Metrorail’s Silver Line extension project reached another milestone with the “substantial completion” of a rail yard and maintenance facility.
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said Wednesday that the 90-acre project at Dulles International Airport is important in completing the Silver Line Phase 2 project, which extends Metrorail to the airport and beyond.
The six-station extension will include stations at Reston Town Center, Herndon, Innovation Center, Washington Dulles International Airport, Loudoun Gateway and Ashburn.
Substantial completion indicates major construction is complete and operational readiness testing is able to begin, during which the project team will demonstrate the rail yard’s functionality. The work was done by contractor Hensel Phelps.
Airports Authority president and CEO John Potter said the maintenance facility, located along Ox Road, will bring “hundreds of new jobs to Northern Virginia.”
The facility is where trains will undergo maintenance and repairs and provide storage for trains and parts. The facility can store 184 rail cars, MWAA said in a news release.
Last month, major construction on the Silver Line’s Phase 2 was completed.
Phase 1 of the Silver Line opened in 2014. It extended Metrorail service from East Falls Church to the eastern edge of Reston.
