Metrorail says service on the Green and Yellow lines will improve next week after limited service on the two lines that typically see some of the heaviest crowding.
Starting Monday, Green and Yellow line trains will arrive every 15 minutes, Metro said in a news release Friday.
All this week, trains on the Green and Yellow lines have been running every 20 minutes after several dozen train operators were pulled out of service following an investigation into lapsed safety recertifications.
Overall, nearly half of Metro’s 500 train operators were found to have lapsed recertifications, and Metro pulled from service 72 operators whose certifications were the most out-of-date.
Metro said Friday the weeklong reduction in service allowed enough of those operators to get recertified to restore service.
The recertification process involves classroom instruction and supervised testing in rail yards and on the mainline tracks.
While Green and Yellow line trains will run every 15 minutes, riders at stations served by both lines — from L’Enfant Plaza to Greenbelt — will see trains every seven to eight minutes.
The investigation into lapsed recertifications was followed by the sudden early retirement of outgoing General Manager Paul Wiedefeld and the resignation of Chief Operating Officer Joe Leader.
On Thursday, a plan to return Metro’s 7000-series rail cars — which account for 60% of Metro’s fleet and have been sidelined since a derailment last October — got the green light from the Washington Metrorail Safety Commission.
That means Metro could bring some 7000-series rail cars back into service by the end of the summer, improving wait times on the Blue, Orange and Silver lines.
Currently, trains on those lines are running every 20 minutes. Red Line trains run every 10 minutes.
