WASHINGTON — Metro would close at 10 p.m. on Sundays, and would permanently close at midnight on weekends under a proposal set to be presented Thursday by Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld.
The plan, which requires approval from the Metro Board after public feedback, would make permanent Wiedefeld’s decision to close the system at midnight rather than 3 a.m. on weekend nights for the yearlong SafeTrack repairs.
At the time, Wiedefeld cited the need for more track work time, but the move also saves the system money since fewer riders have been using the late-night service in the years since Metro track work began to regularly slow service significantly during off-peak times.
The board was already expected to approve an extension of the midnight closings on weekends beyond the one-year track work period that Wiedefeld was allowed to impose on his own as a temporary service change.
In a statement ahead of the official proposal Thursday, Wiedefeld said outside consultants and other transit agency leaders believed the extra work time with the system closed would help “prevent Metro from sliding backward.”
