Officials were inspecting two of Metro’s oldest stations Monday while continuing to repair tracks near the Reagan National Airport station, where the incident occurred. train series. The derailment caused a four-day delay for Blue and Yellow Line commuters, and 360 rail cars were temporarily removed for emergency inspection.
Around 10:45 a.m. Friday, a Blue Line train traveling south toward the Franconia-Springfield station struck an object carrying 43 passengers, who Metro officials said caused them to fall from another train. did. The train’s first axle fell off the tracks south of the airport station subway platform. There were no injuries.
Object that collided with a train — in the incident caught on video — Identified as a 3000 series train disc brake. Metro officials said the object was about 20 inches in diameter.
Metro’s 3000 series debuted in 1987 and is scheduled to be retired in the next few years, to be replaced by Metro’s upcoming 8000 series, scheduled to be delivered starting in 2025.
The train that derailed was Metro’s newest model, the Metro 7000 Series, and is the subject of a two-year federal investigation into wheel defects. The defect was discovered after a Blue Line 7000 series train carrying 187 passengers derailed outside Arlington Cemetery Station on October 12, 2021. No one was seriously injured, but the derailment prompted Metro regulators to ground all 748 trains, resulting in a year-long train shortage.
Metro slowly rehabilitated the cars over several months under a plan that included regular wheel inspections. Metro General Manager Randy Clark said Friday there is no indication that the defect found on the 7000 series, which causes the wheels to move outward on the axle, is related to the derailment.
“We need to do a very comprehensive investigation, but at this point there is no indication that there is a problem with the 7000 series trains,” he said.
Metro said wheel measurements on the derailed 7000 series train were consistent with specifications and there were no “obvious track or infrastructure defects.” Investigators with the Washington Metrorail Safety Commission, which regulates rail system safety, are working to determine how the 3000 Series train’s disc brakes came loose.
All of Metro’s 284 3000 series cars remain out of service. The agency also removed all 76 2000 series vehicles. Those cars — It is the oldest rolling stock in the rail system, entering service in 1982 and manufactured by the same manufacturer as the 3000 series. Manufacturer Breda no longer makes rail cars.
Metro said 102 vehicles had been inspected as of Sunday, and 32 were found to have “non-conforming bolts” that did not meet the manufacturer’s specifications. Metro says it may have been replaced during a repair or routine rebuild and parts replacement. The lifespan of a railway vehicle is approximately 40 years.
Blue Line and Yellow Line trains are departing every 15 minutes, and workers continue to repair the track where the derailment occurred.
Blue Line trains ran every 10 and 12 minutes during the day and every 15 minutes at night. Before the derailment, Yellow Line trains were running every 6 to 8 minutes. Metro said other lines are operating at or near normal frequencies.