Metro The Metro ( now known as the D . C . Metro Ruins ) is the pre - War rapid transit system of Washington , D . C . and neighboring communities in Maryland and Virginia . The metro was managed by the District of Columbia Transit Authority . The three components of this system are the cars , the stations , and the customers . In 2277 , tunnels can be used to move between the various settlements in the area , although many parts of the tunnels have been taken over by super mutant s , raiders , feral ghoul s , and radroaches . Background . Planning for the metro began in the 1950s as city planners envisioned a line that could rival existing systems in Boston , Philadelphia and even New York . Initially perceived as a threat to the highways , a subway proposal was finally approved during Kennedy ' s administration with construction beginning in 1969 . The original system included stations across the District of Columbia but following the riots of 1968 , city officials rerouted the mid - city line to encourage the rebuilding of areas that were burned out and destroyed . It wasn ' t until 2001 , however , that all of the lines originally approved in 1968 were finally completed . After being in operation for many years , the metro was modernized in the mid - 21st century with the assistance of Vault - Tec and RobCo Industries . The subway tunnels were constructed of more durable material with improved lighting and safety features . Three new routes were added to the metro . These routes are the Blue Line , the Red Line , and the White Line . These lines were built upon existing stations , and new stations were built for expanding the network . The impetus for this expansion is the need for alternate transport in a city witnessing an increase in congestion and pollution from greater car ownership . Metro travel was free on Sundays . During and after the Great War of 2077 , the Metro served as a place of shelter from the nuclear bombardment for many . Stations that were constructed farther away from the city itself , or were situated deeper underground , were less likely to be affected by explosive damage . This gave the assumption that it would serve as a safe home in the post - war years . However what many people either didn ' t think of or thought little about , was the the invisible blanket of death caused by nuclear fallout . Radiation either killed or mutated these early survivors into ghoul s . By the time the Lone Wanderer visits the metro in 2277 however , they find that the stations are much less irradiated , attracting groups of non mutated humans to the well defensible shelters . These groups mostly consist of bandits or super mutants , who conduct hit - and - run attacks on caravans , traders , and individuals . Some groups however , such as the Family , have carved out meek lives in the dark subway , operating on power fed from underground power lines . Metro cars . These cars were introduced with the modernization of the metro . Each car is an independent unit with a passenger compartment that can be connected to another car by a coupling . A specially built car , the engine car , had an engineer ' s compartment placed ahead and above the passenger compartment . At a minimum , the engine car could tow four cars . Most of the cars , save for the engine cars , survived the war . The engine cars were either destroyed completely , or salvaged by later visitors to the metro . It ' s possible that the engine cars were buried in the tunnel collapses . The appearance of engine cars is preserved in advertisements created for the metro . The metro is unlike many real - world subway systems . The use of an ' engine car ' towing non - powered cars is very unusual , most real world versions were phased out as the size of engine motors decreased ( An example of such an engine used on the London Underground still exists ) . Real subways tend to use multiple unit trains where two or more cars are permanently joined , and then assembled into longer trains . Each group of cars has a drivers ' cab at each end , removing the need to detach the engine at the end of the line , turn it around and reconnect it to the front of the train for the return journey While a real subway carries its own engines under each car , it is usually not self - propelled , and instead collects electricity via a third or fourth rail or pantograph and overhead wires . Metro stations . Stations are identified on the surface level by directional signs and obelisks with the metro symbol . The main stations have a grander entrance , with four escalators leading down to the station entrance . Smaller stations have single concrete staircases that lead down to the entrance underneath a curved roof of glass panels , now broken . Double chain - link gates open connect the entrance to the station ' s lobby . Generally , the stations share a similar configuration . They have a lobby where the customers once bought tickets from a metro employee ( " agent " ) in a ticket booth . Restrooms and offices are located off the lobbies . Some lobbies have vending machines . In a few lobbies , there are status displays which show the power status of stations on the three primary lines in Washington , D . C . There is no display for the surrounding communities . Customers would walk down a sloping hallway into the mezzanine . In the mezzanine , customers would present their tickets to turnstiles . ( Some customers might prefer presenting their tickets to the protectron s that patrolled the lobby . ) On the mezzanines , and lower down on the platforms , the customers could rest on benches . On the platforms , accessible by escalators , customers waited for their trains . Station identifying signs are posted on either side of the platforms . Some stations are known by more than one name . For example , one station is known both as Anacostia Crossing station and Eastern Market . Further down , in the subway tunnels , signs identified the line . Metro lines . By 2077 , the Red Line , Blue Line , and White Line were the primary lines for the metro . Red Line . The Red Line consists of six known stations . It was the first line completed in the system . Description . The Red Line was the first line completed . This line serves the central DC area and connects it with the northern and southern suburbs through its north - south orientation . The line serves from Friendship in the north to Anacostia Crossing in the south , and interchanges with the White Line at Metro Central . The line is shown on maps to extend further