WMATA Board Votes to Make Permanent the Elimination of Grosvenor Turnbacks

For Immediate Release: Friday, July 26, 2019

Thanks to a vote of the WMATA Board on July 25, the December 17, 2018 elimination of Metrorail turnbacks at Grosvenor is now permanent. A WMATA analysis found no negative impact on service performance from January through June of 2019. In fact, overall Red Line on-time performance improved three percent, to 90.7 percent, exceeding WMATA’s target of 88 percent. On-time performance also improved for customers at the Shady Grove, Rockville, Twinbrook and White Flint stations. Staff found no issues with train spacing, terminal operation or at the Rail Control Center.

The elimination of turnbacks increased ridership and significantly reduced train overcrowding. Customer experience was enhanced by reduced wait times at stations north of the Grosvenor, Silver Spring and Mt. Vernon Square stations. In addition, WMATA saw reduced crowding on the Yellow Line and Green Line.

Passengers experienced improved station circulation, with less crowding. Passenger exit times fell 16 percent and the increased frequency of trains resulted in more evenly spaced ridership with more people being able to find a seat during peak periods.

Montgomery County leaders advocated for many years to eliminate the turnbacks at the Grosvenor and the Silver Spring Metrorail stations.

Release ID: 19-123
Media Contact: Maureen McNulty 240-777-7199