Critical Maintenance Shuts Down Portion Of Baltimore Metro
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Critical maintenance is shutting down a portion of Baltimore's subway system, and it will impact thousands of riders who rely on it each day.
The 33-year-old metro system has been experiencing major safety issues -- including broken fire detectors, hazardous wiring, corroding pipes and exposed wires near exits -- so the MTA wants to fix it before it causes a disaster on the tracks.
Built in 1983, many system components are nearing the end of their useful lives.
According to MTA deputy administrator Suhair Alkhatib, this has been in planning for two years.
To minimize the inconvenience for the 45,000 people who use the system daily, MTA will be providing free shuttle service for all the affected stations in 10 to 30-minute intervals. However, the MTA is uring customers to plan for at least an extra hour of travel time per trip.
All stops between Milford Mill and Mondawmin Mall will be closed for three weeks.
The partial closure begins tonight at 8 p.m.
Rides tell WJZ the maintenance is long overdue.
This comes as aging transit systems across the country are beginning to fail, including D.C.'s metro.
In January 2015, problems on those tracks filled the tunnels with smoke, killing one woman.
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