Even though Evans and Price are currently pledging to veto the measure, they’ve made similar promises in the past, only to ultimately come on board with Wiedefeld’s proposals. Evans initially resisted Wiedefeld’s plan to have the rail system operating for eight fewer hours each week at the conclusion of Safetrack, only to ultimately step in line.

So what do you think? Will late-night service return? Should it? Chime in!

Loading…