WMATA advances escalator replacement project

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) has installed the 15th and 16th new escalator units as part of its "Metro Forward" rebuilding program, the agency announced on Monday.

The newest units were installed between the mezzanine and platform levels at Bethesda Station. To date, new escalators have been installed at the following stations: Foggy Bottom, Dupont Circle, Pentagon, Van Ness, Georgia Ave-Petworth, Glenmont and Bethesda.

Escalator projects are under way at the following locations: Bethesda, Columbia Heights, Friendship Heights, Georgia Avenue and Glenmont. Installation at Metro Center's 12th and G entrance will begin next week, WMATA officials said in a press release.

The new escalators are part of a plan to replace more than 130 of the system's 613 escalators over the next few years to improve reliability. The agency's number of working escalators is the highest it's been in five years, WMATA officials said.