Metro Is Rolling Out New Train Station Signs

Metro is updating signage at each rail station in an attempt to make it easier for customers to navigate D.C.

Riders at L’Enfant Plaza may have noticed fresh signs on the lower train platforms, the first in what is planned to be a systemwide rollout of new directional signage across D.C. Metrorail. The changes are meant to make traveling “clearer and more consistent,” according to Metro’s website.

Exits will no longer be labeled by the street intersections they lead to, but rather a letter — A, B, C, etc. — that corresponds to attractions near each exit, such as the Wharf and the International Spy Museum at L’Enfant. Graphics showing the remaining stops on each line will be taken off the wall of each terminal, relegating full route information to signs on the platform.

The change will make it easier and cheaper to update signs in the future, according to Metro’s website.

But riders pushed back on social media, saying the new signs are less intuitive and make information harder to find.

“It may seem unfamiliar at first glance, but multiple rounds of feedback were considered to finalize this effort. The results are exciting — a clearer set of signs to address navigation decisions at key decision points,” Metro said in a social media post.

Metro did not immediately respond to questions about the new rollout.

Some signs at L’Enfant have already been switched, with the station expected to have completely new placards by the end of October. Within the next six months, five more stations will be updated. Metro’s website said every station will be updated within five years.

Beyond new signage inside the station, the pylons marking Metro train station entrances will ditch the iconic striped top design, opting instead for colored circles denoting rail lines down the side.