Metro shuttered the two stations closest to the Tidal Basin Thursday to keep cherry blossom visitors from crowding stations and trains.
The Smithsonian and Arlington National Cemetery stations were closed at 5 p.m., planned in advance.
The reason for those closures is so the system can be reserved for essential travel by the likes of employees of the Pentagon, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and doctors and nurses.
Metro is telling the public to only ride Washington, D.C.-area Metrorail or Metrobuses if it is “absolutely necessary."
Metro trains are running with reduced hours to “allow even more cleaning and to reduce sharing of workspaces and vehicles" amid the spread of the coronavirus.
Trains are running every 15 minutes from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekdays and from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekends. All trains will operate with eight cars, “the maximum possible length, to help maintain social distancing” between riders.
Transportation
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Buses are operating on a Sunday schedule. If buses are crowded, drivers are authorized to skip stops “to maintain safe social distancing aboard the vehicle.”
MetroAccess subscription trips are canceled. “Customers with a critical need to travel should make a separate reservation calling 301-562-5360 (TTY 301-588-7535) or via the online reservation system.”
Metro urged anyone who feels sick to stay away from Metrorail and buses and instead call their doctor.
Additionally, all restrooms in Metrorail stations are closed.
