Bethesda station is a rapid transit station on the Red Line of the

Washington Metro The Washington Metro, often abbreviated as the Metro and formally the Metrorail, is a rapid transit system serving the Washington metropolitan area of the United States. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority ...

system in

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

. It is one of the busiest suburban Metro stations, serving on average 9,142 passengers each weekday in 2017. The Purple Line, a

light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...

system currently under construction, will terminate at Bethesda, providing rail service to other inner Maryland suburbs such as Silver Spring and College Park, each of which has additional north–south connections by Washington Metro, and New Carrollton, which has

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

and MARC connections to both

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Location

Located at the center of the area's central business district, Bethesda station lies underneath

Wisconsin Avenue Wisconsin Avenue is a major thoroughfare in Washington, D.C., and its Maryland suburbs. The southern terminus begins in Georgetown just north of the Potomac River, at an intersection with K Street under the elevated Whitehurst Freeway. Wisco ...

at its intersection with Montgomery Avenue. In the direction of Shady Grove, it is the first station wholly within Montgomery County, as Friendship Heights straddles the border between Maryland and Washington, D.C.

Nearby landmarks

Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School (B-CC) is a State school, public Secondary school, high school in Montgomery County, Maryland. It is located at 4301 East-West Highway, in Bethesda, Maryland, Bethesda. Part of the Montgomery County Public Schools ...

* Capital Crescent Trail * Chevy Chase Bank headquarters *

Consumer Product Safety Commission The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (USCPSC, CPSC, or commission) is an independent agency of the United States government. The CPSC seeks to promote the safety of consumer products by addressing "unreasonable risks" of injury ...

*Bethesda's ''

Madonna of the Trail ''Madonna of the Trail'' is a series of 12 identical monuments to the spirit of pioneer women in the United States. The monuments were commissioned in the late 1920s by the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) ...

'' monument *

Marriott International Marriott International, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, multinational company that operates, franchises, and licenses lodging brands that include hotel, residential, and timeshare properties. Marriott International owns over 37 ho ...

headquarters *Television stations

WTTG WTTG (channel 5) is a television station in Washington, D.C., serving as the market's Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNetworkTV station WDCA (cha ...

and

WDCA WDCA (channel 20), branded Fox 5 Plus, is a television station in Washington, D.C., serving as the local outlet for the MyNetworkTV programming service. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Fox outlet WTTG (channel 5) ...

History

The station opened on August 25, 1984. Its opening coincided with the completion of of rail northwest of the Van Ness–UDC station and the opening of the Friendship Heights, Grosvenor, Medical Center and

Tenleytown Tenleytown is a historic neighborhood in Northwest, Washington, D.C., Northwest, Washington, D.C. History In 1790, locals began calling the neighborhood "Tennally's Town" after area tavern owner John Tennally. Over time, the spelling has evolve ...

stations. In October 2013, a new staircase appeared between the mezzanine and platform. In October 2014, the replacement of the first of three entrance escalators at the station began. The escalator site preparation, demolition, construction, installation and testing was projected to take approximately 42 weeks to complete. The $8.4 million project was completed on March 22, 2017. The station's construction has been a major boom to the area, with several office buildings being built on (in the Bethesda Metro Center complex) and around it. The Purple Line system is under construction as of 2025 and is scheduled to open in late 2027.

Station layout

Like the other 10 stations in the system constructed with rock tunneling, Bethesda station is deep underground. Its platform is more than below the street level. Prior to the opening of the Wheaton station, the Bethesda station had the longest

escalator An escalator is a moving staircase which carries people between floors of a building or structure. It consists of a Electric motor, motor-driven chain of individually linked steps on a track which cycle on a pair of tracks which keep the st ...

in the

Western Hemisphere The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the 180th meridian.- The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Geopolitically, ...

, at , with a rise of . The main escalators descending to the station are located on the west side of Wisconsin Avenue, adjacent to the station's underground bus bays. A Metro-style tunnel connects passengers to the southeast corner of Wisconsin and Old Georgetown Road. A mezzanine provides fare control and access to the station's

island platform An island platform (also center platform (American English) or centre platform (British English)) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway inte ...

within the station. Between January 17 and December 24, 2022, the Bethesda Plaza entrance escalator was replaced with stairs that lead from the bus station to street level. The escalator was replaced because a canopy could not be accommodated that would provide protection from the elements for a new escalator. Purple Line - Bethesda shaft construction - 2022a

Purple Line - Bethesda shaft construction - 2022a

A new southern entrance will allow for connections to the Purple Line, which will be located in a tunnel running above the Red Line tunnel. The new entrance has a complex design, and the construction process has included extensive blasting operations. In 2024 it was reported that construction of the new mezzanine has led to large cost overruns. The Bethesda station is compliant with the

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ...

. The station has a single elevator. In the event that the elevator is not operational, the station is not accessible for wheelchair users, who must take a shuttle to the next station. Installation of backup elevators is planned as part of the construction of the Purple Line.

References

External links

*WMATA
Bethesda StationOld Georgetown Road entrance from Google Maps Street View
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bethesda station Bethesda, Maryland Purple Line (Maryland) Stations on the Red Line (Washington Metro) Washington Metro stations in Maryland Railway stations in the United States opened in 1984 Railway stations in Montgomery County, Maryland Railway stations located underground in Maryland 1984 establishments in Maryland