to the north and south suggesting links to Maryland and Virginia . Trains on this line are serviced from Meresti trainyard in the north . Current status . Like most of the network , the Red Line is not in a serviceable condition due to damage to stations , tunnels , tracks and rolling stock . However all stations appear to be receiving electricity according to control monitors . Blue Line . The Blue Line consists of 9 known stations . It was the second line completed in the system . Description . The Blue Line serves the west of the greater DC area . The line is known to extend from Marigold in the south - west , to as far east as L ' Enfant Plaza , and then north - west to North Potomac . The line is shown to extend beyond these points on DCTA maps , but it is not known if these were in passenger service , links to service depots , or were used for long distance services . The Blue Line does not share any stations with either of the other metro lines ; although the line appears to cross the White line near FDR Island station ( on the blue line ) and Foggy Bottom station ( on the white line ) on the system map , the lines are grade separated , meaning a service linking the lines would not be possible without further construction . Trains on the Blue Line were serviced from Warrington trainyard , which also acted as the lines terminus in Virginia . Current status . Like most DC metro lines , the Blue Line is currently not in a serviceable condition due to damage to stations , tunnels , tracks and rolling stock . However , large parts of the line can be traversed on foot , with the exception of irradiated parts of the line , such as near L ' Enfant plaza and Warrington trainyard , and certain waterlogged sections . Most stations still have access to electricity according to control monitors ; additionally some stations retain their protectron security guards ; however some stations have become home to groups of feral ghouls . White Line . White line . The White Line consists of 8 known stations and was the last line completed in the system . Description . This line extends from Takoma in the north east through the center of the city ( meeting the Red Line at Metro Central ) through to Platz in the west . Although the White and Blue Lines cross , this crossing is on different grades preventing any interchange of services or stations . Like the other lines , the route map appears to extend into Maryland and Virginia . It is not known where trains on this line were serviced . Current status . Like most of the network , the white line is not in a serviceable condition due to damage to stations , tunnels , tracks and rolling stock . However all stations appear to be receiving electricity according to control monitors . Other stations . There are many stations in the Capital Wasteland whose connection to these three lines is not fully understood . This is due to the extensive damage that is visited upon these stations . These stations include the Fairfax Metro station and Bethesda underworks . Other stations had their entrances so completely destroyed that any attempt at locating them is impossible . Metro protectrons . Protectrons are added to the metro in the modernization program . They are programmed for defending the metro from a variety of threats . These machines are usually located in a security office off the station lobby . The Lone Wanderer can activate the robot by hacking into a control terminal . Once the protectron is activated , it will head out to patrol the lobby and attack any target that does not have a valid metro ticket . Fortunately , a ticket can normally be found by searching the desks in the offices . Or one can just blast the protectron after activating it and loot its energy cell . Spatial Orientation issues . The Pip - Boy world map usually indicates where the entrances to metro stations are with a circled - M logo . When one moves the pointer to one , it shows the name of the station . The problem is that the name it shows is often not the same as the name that appears if outside the subway and bringing up the Pip - Boy ' s local map for the area , nor the same as the name gotten for the exit to that station when bringing up the local map while inside the subway . Because of all the interconnections between outside paths and inside subway stations , this name inconsistency adds an additional level of difficulty to getting around in an already difficult situation . To add to the confusion , the distance scale inside a subway is often not the same as outside . For example , in the south - east area of the map , the distance looks pretty significant between the Seward Square station ( near the Ranger compound ) and the Anacostia Crossing ( near Rivet City ) , but what looks like miles can be traversed in a flash simply by entering the station and walking no more than a couple of hundred feet across the subway platform . To adjust for this difference , one gets an anomaly in that when they get to the Anacostia Crossing gate after leaving Seward Square , the world map will show that they are still on the edge of Seward Square , but after exiting the gate , it will show them all the way down at the station by Rivet City . This effect is not limited to subways . At the back door of the GNR building , one gets a different positioning before and after going through the door . One of the worst map glitches may be the Dupont station and Georgetown West Metro station markers . On the world map , the markers overlap with the Dupont station marker being to the left ( west ) , which makes it seem like the DCTA tunnel exit down the stairs from Georgetown West , which is all that shows up on the local map , but if fast traveling to the Dupont station marker , one will end up in a completely different area / local map . Metro connections . While it may appear to be impossible to get very far in the subway tunnels because of all the debris , the fact is that one can get to a remarkable number of locations without ever having to come above ground , and even more when adding in places where one can make short , safe walks above ground from one station ' s exit to another station ' s entrance . Note that with just a couple of short above - ground walks , someone can get all the way from Farragut West ( just across the river from Super - Duper Mart ) to Rivet City ( near the bottom of the map ) and many important places along the way . Notes . On Sundays , all passengers were allowed to ride for free . Appearances . The DC metro appears only in " Fallout 3 " .