WASHINGTON — After Tuesday’s three-peat of delays on Metro’s Red Line, the transit agency now says it has a fix.
During a Thursday meeting of WMATA’s board of directors, Metro COO Joe Leader apologized to riders who were slowed down—even stranded on dark trains—after problems with the electrical system that powers trains. Track insulators arced three times throughout the day, snarling service once during the morning rush and twice during the evening rush.
"The root cause is water infiltration in the tunnel and that needs to be addressed," Leader said.
Metro says Red Line tunnels leak water since they were bored before modern techniques. Last year, Metro permeated tunnel walls with a new waterproof sealant, but only near Medical Center. Metro said that cut down on arcing insulators from 65 in 2016, to 54 in 2017, then 22 in 2018. WUSA9 analyzed Metro daily service reports and found as many as 11 arcing insulators this year.
"The number of arcing insulators are definitely without a doubt coming down," Leader said.
Leader said this latest string of problems underscores the need to waterproof nine more miles of the Red Line, a process called curtain grouting that Metro said could take years.
"We’ll just have to keep an eye on it until we get a final permanent solution, which I think will be the curtain grouting," Leader said.
A Metro spokesman said this won’t be easy. Waterproofing near Medical Center caused weekend single-tracking and some shutdowns. The transit agency has not said when this work could begin.
Here's a timeline of Tuesday's delays, according to Metro daily service reports:
- 8:42 a.m.: A Glenmont-bound Red Line train approaching Tenleytown reported an arcing insulator. As a result, Red Line service was suspended between Friendship Heights and Van Ness. Shuttle bus service was provided. Several trains were offloaded and turned back for schedule adherence/improved train spacing. Customers experienced delays up to 60 minutes until approximately 10 a.m.
- 4:29 p.m.: A Shady Grove-bound Red Line train at Dupont Circle was offloaded due to a report of an arcing insulator outside Woodley Park. As a result, Red Line service was suspended between Dupont Circle and Van Ness stations. Shuttle bus service was provided. Several trains were offloaded and turned back for schedule adherence/improved train spacing. Customers experienced delays up to 30 minutes until approximately 6 p.m.
- 6:20 p.m.: A Shady Grove-bound Red Line train at Van Ness-UDC was offloaded due to a report of an arcing insulator. As a result, Red Line trains were single tracked between Friendship Heights and Van Ness stations. Customers experienced delays up to 20 minutes until approximately 7:30 p.m.