Ahead of a busy sports day in the District on Tuesday, Metro said it will operate trains later than regular weekday hours to assist fans attending either the Washington Nationals’ wild card game or the Washington Mystics’ WNBA Finals game.
The Nationals will host the Milwaukee Brewers, with first pitch scheduled for 8:08 p.m. The Mystics’ game against the Connecticut Sun tips off just after 8 p.m. as well. Both teams’ stadiums are situated near Green Line stations.
“Metro is prepared to accommodate fans by running additional trains on the Green Line, both before and after the games, as we always do,” Metro’s statement said. “While there has been no formal request to extend Metrorail service, we want to assure fans considering choosing Metro that we will get you home if the game runs later than expected. Trains will continue running at least 20 minutes after the end of the game, up to one hour later than our normal closing time, if necessary.
“While this announcement addresses the immediate concern around Tuesday’s games, the Metro Board will take up the broader issues concerning Metro’s closing time and accommodating fans during playoff season in the coming months.”
This seemed to reverse a previous statement tweeted by Metrorail hours earlier, which said that Metro would operate on a normal weekday schedule and close at 11:30 p.m.
Good afternoon. Tuesday 10/1, Metro will be operating on a normal rail schedule 5 am- 11:30 pm. You can view last train times departing from the Navy Yard station below. -KAhttps://t.co/yPoZNIxpxF
— Metrorail Info (@Metrorailinfo) September 30, 2019
That tweet drew the ire of some fans who complained that Metro would not help the thousands of fans expected to be out on the town late attending these playoff games.
Metro has kept trains running late for Nationals playoff games in the past, most recently in 2017. Trains also operated for extended hours for home games during the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, when the Washington Capitals won the Cup.
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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