Community Corner

Report: Bethesda Metro Redesign Wins Praise, Draws Critics

Bethesda was selected for the "Model Station of the Future" pilot project by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority in March.

A $10 million redesign of Bethesda's Metro station was praised by advocates in Montgomery County, but drew stinging criticism from preservationists concerned with a new Metrorail system that looks markedly different from the original design.

According to a report from The Washington Post, the author of a book about Metro's designer, Harry Weese, a Chicago architect, described the redesign as equivalent to  “taking a Victorian storefront and slapping aluminum siding on it.”

The secretary of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts told the newspaper that the stations are too tied to the National Capital region to redesign. 

Find out what's happening in Bethesda-Chevy Chasewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“It’s one of the finest systems in the country, if not the finest system in the country, and it’s very carefully designed to convey the feeling that this is the national capital and it’s Washington’s subway system,” Thomas Luebke said.

Bethesda was selected for the "Model Station of the Future" pilot project by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority in March. The concepts tested at Bethesda may be used systemwide in the future. 

Find out what's happening in Bethesda-Chevy Chasewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Some of the proposed changes include:

  • High-output light fixtures to direct light to the vault ceiling.
  • A new, anti-slip zone located at the bottom of the entrance escalators to serve as a transition between the escalators and station tiles. 
  • A new information wall enclosing mezzanine equipment including fare machines, ATMs, maps and digital screens.
  • A stainless steel and light gray interior to replace “Metro brown.”
  • A new, thinner kiosk with digital panels for service information and new fare gates with next-generation technology for faster entry and exit.
  • New, redesigned, taller pylons with wayfinding signage, real-time arrival information and additional lighting located on four wings extending from the top of each pylon.

What do you think: Are you in favor of a Bethesda redesign? 


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