Metro withdrew request for more trains on Independence Day

The agency, which is suffering from a train shortage due to the suspension of nearly 60 percent of its rail car fleet because of a safety defect, said Tuesday it was able to add older-model trains to handle crowds without dipping into its sidelined 7000-series rail cars — an option it had weighed to reduce crowding.

“We considered a number of options for July Fourth service and decided to focus our energy on getting more of the legacy fleet in service,” Metro spokeswoman Kristie Swink Benson said in a statement. “We are pleased with the service we provided to our customers.”

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The fireworks show hosted by the National Park Service on the Mall is an annual tradition that draws thousands of tourists and local residents. Monday’s celebration was the first time the event included musical performances and large crowds during the pandemic era, but it came as Metro is entering its ninth month of a train shortage stemming from a safety issue plaguing its newest-model trains and rail cars.

The agency has 748 of the cars, which Metro is slowly trying to return under a proposal to its regulator that commits to daily wheel inspections. The Washington Metrorail Safety Commission, an independent agency created by Congress to oversee Metrorail safety, approved a plan that allows the agency to bring back 64 cars — enough for eight trains — that Metro workers inspect manually while transit engineers work on an automated system to bring more cars into service.

The cars’ suspension began in October after a federal investigation into a derailment uncovered a defect within 7000-series rail cars that pushes wheels outward, creating a derailment risk. The defect, which has been found nearly 50 times since 2017, progresses slowly and can be caught before it becomes a risk.

None of the cars Metro has brought back online since it began the daily inspections June 16 have failed wheel inspections, transit officials say. The pandemic has limited demand on Metrorail, but the fireworks celebration was expected to be one of the transit system’s biggest tests during its train shortage.

In preparation, transit officials sent a draft of a proposal asking the safety commission if it could make more 7000-series trains eligible for use on Independence Day to help transport the spectators who were expected to flood the Mall. Tiffany Minor, a safety commission spokeswoman, said her office received the draft June 22.

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“We didn’t review it,” Minor said. “We didn’t get to issue a response or anything because they withdrew it.”

She noted the safety commission’s order suspending the cars requires the transit agency to get permission to change the return-to-service plan at least 14 days in advance. Metro’s draft arrived two days short of that requirement. Minor said she didn’t know if that was the reason for the withdrawal.

Swink Benson acknowledged that waits were long at the Smithsonian station but said Metro got large numbers of people home after the event. The transit system said 253,000 riders rode Metro on Monday — more than most recent weeks but significantly lower than before the pandemic.

“It was our pleasure to help move you safely throughout the region,” Metro said to customers in a tweet.

The transit system had 72 trains running Monday, including all eight of its eligible 7000-series trains — far more than the 50 to 60 trains it has run on typical days.

Metro had warned riders days in advance that waits for trains could last more than an hour on July 4, and Swink Benson said she believes the public received the message. At the height of demand Monday, Metro tweeted that passengers waiting at the Smithsonian station were being metered to prevent overcrowding inside, urging riders to walk to the nearest stations for short waits.

On social media, where criticism of Metro is common, relatively few complaints about Monday night’s service could be found.