Jordan Pascale
Metro will run trains later for tonight’s Nationals Wild Card game and the Mystics WNBA finals game—and foot the bill.
In the past, Metro has required a sponsor to pay the $100,000 cost it takes to run trains longer.
General Manager Paul Wiedefeld and Board Chair Paul Smedberg said in a statement, “While there has been no formal request to extend Metrorail service, we want to assure fans considering choosing Metro that we will get you home if the game runs later than expected.”
Trains will run at least 20 minutes after the end of the game and up to one hour later than the normal 11:30 p.m. closing time, if necessary, the statement said. Metro won’t stay open later than 12:22 a.m.—one hour later than normal.
Metro spokesperson Dan Stessel said this is similar to what Metro did during the Capitals playoff run last year, when one game went into overtime.
“We announced during the game that trains would wait 20 minutes past the end of the game,” Stessel said. “Otherwise this packed arena would have been stranded.”
Stessel said this flexible approach allows Metro to meet the needs of fans, but doesn’t mandate that the system stays open later if it doesn’t need to.
The $100,000 late-night service agreements have become popular in recent years with sponsors like Uber, Living Social, and Exelon footing the bill. Stessel said the system will absorb the overtime costs this time.
The Nationals take on the Milwaukee Brewers at 8:08 p.m. in the one-game Wild Card that determines if their season continues. Playoff games usually run about three and a half hours, so it likely would’ve sent fans streaming to the exit early had Metro not extended hours.
The Mystics play the Connecticut Sun in Game 2 of the WNBA Finals at 8 p.m. at the new Entertainment & Sports Arena off the Congress Heights Metro stop on the Green Line. Basketball fans would’ve been less pressed for time, as games run about two or two and a half hours.
Smedberg told WAMU the later service was an easier decision because the Nats have a one-game series and Tuesday will be a major game for the Mystics. Metro wanted to make the announcement ahead of time to give fans some peace of mind.
“[Game end times] are right at the cusp of when we would usually be shutting down, so we just want to make sure we’re prepared and can assure the fans that they can choose Metro to get home,” Smedberg said.
The statement also said the Metro board will take up the “broader issues concerning Metro’s closing time and accommodating fans during playoff season in the coming months.”
Here are all the details from Metro:
- Normally, Monday-Thursday, the last Greenbelt-bound train departs Congress Heights at 11:16 p.m. and departs Navy Yard-Ballpark at 11:22 p.m.
- If either game is still in progress at 11 p.m., then Metro will “flex” its normal closing time by staying open 20 minutes after the game ends, up to one hour later than normal if necessary. (In the unlikely event that a game is still in progress at midnight, please note that Metro will not be able to stay open later than 12:22 a.m.—one hour later than normal.)
- If Metro stays open later than normal, trains will continue running on all lines. The station closest to the game (i.e. Congress Heights for the Mystics, Navy Yard-Ballpark for the Nationals) will be “entry only” and all other stations will be “exit only.”
- If there is a line to enter the station, please be assured that Metro will accommodate all fans who are in line 20 minutes after the game ends.
- Customers transferring to Yellow, Blue, Orange, or Silver lines should make the transfer at L’Enfant Plaza. Customers transferring to the Red Line should do so at Gallery Place.
You can read the fascinating history of Metro closing times and sports playoffs here.
This story originally appeared on WAMU.
