Friday marks 50 years since the first Metrorail trip in the D.C. region. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority threw a birthday party at Metro Center station to celebrate the milestone.
General Manager Randy Clarke joined dozens of fellow employees at the top of the stairs of the rail station at 12th & F streets NW, greeting passengers, thanking them for riding Metro and handing out specially designed pennants on Friday morning.
The gathering featured music with a DJ, balloons and several posters depicting the history of the transit agency.
“Hey, happy birthday,” Clarke exclaimed shaking one customer’s hand and handing them a pennant.
The first leg of the Metrorail system was the Red Line, running 4.6 miles between the Rhode Island Avenue and Farragut North stations, and it reshaped mobility across the region. The first trip along that line happened March 27, 1976.
In the decades that followed, Metro evolved into the backbone of the D.C. area’s transportation network, serving generations of riders.
Since opening, customers have taken more than 7 billion trips on Metrorail and over 15 billion trips across Metrorail, Metrobus and MetroAccess combined.
The system spans six lines and 130 miles, connecting 98 stations. In 2025 alone, Metrorail provided 147 million trips.
“There’s a lot of be proud of here at Metro, leading transit and just connecting people to have better lives in America,” Clarke said.
Clarke acknowledged while the transit agency is celebrating, there is a lot to do.
“The big thing that we have to constantly work on with our jurisdictions, all three states, is really funding,” he said. “To make sure it’s sustainable so we can make sure people can invest and live their lives knowing that Metro is there for them,” he said.
Metro is rolling out specially designed bus wraps and SmartTrip cards to celebrate the anniversary. Metro has also created a website for those who want to take a look back on the agency’s golden anniversary: Metro50th.com.
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