Commuters Urged To Try Working At Home This Week As Metro Cuts Service

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Starting this week, another round of track work on the Metro system is forcing commuters to find alternatives to getting to work, as the number of trains running at rush hour in Northern Virginia will be severely cut back.

From March 4 through April 9, Metro will conduct extensive, around-the-clock maintenance work on the Blue and Yellow lines as part of Surge #13 of the system's SafeTrack program. The project will reduce the number of trains available south of the Rosslyn and L'Enfant Plaza stations, according to radio station WTOP.

Commuters who ride the Blue or Yellow lines to work at the Pentagon or Washington, D.C., are being urged to use alternatives, such as buses, the Virginia Railway Express or even bicycles.

Frustrated commuters may even want to try working at least one day this week from home. The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) and commuter agencies statewide are promoting March 6 through March 10 as Virginia Telework Week 2017, encouraging businesses to allow qualifying employees to work from home.

According to the Telework!VA program, working from home can boost productivity, reduce traffic congestion and help the environment, radio station WTOP reported.

For 2016, businesses in Virginia can qualify for a tax credit for creating a telework program. The Telework!VA website, sponsored by DPRT, offers tips and resources for setting up a program, and ways that interested employees can sell a teleworking program to their supervisors.

During SafeTrack Surge #13, Metro says that trains will single-track through a work zone between the Braddock Road station, the Huntington station on the Yellow Line and the Van Dorn station on the Blue Line. Workers in that area will repair wooden crossties, fix electrical problems and perform other maintenance chores, WTOP reported.

Surge #13 is scheduled to run in two phases:

During Phase 1 (March 4 - April 1):

• Blue Line trains will run every 24 minutes, even during rush hour.
• No Yellow Rush+ service between Franconia-Springfield and Greenbelt.
• Yellow Line trains will operate every 24 minutes between Huntington and Mt. Vernon Square, even during rush hour.

During Phase 2 (April 2-9):

• Blue Line service will operate normally (every 12 minutes during rush hour).
• No Yellow Rush+ service between Franconia-Springfield and Greenbelt.
• Yellow Line trains between Huntington and Mt. Vernon Square will operate every 24 minutes at all times.

For more information from Fairfax County on SafeTrack Surge #13 and commuting alternatives, please click here.

Image: WMATA