The Washington, D.C. Metro Shuts Down For Electrical Checks

Published March 16, 2016 at 1:33 PM EDT

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The locked gates of the New Carrollton Metro Station are seen in New Carrollton, Maryland on March 16, 2016, after the DC Metro system closed for 24 hours for maintenance.
Washington's Metro train system is shut down all day for emergency inspections after an electrical fire in a tunnel, transport chiefs said, in an unprecedented move that threatens to cause mass disruption in the US capital. (JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images) — The locked gates of the New Carrollton Metro Station are seen in New Carrollton, Maryland on March 16, 2016, after the DC Metro system closed for 24 hours for maintenance. Washington's Metro train system is shut down all day for emergency inspections after an electrical fire in a tunnel, transport chiefs said, in an unprecedented move that threatens to cause mass disruption in the US capital. (JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images)

Hundreds of thousands of commuters in the Washington D.C. area had to rely on alternative transportation today after the closure of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

WMATA officials decided to close the system for the day to conduct an emergency inspection of electrical cables, following recent fires.

Here & Now’s Jeremy Hobson speaks with Martin Di Caro, transportation reporter for Here & Now contributor station WAMU, about the closure of Metro.

Guest

Martin Di Caro, transportation reporter for WAMU. He tweets @MartinDiCaro.