The removal of bicycle lockers and newspaper boxes at the Bethesda Metro station is to make way for the escalator replacement project that could start next week.
A few readers and regular Metro commuters said they were surprised to find the equipment missing from the top of the station’s three entrance escalators on Monday.
WMATA spokesperson Philip Stewart confirmed crews have started to make space for the escalator project.
Because crews can only work when the station is closed overnight, the project might last more than two years. The escalators, at 108 feet long, are the second longest in the Western Hemisphere, behind the ones at the Wheaton station.
Making the project more complicated is the cramped design of the Bethesda station. The top of the escalators are confined by the ceiling of the Bethesda Metro bus bay.
The project could start as early as Monday, Oct. 6.
After demolition of the existing escalators, crews must construct, install and test the new ones. The demolition and replacement of each escalator (crews will keep two open at all times) will take about 10 months each, according to Metro.
