Repairs to Shut Several Metro Stations Over Holiday Weekend

Metro riders can expect major delays if traveling through key parts of the system during Columbus Day weekend.

Waterfront-SEU and Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter stations will close Friday night and won't reopen until Tuesday morning. There will be no Green Line service at L'Enfant Plaza.

The transit agency decided that it need three uninterrupted days for maintenance work near L'Enfant Plaza, which is similar to work performed near Pentagon City Station over Labor Day weekend, according to Jim Hughes, a top planning official at Metro. Workers plan to replace a rail switch, which allows trains to move from one track to another, he said.

Hughes said that having access to the track for three full days will allow crews to complete work that normally would take four or five weekends.

The most difficult day for delays will be Monday. Although it is a federal holiday, many workers still will need to travel downtown. Hughes said Metro typically has about 60 percent of a regular Monday's traffic on Columbus Day. By rerouting the Yellow Line, Metro says it will have higher capacity than usual between the Foggy Bottom and Stadium-Armory stations. Still, the transit agency advises commuters on the affected lines to allow at least 30 extra minutes for their trips.

Officials say that the Red, Blue and Orange lines will not be affected.

-- Waterfront-SEU and Archives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter stations will close: From 10:30 p.m. Friday until Tuesday morning, there will be no service.

-- Green Line platform at L'Enfant Plaza will be closed: There will be no Green Line service at L'Enfant Plaza.

-- Green Line trains will not run between Navy Yard and Gallery Place-Chinatown.