Capitol South is an island platform

Island platform

An island platform is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange...

ed Washington Metro

Washington Metro

The Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...

 station

Metro station

A metro station or subway station is a railway station for a rapid transit system, often known by names such as "metro", "underground" and "subway". It is often underground or elevated. At crossings of metro lines, they are multi-level....

 in the Capitol Hill

Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.

Capitol Hill, aside from being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues...

 neighborhood of Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority is a tri-jurisdictional government agency that operates transit service in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, including the Metrorail, Metrobus and MetroAccess...

 (WMATA). Providing service for both the Blue

Blue Line (Washington Metro)

The Blue Line of the Washington Metro in the United States consists of 27 rapid transit stations from Franconia–Springfield to Largo Town Center. It has stations in Fairfax County, Alexandria and Arlington, Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Prince George's County, Maryland...

 and Orange

Orange Line (Washington Metro)

The Orange Line of the Washington Metro consists of 26 rapid transit stations from Vienna to New Carrollton. It has stations in Fairfax County and Arlington, Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Prince George's County, Maryland. Half of the line's stations are shared with the Blue Line, and over...

 Lines, the station is also scheduled to be on the Silver Line

Silver Line (Washington Metro)

The Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project, formally dubbed the Silver Line, is an extension of the Washington Metro rapid transit system, currently under construction with the goal of providing rapid transit service to Dulles International Airport and Tysons Corner...

 route, which is expected to start operations in 2013.

The station opened on July 1, 1977. Its opening coincided with the completion of 11.8 miles (19 km) of rail between National Airport

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a public airport located south of downtown Washington, D.C., in Arlington County, Virginia. It is the commercial airport nearest to Washington, D.C. For many decades, it was called Washington National Airport, but this airport was renamed in 1998 to...

 and RFK Stadium

Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium

Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium, in Washington, D.C., United States, and the current home of MLS's D.C. United....

 and the opening of the Arlington Cemetery

Arlington Cemetery (Washington Metro)

Arlington Cemetery is a side platformed Washington Metro station in Arlington, Virginia, United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority . The station provides service for only the Blue Line, and is located at the entrance...

, Crystal City

Crystal City (Washington Metro)

Crystal City is a side platformed Washington Metro station in the Crystal City neighborhood of Arlington, Virginia, United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority...

, Eastern Market

Eastern Market (Washington Metro)

Eastern Market is an island platformed Washington Metro station in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, D.C., United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority...

, Farragut West

Farragut West (Washington Metro)

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...

, Federal Center SW

Federal Center SW (Washington Metro)

Federal Center SW is an island platformed Washington Metro station in an area of Southwest known as the Southwest Federal Center in Washington, D.C., United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority...

, Federal Triangle

Federal Triangle (Washington Metro)

Federal Triangle is an island 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 . Providing service for both the Blue and Orange Lines, the station's entrance...

, Foggy Bottom–GWU, L'Enfant Plaza

L'Enfant Plaza (Washington Metro)

L'Enfant Plaza is a Washington Metro station in the Southwest Federal Center neighborhood of Washington, D.C., United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority...

, McPherson Square

McPherson Square (Washington Metro)

McPherson Square 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...

, National Airport

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (Washington Metro)

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a Washington Metro station in Arlington, Virginia on the Blue and Yellow Lines. The station platform is elevated and covered and is the last above ground station on the Yellow Line in Virginia, heading into Washington, D.C...

, Pentagon

Pentagon (Washington Metro)

Pentagon is a split platformed Washington Metro station located adjacent to The Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority...

, Pentagon City

Pentagon City (Washington Metro)

Pentagon City is a side platformed Washington Metro station in the Pentagon City neighborhood of Arlington, Virginia, United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority...

, Potomac Avenue

Potomac Avenue (Washington Metro)

Potomac Ave is an island platformed Washington Metro station in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Southeast Washington, D.C., United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority...

, Rosslyn

Rosslyn (Washington Metro)

Rosslyn is a rapid transit station on the Blue and Orange Lines of the Washington Metro in the Rosslyn neighborhood of Arlington, Virginia. One of three interchange points on the Metrorail system west of the Potomac River and located in a growing business district, Rosslyn is the busiest station...

, Smithsonian

Smithsonian (Washington Metro)

Smithsonian is a side platformed Washington Metro station at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. The station was opened on July 1, 1977, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority...

 and Stadium–Armory stations. Orange Line service to the station began upon the line's opening on November 20, 1978.

Location

Capitol South is located in the south-central section of the Capitol Hill

Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.

Capitol Hill, aside from being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues...

 neighborhood of Washington, D.C. As such, it is surrounded by a wealth of government offices and buildings. Most importantly, it is the closest station to the Capitol Building

United States Capitol

The United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...

 which holds the Senate

United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 and House of Representatives

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

. All three buildings of the Library of Congress

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...

 are within a quarter-of-a-mile radius of Capitol South as are the Democratic National Committee

Democratic National Committee

The Democratic National Committee is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day to day basis. While it is responsible for overseeing the process of writing a platform every four years, the DNC's central focus is on campaign and political activity in support...

 and Republican National Committee

Republican National Committee

The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...

 headquarters. The Folger Shakespeare Library

Folger Shakespeare Library

The Folger Shakespeare Library is an independent research library on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., in the United States. It has the world's largest collection of the printed works of William Shakespeare, and is a primary repository for rare materials from the early modern period...

, the world's largest collection of printed Shakespearean

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...

 works is a five minute walk west from the station.

Station layout

There is only one entrance to the station located on the southwestern corner at the intersection of 1st Street SE and C Street SE. A row of three escalators and a staircase brings passengers to a mezzanine level where they may buy tickets from vending machines and pass through faregates. Once passengers pass through these faregates, a pair of escalators brings passengers onto the platform. There are two elevators for handicapped passengers, one from street level to the mezzanine on the northwestern corner at the intersection of 1st Street SE and D Street SE and another between the mezzanine and platform.

Capitol South station utilises an island platform layout with two tracks, D1 and D2. Eastbound trains to New Carrollton

New Carrollton (Washington Metro)

New Carrollton rail station is a joint Washington Metro, MARC, and Amtrak station in New Carrollton, Prince George's County, Maryland at the eastern end of the Orange Line and planned Purple Line, and adjacent to the Capital Beltway. The Amtrak waiting room is located beneath the Metro station...

 or Largo Town Center

Largo Town Center (Washington Metro)

Largo Town Center is an island platformed Washington Metro station in Largo, Maryland, United States. The station was opened on December 18, 2004, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority . Providing service for the Blue Line, it is the eastern terminus of the Blue...

 use track D1 whilst westbound trains to Vienna or Franconia–Springfield use track D2.

External links

• WMATA: Capitol South Station
• StationMasters Online: Capitol South Station
• The Schumin Web Transit Center: Capitol South Station
• 1st Street entrance from Google Maps Street View