Metro proposes to stop weekend rail service, close 19 stations and slash bus routes by half [View all]

[Klaralven]

Washington DC Metro proposes to stop weekend rail service, close 19 stations and slash bus routes by half in upcoming budget


Metro is suggesting it stop weekend rail service, close 19 of its stations and slash its bus routes by half, according to budget proposals released on Monday, as the transportation industry deals with financial struggles spurred by the coronavirus pandemic.

Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld’s proposed budget for next fiscal year, beginning July 1, aims to cut almost $500 million from its projected $1.945 billion operating expenses, The Washington Post reported.

Wiedefeld told the Post that the desired reduction in expenses was so large it could only be reached by eliminating weekend rail service.

Metro recommends cutting 2,400 positions through attrition, buyouts and layoffs in addition to the 1,400 the agency is looking to remove this year. Metro employees may not receive raises in order for more jobs to be saved.

“When I talk to my peers, we’re all facing these almost terrible decisions together,” Wiedefeld told the newspaper. “It’s like, how do we do this? It gets down, unfortunately, to very hard math that you just can’t get there from here without having significant impacts.”

In addition to rail service cuts on Saturday and Sunday, weekday rail wait times would be 30 minutes except at busier stations in the city. Rail service would also end two hours earlier at 9 p.m. About one-fifth of Metro’s stations would shut down.

https://thehill.com/policy/transportation/528083-metro-proposes-to-stop-weekend-rail-service-close-19-stations-and-slash