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Metro to close 19 stations indefinitely to limit employees’ exposure to coronavirus

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March 24, 2020 at 7:26 p.m. EDT
With ridership down as much as 90 percent due to the coronavirus, Metro will close 19 stations indefinitely to save on sanitization supplies and limit staff and passengers to possible exposure. (Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post)

Metro is taking the dramatic step of closing 19 stations in an effort to save dwindling cleaning resources to combat the coronavirus, while also protecting more of its employees from potential exposure to the virus, the agency announced Tuesday night.

The closures, which will begin Thursday, include the Smithsonian and Arlington Cemetery stations, which were closed last week to discourage people from visiting the Tidal Basin to see the cherry blossoms.