Metro today announced a series of rail service changes going into effect Sunday, June 22, aimed at improving customer experience through longer weekend service hours, more frequent trains on key lines, and the release of a new Metrorail system map. These improvements, made without any fare increases, are part of the agency’s broader strategy to enhance reliability and accommodate rising ridership.
Under the new schedule, Metrorail stations will open at 6 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays—an hour earlier than the current schedule—and service will be extended by one hour until 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights. The Red Line will also see increased frequency, with trains arriving every 4 minutes during weekday peak periods, compared to the current 5-minute intervals.
On the Silver Line, service will be split into two branches: half of all trains will travel between Ashburn and Downtown Largo, and the other half between Ashburn and New Carrollton. Transfers between these two branches can be made at Stadium-Armory. In addition, Metro is adding extra Silver Line trains during weekday peak hours. In the morning, some trains will operate from Wiehle-Reston East to New Carrollton. In the evening, additional trains will run from Stadium-Armory to Wiehle-Reston East.
Coinciding with these service adjustments is the release of a newly updated 2025 Metrorail map. The revised map includes changes reflecting the Silver Line’s split, adjustments to station labeling for clarity, and a new set of single-letter line symbols replacing the previous two-letter abbreviations. Printed versions of the map will begin appearing across the system starting June 21, and digital versions are already available online.
Metro is also expanding use of Automatic Train Operation (ATO), a system that allows trains to run automatically between stations with greater precision. ATO is now active on the Blue, Orange, and Silver lines, joining the Red, Green, and Yellow lines where it is already in use. With this expansion, Metro has completed its systemwide implementation of automated train operation.
Metro says the changes come amid continued ridership recovery. As of May, average weekday Metrorail ridership surpassed 460,000—up 16 percent from last year. Weekend ridership has also climbed, with average Saturday and Sunday boardings up 24 percent and 16 percent, respectively, compared to 2023.
