Dupont Circle station
| Company type | Rapid transit station |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transportation |
| Founded | January 17, 1977 |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. , United States |
Area served | Washington Metro Red Line |
| Products | Rapid transit services |
Dupont Circle station is a subterranean rapid transit stop on the Red Line of the Washington Metro network, located in Washington, D.C.. Positioned beneath the traffic circle, it is among the system’s most heavily utilized stations, with an average weekday ridership of 16,948 entries. The station stretches along Connecticut Avenue NW from the southern edge of the circle to Q Street NW.
Station layout
This station on the Red Line is distinctive for having two tracks flanked by side platforms, a relatively rare configuration within the line. Its design features a single-bore tunnel, a necessity due to its considerable depth below the Connecticut Avenue NW underpass and an obsolete streetcar tunnel, which now serves as an art installation. The station’s construction involved rock tunneling techniques because of its deep location.
There are two access points to the station. The northern entrance, situated at Q Street NW and 20th Street NW, contains three escalators and an elevator that connect to a mezzanine and fare control area. A unique characteristic here is that the escalator sides are adorned with trellised plants rather than traditional granite panels. The southern entrance, found at Dupont Circle’s southern perimeter, includes another trio of escalators leading to a separate mezzanine and fare control zone. The escalators at the north entrance measure in length, while those at the south entrance are longer and ascend .
History
The station commenced operations on January 17, 1977, marking the initial extension beyond the original Red Line segment between Union Station and Farragut North. It functioned as the western endpoint until December 5, 1981, when service was extended to Van Ness–UDC.
Significant events include an incident on May 6, 2000, when a woman fell onto the tracks but emerged uninjured after a train passed over her; this event caused a temporary closure during her rescue. Another tragedy occurred in May 2006 when a Metro employee was fatally struck by a train within the station.
In tribute to caregivers during the HIV epidemic, a passage from Walt Whitman’s 1865 poem The Wound Dresser was etched onto the granite wall adjacent to the north entrance escalators in 2007.
Between February 1 and October 21, 2012, the south entrance was closed for replacement of its three escalators, which were among the least dependable in the system.
On January 15, 2018, a train heading toward Glenmont derailed just outside Dupont Circle station; fortunately, there were no serious injuries reported.
The station’s chiller system was restored in 2019 after nearly four years of inactivity.
Work began in April 2019 to install a canopy over the north entrance escalators to align with similar structures elsewhere in the network. Although planned for completion by summer 2022, progress was delayed due to the bankruptcy of the contractor responsible for producing custom glass panels.
On December 10, 2019, smoke originating from an arcing insulator near caused service disruptions between Dupont Circle and , followed by single-tracking between Friendship Heights and Van Ness after another insulator malfunction.