Wireless Notes -- Washington DC Metro Problems

Wireless Notes -- Washington DC Metro Problems List of Washington DC Metro Rail Station Problems

An Updated List of Washington DC Metro Rail Stations Which Exhibit Mechanical or Other Difficulties, Infrastructural Issues, and otherwise Poor Conditions

Last Update: 05/16/2019

This list is intended to provide a consolidated reference to a series of posts, messages, and other observations as to mechanical failures and other defects observed at Washington DC Metro Rail stations.

For discussions pertaining to cellular coverage issues in Metro's underground stations and tunnels, please click on the specific carrier (links immediately below) for listings of their known coverage issues with Metro.

Tell your elected officials what you think!
Use LobbyByFax(sm) to instantly send a free fax from the web to your elected Congressional and State-wide representatives supporting telecommunications, Internet net-neutrality, transportation and other issues!
Some of the current LobbyByFax alerts include:

Stop Tolling Our Interstates! - Keep Connecticut Toll Free!: In late May or early June 2019, Connecticut will vote on taking free Interstates and highways and placing 50 or more toll gantries on them which will photograph and record all motorists on CT's highways, in an attempt to make up for past raiding of Connecticut's gas tax fund and to pay expenses due to poor fiscal policy and mis-management. Not only will this affect CT residents and motorists who must drive through CT, but the privacy-invading system, which will essentially track all motorists wherever they drive in Connecticut, is an intrusive and inefficient means to pay for roads - especially when the gas tax accomplishes the same with little administrative cost and zero privacy concerns. Send a free, pre-composed fax to Hartford to tell CT legislators to vote No on any new tolls, and to spend the money from the gas/transportation fund on just - and only - transportation!
Vote NO on the Internet Sales Tax!: The Marketplace Fairness Act (aka, Internet Sales Tax) will result in unprecedented athority for any state to audit and/or request documents from a small business which has an online presence even if the business has no association, connection, or nexus with the requesting state, resulting in higher costs to merchants for compliance, and to consumers of online goods and services. Use the LobbyByFax System to send a free fax to your Congressional delegation to voice your opposition to any additional burdensome taxes and unwarranted multi-state regulation and oversight!
Stop Maryland, Montgomery, and Prince George's Counties' Expanded Use of Photo Radar, Red Light Cameras, and other Automated Traffic Enforcement! Send a free fax to Governor O'Malley as well to the Annapolis Legislature telling them to vote against the expansion of photo radar and other automated traffic enforcement and monitoring in Maryland. Tell them that these systems violate due process, place an unfair burden upon the registrant of the vehicle, are subject to "cloning", allowing malicious copies of license plates to be used to incur culpability upon innocent registrants, and effectively set up a "pay to speed" system where those who can afford it can speed when desired. Go to the LobbyByFax Alerts Overview page and select the "Maryland Photo Radar" alert, or go directly to the Stop Maryland's Use of Speed Cameras alert for state lawmakers and Governor O'Malley. Note: Please be sure to select Maryland from the initial state-selection drop-down menu.
Stop our Interstate Highways from being tolled!: Send a fax to Congress demanding that they do not allow tolls to be placed on free Interstates. We all pay a gas tax, we should not be taxed again with tolls! (As Pennsylvania is doing with I-80)
Stop the Recording Industry: The heavy-handed approach of the recording industry to block copying via digital rights management is a cheap attempt to have Congress and thus the American public pay for the failed policies of the Recording Industry. We should not tolerate, and Congress should not allow, the onerous restrictions which the Industry wishes to impose upon us, as the cost and loss of utility which such restrictions will create are incalculably greater than the minimal benefit in terms of higher profits which will be generated for the Industry.
For a complete list of all current LobbyByFax alerts, please visit the Interpage LobbyByFax.com site and click the start button on the main page, or click here for a summary page.

General:

For being situated in one of the wealthiest and most highly trafficked areas in the entire country, Washington DC Metro stations tend to suffer a disproportionate amount of mechanical, electrical and other types of failures.

For example, it is common not only for escalators at a given station to malfunction but for the breakdown to go untreated for hours at a time. Commuters are then forced to walk on the escalator for long distances.

On other occasions, the station's air conditioning system may malfunction. On such occasions, rather than fixing the system, station personnel frequently place large fans on the platform in a crude attempt to compensate for the lack of circulating cool air when common sense suggests they would likely spend less time alerting repair technicians of the problem and promulgating a real solution.

Cited below are occasions when these and other types of mechanical or electrical failures occur. Where possible, they are substantiated with photographs to demonstrate the failure.

Ordering Note: The following list is organized alphabetically: first by line and then by the given stations on that line.

Please feel free to submit your experiences with Washington DC's Metro system which are of a specific nature relevant to this list, so that we may provide a more comprehensive and complete listing of similar problems. Contact information for this list isprovided at the end of this page.

Additionally, if you feel that an item is incorrect, please let us know the specifics of your experiences in the given station and/or with the given issue so we can verify and, if needed, update the list accordingly.

