Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

Old Metro headquarters at the Jackson Graham Building, now replaced by a new location at L'Enfant Plaza[1]
Agency overview
Formed	February 20, 1967; 57 years ago (1967-02-20)
Preceding agency	National Capital Transportation Agency
Type	interstate compact agency
Jurisdiction	Washington, D.C., and parts of Maryland and Northern Virginia, U.S.
Headquarters	300 7th Street SW, Washington, D.C., U.S.
Agency executive	Randy Clarke[2]
Key document	Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Compact
Website	wmata.com

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA /wəˈmɑːtə/ wə-MAH-tə),^[3] commonly referred to as Metro, is a tri-jurisdictional public transit agency that operates transit service in the Washington metropolitan area. WMATA was created by the United States Congress as an interstate compact between Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia.

WMATA provides rapid transit service under the Metrorail name, fixed-route bus service under the Metrobus brand, and paratransit service under the MetroAccess brand. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 239,741,800, or about 871,000 per weekday as of the first quarter of 2024.^[4]

WMATA has its own police force, the Metro Transit Police Department.

The authority's board of directors consists of two voting representatives each from the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and the U.S. federal government. Each jurisdiction also appoints two alternate representatives. WMATA has no independent taxation authority and depends on its member jurisdictions for capital investments and operating funding.

In addition to ongoing operations, WMATA participates in regional transportation planning. Recent projects include an infill station serving Potomac Yard, an extension of Metrorail to Dulles International Airport, and streetcar lines in the District and Northern Virginia.