A WMATA Metro accident claim is a claim for injuries caused by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which runs Metrorail, Metrobus and MetroAccess, or by its employees and equipment. WMATA is an interstate compact agency: the compact keeps its immunity for governmental functions and allows tort claims for others, so the first question in any Metro case is what WMATA was doing when you were hurt.
Blank Kim Injury Law represents people hurt on Metro in Northern Virginia from our Fairfax office on Chain Bridge Road. This page covers incidents that happen in Virginia; Metro also operates in other jurisdictions, where different rules apply. Attorney Robert Kim speaks Korean, and our paralegal team speaks Spanish.
Metro lines and stations in Northern Virginia
Four Metrorail lines run through Virginia, and Metrobus routes serve much of Arlington, Alexandria and Fairfax County. The Virginia stations riders use every day include:
- Orange Line: Vienna, Dunn Loring, West Falls Church, East Falls Church, Ballston and Rosslyn
- Silver Line: the Tysons stations, Wiehle-Reston East, Reston Town Center, Herndon and Washington Dulles International Airport
- Blue Line: Rosslyn, Arlington Cemetery, the Pentagon, Reagan National Airport and Franconia-Springfield
- Yellow Line: the Pentagon, Reagan National Airport and the Alexandria stations, including King Street and Huntington
Large commuter stations such as Vienna and Franconia-Springfield also have parking garages, bus bays and long pedestrian approaches, each with its own hazards. For commuter rail, see VRE train accident claims.
How people are hurt on Metro
Serious train collisions are rare. Most Metro injuries happen in ordinary moments of a commute:
- Falls on wet or uneven platforms, stairs and mezzanines, especially at outdoor stations in rain, snow and ice
- Escalator and elevator malfunctions, sudden stops and entrapment. See escalator and elevator accident claims.
- Train doors closing on a rider, a bag or a stroller
- Sudden stops or jolts that throw standing passengers
- Gaps between the train and the platform
- Metrobus collisions with cars, bicycles and pedestrians, and passengers hurt when a bus brakes or pulls away
- Assaults on trains, platforms or in station garages where security was lacking. See negligent security claims.
Drivers and pedestrians outside the system can be hurt too, for example by a Metrobus turning through a crosswalk in Rosslyn or Alexandria. See pedestrian accident claims and bus accident claims.
How WMATA’s immunity affects a claim
The WMATA compact divides Metro’s activities into two groups. For governmental functions, WMATA keeps its immunity. For others, it can be held responsible in tort, much like a private company.
Where the line falls depends on the activity. Running and maintaining trains, buses, escalators and stations day to day is a different kind of activity from high-level planning and policy decisions, and the courts treat them differently. Whether a particular injury falls on the claimable side of the line is a legal question we analyze at the start of every Metro case, because it decides whether the claim can proceed at all.
Metro’s contractors are a separate question. A private company that maintains escalators, runs a parking facility or performs construction in a station does not share WMATA’s compact immunity, and a claim against it generally follows ordinary Virginia rules, including the two-year deadline in Va. Code § 8.01-243(A).
Virginia rules that still matter in a Metro case
An injury that happens at a Virginia station or on a Virginia bus route raises Virginia’s injury rules alongside the compact:
- Contributory negligence. Metro and its insurers look closely at the rider’s own conduct: running for a closing door, standing without holding a rail, walking while looking at a phone. See Virginia contributory negligence.
- Deadlines. Do not assume the ordinary two-year rule is the only deadline. WMATA has its own claims process, and we check whether any notice requirement applies to your claim as soon as we are involved.
- Collateral source rule. Payments from your own health insurance generally do not reduce what a responsible party owes.
Our government claim notice guide explains how notice rules work for public bodies in Virginia.
Evidence that matters after a Metro injury
Metro is a heavily recorded system, but recordings are not kept forever. What we act quickly to preserve includes:
- Video. Station, platform, escalator, railcar and bus cameras. A preservation request should go out quickly.
- Incident reports. Reports made by station managers, operators and Metro Transit Police.
- Maintenance records. Escalator and elevator inspection and repair histories, and prior outage or malfunction reports.
- Operational data. Train and bus data showing speed, braking and door operation.
- Your records. Your SmarTrip card history or fare record, which confirms the time and station.
- Witnesses. Other riders, often commuters who can be hard to find later.
If you are able, report the injury to the station manager or operator before leaving, photograph the hazard, and get medical care the same day. Inova Fairfax Medical Campus in Falls Church is the region’s Level I trauma center for the most serious injuries.
How we handle a Metro injury claim
- Free case review. Tell us the station or route, the date and what happened.
- Immunity and defendant analysis. We identify whether WMATA, a contractor or another party is responsible, and on which side of the immunity line the claim falls.
- Preservation. We send preservation requests for video and records before they are overwritten.
- Claim and negotiation. We present the claim with medical records and proof of losses and deal with WMATA’s claims staff.
- Litigation when needed. If the claim is not resolved fairly, we pursue it in the proper court.
You can talk with our team in English, Korean or Spanish. See the full range of personal injury claims we handle across Northern Virginia.
