Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority officials last week announced the full transition to automated train operations, extended weekend hours and changes to Metrorail routes.
Metro officials on June 13 said Blue, Silver and Orange line trains will now run on an automatic driving system, following a successful pilot program testing the technology on the Red Line. WMATA officials also announced that Metrorail trains will now run from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and from 6 a.m. to 12 a.m. on Sundays, beginning June 22.
Trains previously ran from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. on Sundays. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, trains ran from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. on Saturdays and 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Sundays, according to web archives.
Metro Board Chair Valerie Santos said in a statement that extending rail service hours to better align with riders’ needs without increasing fares is a “testament” to Metro’s budget discipline and “continuous improvement” in operational efficiency.
Officials also announced that the Silver Line will now split Maryland-bound service, with half of all Silver Line trains terminating in New Carrollton and half in Downtown Largo, according to the WMATA release. The Silver Line previously ran all trains from Ashburn to Downtown Largo.
Alongside service changes, Metro rolled out Automatic Train Operation, or ATO, on the Blue, Silver and Orange lines, completing the systemwide transition to automated train service aimed at improving efficiency and reducing wait times.
Santos said in the release that Metro fully restoring ATO after 16 years is a “transformative achievement.” She said the transition drives “critical improvements” in operations, efficiency, system safety and the customer experience.
Metro General Manager and CEO Randy Clarke said the move to ATO is a “win” for customers who will experience safer and more reliable rides.
“This is a major milestone for Metro, and it has been a long time coming. I want to thank the team for their dedication and commitment to making this happen,” Clarke said in the release.
ATO controls the train’s acceleration, deceleration and speed with equipment placed on the tracks, according to the release announcing the changes. ATO allows Metro trains to run at higher speeds than when controlled by a human operator, including 75 miles per hour in some sections compared to the previous limit of 59 miles per hour, according to the release.
Metro trains will still have human operators who will focus on announcements, monitoring track conditions and operating the doors, according to the release. Metro officials began a slow pilot program of ATO on the Red Line in December 2024, eventually expanding automatic service to the Green and Yellow lines in May, before transitioning the entire system to ATO in June.
The release states that ATO is not used during inclement weather, single tracking and when workers are on the tracks.
Metro trains have always had the ability to drive automatically since the system opened in 1976. Officials discontinued the program in 2009 following a Red Line crash, when a train using ATO crashed into a stopped train in front of it, killing nine and injuring 80 passengers.
In April, a Metro safety watchdog recommended against expanding automatic operation to other lines because of an increase in station overruns on Red Line trains using ATO.
Metro had about 220 station overruns on the Red Line from when ATO testing began in December 2024 to April 2025, compared to 144 in all of 2023 for the entire Metrorail system, according to the report.
Early testing on the Yellow and Green lines showed a 37 percent drop in station overruns in the first 10 days compared to the Red Line, giving officials the confidence to expand the program to the most used tracks in the system, the Blue, Silver and Orange lines.