Disclaimer/Note: The authors have no relationship with Washington DC Metro Rail other than as customers. Although it is uncertain how the staff of each given train station can permit such flagrantly poor conditions to exist, the primary objective of this list is to document problems that occur and encourage these matters to be corrected via this public forum.

Mechanical Failures by Rail Line

Blue Line, Pentagon City: The air conditioner appears to be malfunctioning. Very little air comes out of the vents and what little does is not very cool. Last observed on 07/08/2010, last reported to Dave from DC Metro on 07/09/2010, apparently fixedas of 07/15/2010 but again observed on 08/24/2011.

Yellow/(Green) Line, Gallery Place: The air conditioning on the upper (Red Line) level appears to be low but operates at a passable level. It exhibits a poor fan speed and overall was not very cool, but appears to work minimally. However, the air conditioner on the lower Green/Yellow level does not seem to work at all and no air discernible amount of air appears to come from the vents. Last observed on 08/25/2010. As of late 2012, it appears that extensive work is being done on the station; hopefully, by the summer of 2013, the air conditioning issues will be resolved.

Orange Line, Courthouse: Although the air conditioning system appears to be minimally functional, the fan speed is so weak that unless one stands directly by a pillar or vent, it is imperceptible. Instead, staff at the station had simply set up fans for air circulation! (As is common place at a number of other stations as well) Most recently observed on 08/24/2011.

Orange Line, Courthouse: An out of service escalator left the only remaining functional escalator carrying passengers down rather than up. This was in full view of the station attendant, who apparently could not be bothered to investigate this, reverse the direction of the functioning escalator or do much of anything else. Most recently observed on 09/19/2012, reported to Jeannie on 09/21/2012.

Observed on 09/19/2012.

Red Line, DuPont Circle: On 08/03/2011, only one functioning overhead light was in operation above the 200+ foot escalator located at the north entrance, which effectively cast the area in near total darkness. Most recently observed on 08/03/2011 and was reported to James from Washington DC Metro on 08/04/2011 and within a few days, the issue appears to have been resolved.
The air conditioning system at DuPont Circle appears to be inoperative; although the vents do seem to circulate air with a sufficient degree of force, the air conditioning system does not appear to be cooling the air, and instead simply either recycles the station's own air or blows in warm air from the surface but has no cooling effect whatsoever. This issue was also reported to James from Metro on 08/04/2011.

Additionally, on 08/03/2011, two escalators were out of service at the north entrance, leaving only one escalator in service, yet that escalator was set to operate only in the down position, leaving existing passengers with no choice to make a 200+ ft. climb. This had been going on for approximately two hours without any intervention from staff at the DuPont Circle station, which happens to be one of DC Metro's busiest stations, yet no one had the presence of mind to reverse the one functioning escalator so that it would operate in an upward direction. Also reported to John from DC Metro on 08/04/2011. As of November 2012, there has been much repair work done which has corrected this issue.

08/04/2011
At the southbound Dupont entrance (below), the two down escalators continue to not function, which has been the case for the past few weeks.

08/24/2011

Red Line, Van Ness/UDC (below): While work is going on on the escalator to the left (which is sealed off), the up escalator (to the right) is not working, while the center/down one is. Couldn't someone be bothered to switch the center escalator from "down" to "up" so passengers don't have a stroke just getting to the top? It's a lot easier to walk down those 150 stairs than up! Most recently observed on 08/25/2011.

01/03/2017 - Is there a cardiologist in the station??! Van Ness/UDC UP escalator broken but DOWN still running - it's a long climb up!

Red Line, Tenleytown: An out of service escalator left the only remaining functional escalator carrying passengers down rather than up. The escalator pictured below with the red light (right photo, left escalator) is the downward travelling escalator while the escalator to the right of it was not functioning, forcing passengers to walk up to the street level. Most recently observed on 09/19/2012, reported to Mike from Washington DC Metro on 04/18/2011 and to Jeannie on 09/21/2012.

Observed on 04/14/2011

Observed on 09/19/2012

Corrected Items

Orange Line, Clarendon: The air conditioner at the station appeared to be malfunctioning in that the system appears to blow air but is not cooling the air. This is consistent with, but not necessarily evidence of, a faulty compressor. Most recently observed on 08/07/2008, reported to John from Washington DC Metro on 08/08/2008, appears to have been corrected as of 08/14/2008.

Red Line, Farragut North: Air conditioner malfunctions were in evidence at the station. Last observed on 08/30/2009, last reported to Brenda from DC Metro on 08/31/2009, apparently fixed as of 09/06/2009.

Red Line, Tenleytown: Schedule signs only displayed elevator outages rather than train schedules due to sheer volume of malfunctioning elevators. Last observed on 02/10/2011, last reported to Chris DC Metro on 02/11/2011, apparently fixed as of 02/16/2011.

Red Line, Union Station: Air conditioner malfunctions were in evidence at the station. Last observed on 07/24/2008, last reported to Becky from DC Metro on 07/25/2008, apparently fixed as of 07/30/2008.

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Last modified and ï¿½: 05/16/2019