Federal Triangle is an

island-platform An island platform (also center platform, centre platform) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange. Island platforms are popular on ...

Washington Metro The Washington Metro (or simply Metro), formally the Metrorail,Google Books search/preview

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

in Washington, D.C., United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). Providing service for the Blue, Orange, and Silver Lines, the station's entrance is beneath the William Jefferson Clinton Federal Building.

History

The station opened on July 1, 1977. Its opening coincided with the completion of of rail between National Airport and

RFK Stadium Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, commonly known as RFK Stadium and originally known as District of Columbia Stadium, is a defunct multi-purpose stadium in Washington, D.C. It is located about due east of the U.S. Capitol building, near the w ...

and the opening of the Arlington Cemetery, Capitol South, Crystal City, Eastern Market,

Farragut West Farragut West is a side-platformed Washington Metro station in Downtown Washington, D.C., United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). Providing service ...

, Federal Center SW, Foggy Bottom–GWU, L'Enfant Plaza, McPherson Square, National Airport,

Pentagon In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple pentagon is 540°. A pentagon may be simpl ...

, Pentagon City, Potomac Avenue, Rosslyn, Smithsonian, and Stadium–Armory stations. Orange Line service to the station began upon the line's opening on November 20, 1978. Silver Line service at Federal Triangle began on July 26, 2014. On January 13, 1982, an eastbound Metro train on the Orange Line derailed just east of the station resulting in three fatalities, the first fatalities in the system's history. From March 26, 2020 until June 28, 2020, this station was closed due to the

2020 coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. Between January 15 to January 21, 2021, this station was closed because of security concerns due to the 2021 Inauguration.

Location

The station serves an area of Washington crowded with federal buildings, on 12th Street between Pennsylvania Avenue NW and Constitution Avenue NW, including the triangular area formed by 15th Street, Constitution, and Pennsylvania known as

Federal Triangle The Federal Triangle is a triangular area in Washington, D.C. formed by 15th Street NW, Constitution Avenue NW, Pennsylvania Avenue NW, and E Street NW. Federal Triangle is occupied by 10 large city and federal office buildings, all of which are ...

, from which the station takes its name. The triangle includes such federal buildings as the

Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building The Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building is the headquarters of the United States Department of Justice. The building is located at 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, on a trapezoidal lot on the block bounded by Pennsylvania Avenue to the ...

, the

Herbert C. Hoover Building The Herbert C. Hoover Building is the Washington, D.C. headquarters of the United States Department of Commerce. The building is located at 1401 Constitution Avenue, Northwest, Washington, D.C., on the block bounded by Constitution Avenue NW t ...

(

Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an executive department of the U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth and opportunity. Among its tasks are gathering economic and demographic data for bu ...

), and the buildings of the

Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory ta ...

and the

Environmental Protection Agency A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

Station layout

Federal Triangle utilizes the simple island platform layout. There are two tracks: track D1 is used for trains bound for New Carrollton and Largo Town Center, and track D2 is used for trains going to Vienna, Wiehle–Weston East and Franconia–Springfield. As with all stations on the Metro, there are platform edge lights to warn passengers of incoming trains. In 2008, WMATA installed red-colored LED lights at Federal Triangle and centrally-located stations after a successful pilot at Gallery Place-Chinatown. There is a coffered barrel-vault ceiling at Federal Triangle, as is typical of other Washington Metro stations built at that time. There is only one entrance to the platform level, located slightly south of the center of the platform. Escalators from this mezzanine level lead to the plaza of the William Jefferson Clinton Federal Building. A flat square on the ceiling of the station denotes a possible second entrance to the station; this has yet to be used. Similar walls can be found at stations such as Archives–Navy Memorial–Penn Quarter.

In popular culture

The station was featured in the 2007 film Breach.

Notable places nearby

* Several

federal government A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

buildings in and near the

** William Jefferson Clinton Federal Building ( United States Environmental Protection Agency headquarters ***

Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium The Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium (originally named the Departmental Auditorium) is a 750-seat historic Neoclassical auditorium located at 1301 Constitution Avenue NW in Washington, D.C. The auditorium, which connects two wings of the William Jeffer ...

( Department of Justice headquarters) **

(

headquarters) *** National Aquarium in Washington, D.C. *** White House Visitor Center **

J. Edgar Hoover Building The J. Edgar Hoover Building is a low-rise office building located at 935 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., in the United States. It is the headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Planning for the building began in ...

(

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

headquarters) ** Old Post Office (Waldorf=Astoria Hotel) **

Ronald Reagan Building The Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, named after former United States President Ronald Reagan, is located in downtown Washington, D.C., and was the first federal building in Washington designed for both governmental and priva ...

and International Trade Center * Freedom Plaza * National World War I Memorial *

National Mall The National Mall is a Landscape architecture, landscaped park near the Downtown, Washington, D.C., downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. It contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institut ...

** Several Smithsonian Institution museums on the Mall, including the

National Museum of American History The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...

and National Museum of Natural History

References

External links

* The Schumin Web Transit Center
Federal Triangle Station

12th Street entrance from Google Maps Street View
{{Washington Metro stations navbox Stations on the Blue Line (Washington Metro) Federal Triangle Stations on the Orange Line (Washington Metro) Stations on the Silver Line (Washington Metro) Washington Metro stations in Washington, D.C. Railway stations in the United States opened in 1977 1977 establishments in Washington, D.C. Railway stations located underground in Washington, D.C. Washington Metro stations located underground