ALEXANDRIA, VA-Metro riders anticipating the opening of the Potomac Yard Station on the Blue and Yellow Lines will have to wait a bit longer. In a statement released yesterday, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) said the reason for the delay is a design flaw in a critical safety system.
The station, scheduled to open in April 2022, is now not expected to be in use until that fall.
In response to the news, Alexandria’s mayor Justin Wilson expressed disappointment, pointing out the confusion in contract language regarding the Automatic Train Control specifications. WMATA and its contractor both informed the City of the issue and said that the system will have to be redesigned.
“While we appreciate Metro’s acceptance of accountability and recent diligence in addressing this issue, the contract language mistake is inexcusable,” Wilson stated. “With the large investment of $370 million being made by the City and other governmental and private partners to fund the station construction, internal systems should have caught the error. The City intends to have its own expert construction consultant review the schedule to determine if there is a way to safely open this station earlier than September of 2022.”
The Potomac Yard Station will be located between the Braddock Road and National Airport stations.
The project will be funded by tax revenues and developer contributions from development around the Potomac Yard Station.
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