L'Enfant Plaza is an intermodal transit station complex located at L'Enfant Plaza in the Southwest Federal Center neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It consists of an underground Washington Metro rapid transit station and an elevated Virginia Railway Express commuter rail station.

L'Enfant Plaza
Intersecting vaults above the Yellow Line and Green Line platforms
General information
Location	600 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C.
Coordinates	38.884775°N 77.021964°W / 38.884775; -77.021964
Owned by	Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
Line(s)	RF&P Subdivision (VRE station)
Platforms	2 side platforms (upper level) 1 island platform (lower level) 1 side platform (VRE)
Tracks	Metro: 4 (2 upper level, 2 lower level) RF&P Subdivision: 3
Connections	Metrobus: 5A, 33, 52, 70, 74, A9, P6, S2, V1 DC Circulator:   Eastern Market–L'Enfant Plaza MTA Maryland Commuter Bus Loudoun County Transit OmniRide Commuter Ride Smart Northern Shenandoah Valley
Construction
Platform levels	2
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Station code	F03 (Metro upper level) D03 (Metro lower level)
Fare zone	Zone 1 (VRE)
History
Opened	July 1, 1977 (July 1, 1977) (WMATA) June 22, 1992 (1992-06-22)[1] (VRE)
Passengers
2021	2,944 daily[2] (10th)
Services
Preceding station Virginia Railway Express Following station Crystal City toward Broad Run Manassas Line Washington, D.C. Terminus Crystal City toward Spotsylvania Fredericksburg Line Preceding station Washington Metro Following station Smithsonian toward Franconia–Springfield Blue Line Federal Center SW toward Downtown Largo Smithsonian toward Wiehle–Reston East Silver Line Smithsonian toward Vienna Orange Line Federal Center SW toward New Carrollton Waterfront toward Branch Avenue Green Line Archives toward Greenbelt Pentagon toward Huntington Yellow Line

The Metro station, which opened on July 1, 1977, is one of three major interchange stations on the Metro system. It serves five of the six Metro lines: the Green Line and Yellow Line with two side platforms on the upper level; and the Blue Line, Orange Line, and Silver Line with one island platform on the lower level.

The VRE station, which has a single side platform serving the northernmost of the three tracks of the RF&P Subdivision, is served by the Manassas Line and Fredericksburg Line.

History

Metro station

The lower level of the Metro station opened on July 1, 1977 as part of the opening of 11.8 miles (19.0 km) of the Blue Line between National Airport and Stadium–Armory.[3] Orange Line service began on November 20, 1978 when the extension to New Carrollton opened.[3] The upper level opened with the opening of the Yellow Line on April 30, 1983; Green Line service began on May 11, 1991.[3] Silver Line service on the lower level began on July 26, 2014.[4][3] The Maryland Avenue entrance will be closed for about seven months beginning on May 9, 2022, for escalator replacement.[5]

L'Enfant Plaza was the setting of a 2007 Pulitzer Prize-winning article by Washington Post reporter Gene Weingarten where world-famous classical violinist Joshua Bell performed outside the station at rush hour disguised as a street musician.[6] On January 12, 2015, smoke appeared in the station during the afternoon rush hour, causing one death.[7] A scene from the 2020 film Wonder Woman 1984 was filmed in the station in June 2018.[8]

VRE station

The VRE station opened with the Manassas Line on June 22, 1992. The Fredericksburg Line began service on July 20, 1992.[1] L'Enfant is the northern terminus of 40% of trips on VRE.[9] A 2010 city report analyzed options to expand the station, including the potential extension of MARC service from Union Station to L'Enfant or Alexandria.[9] VRE began planning for an expansion of the station in 2021. The existing side platform will be replaced with an island platform to allow for increased service, with a fourth track added.[10]

Station layout

The station complex is located the Southwest Federal Center area of Southwest, Washington, DC, centered around the intersection of 7th Street SW and D Street SW. The Metro station has three levels: a fare mezzanine, the Yellow/Green Line upper level with two side platforms, and the Orange/Blue/Silver Line lower level with one island platform. The north-south upper level stretches from C Street to E Street; the east-west lower level stretches from 9th Street to 6th Street. Metro entrances are located at the L'Enfant Plaza shopping mall concourse at 9th and D Streets, on D Street between 6th and 7th Streets, and at Maryland Avenue and 7th Street.[9] Additional head houses may be eventually added.[9]

The VRE platform is located on the north side of the three-track RF&P Subdivision, which is elevated above Virginia Avenue SW between 6th Street and 7th Street. Stairs lead to the station from 6th Street and 7th Street; a ramp leads to the station from C Street west of 7th Street.[9] Most Amtrak intercity trains do not stop at L'Enfant, though several Northeast Regional trains stop for VRE passengers only as part of a ticket cross-honoring agreement.[11]

2F	Side platform
	Track 1	←      Manassas Line toward Broad Run (Crystal City) ←      Fredericksburg Line toward Spotsylvania (Crystal City) →           Manassas Line and Fredericksburg Line toward Union Station (Terminus) → ←           Amtrak and Manassas Line (select trains) do not stop here →
	Track 2	←           Amtrak and Manassas Line (select trains) do not stop here →
	Track 3	←           Amtrak and Manassas Line (select trains) do not stop here →
G	Street level	Exit/entrance, buses
B1	Metro mezzanine	Fare control, ticket machines, station agent
B2	Side platform
	Southbound	← toward Branch Avenue (Waterfront) ← toward Huntington (Pentagon)
	Northbound	→   toward Greenbelt (Archives) →
	Side platform
B3	Westbound	← toward Franconia–Springfield (Smithsonian) ← toward Vienna (Smithsonian) ← toward Wiehle–Reston East (Smithsonian)
	Island platform
	Eastbound	→   toward Downtown Largo (Federal Center SW) → → toward New Carrollton (Federal Center SW) →

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to L'Enfant Plaza (WMATA station).

• WMATA L'Enfant Plaza station page

• VRE: L'Enfant
• Metro entrances on Google Maps Street View: D Street between 6th and 7th, Maryland Avenue and 7th Street, D Street and 9th Street
• VRE entrances on Google Maps Street View: 6th Street, 7th Street, C Street