The first of three new entrance escalators at Metro’s Bethesda Station will enter service Aug. 3, representing a major milestone for the project. With a rise of 106 feet, the new escalator is the second longest in the Western Hemisphere (behind Wheaton Station) and took more than nine months from demolition of the old escalator, site preparation, delivery of the new escalator and assembly.
“This is a significant improvement for our customers at Bethesda Station,” said Metro Interim General Manager and CEO Jack Requa. “This first new entrance escalator will provide more reliable service for the thousands of passengers who travel through the station each day.”
To keep the station open, Metro’s contractor, Kone, is replacing one escalator at a time, leaving two units in service: one going up, one going down. Work will now begin on the second new escalator. For safety, most of the work will continue to be done overnight, while the units in service are turned off. The project, which began in October 2014 is expected to take about 2 ½ years to complete at a cost of approximately $8.4 million.
“A safe and reliable Metro system is key to our community’s future. This new escalator, completed on time, is one step forward in creating a significantly improved Bethesda station. As work now moves to the second and then third escalators, I have my fingers crossed for minimal disruption and I, like so many, look forward to when we will have a whole new fleet of escalators serving our Bethesda transit riders,” said Montgomery County Councilmember Roger Berliner.
The new escalators are part of a number of improvements made at Bethesda station, including lighting improvements, a new stairway, and two new escalators between the mezzanine and platform levels that have already been installed.
“We are excited to mark this milestone with the replacement of the first of the three long escalators at Bethesda,” commented Jane Fairweather, chair of The Greater Bethesda-Chevy Chase Chamber of Commerce’s Metro Improvement Task Force. “We look forward to the improved reliability that local residents, employees, visitors, tourists and all users of the Bethesda Metro station will experience as they enter and exit the station.”
As part of a plan to replace 128 escalators by 2020, Metro has already installed new escalators at Foggy Bottom, Dupont Circle, Pentagon, Van Ness, Georgia Ave-Petworth, Glenmont, Columbia Heights, Friendship Heights and Mt. Vernon Square.
Metro’s Bethesda station opened in 1984 and currently serves nearly 11,000 riders on a typical weekday.
