What to Know
- Woodley Park and Cleveland Park — the two stations closest to the zoo — and Dupont Circle will all be closed
- Free shuttle buses will travel from Van Ness and Farragut North and will take visitors to the zoo's main entrance
- Metro said the upside is that visitors won't have to make the half-mile walk from Woodley Park or Cleveland Park
Consider this a warning if you're planning to bid farewell to the National Zoo's youngest panda, Bei Bei, this weekend: The two Metro stations closest to the zoo will be closed.
Bei Bei is set to depart for China on Tuesday, and the zoo is hosting special events each day before then. But Metro had plans to close three stations for maintenance long before his departure date was set, the transit agency said.
Woodley Park and Cleveland Park — the two stations closest to the zoo — and the Dupont Circle station will all be closed. Red Line trains will run in two segments: between Shady Grove and Van Ness, and between Glenmont and Farragut North.
Zoo visitors will be able to take free shuttle buses from the Van Ness and Farragut North stations, which will ferry them to the zoo's main entrance.
Here's the good news: Metro says the shuttle buses will actually be easier for zoo visitors, who won't have to make the half-mile walk from the Woodley Park or Cleveland Park stations. The shuttle buses will leave every few minutes and will stop at the zoo from opening until 7 p.m., which is two hours after the zoo's closing. After 7 p.m., shuttle buses will keep running between Van Ness and Farragut North, making stops at Cleveland Park, Woodley Park and Dupont Circle.
The affected stations will be closed for lighting upgrades, Metro said. The light fixtures are located next to the third rail, so trains can't run through those stations while the work is under way.
