What's Open, Closed On Presidents Day In DC 2019

WASHINGTON, DC -- Three cheers for a three-day weekend, as Presidents Day arrives to give us a nice mid-winter break.

The holiday was actually established in 1885 to honor President George Washington. Then, as part of a Uniform Monday Holiday Act that proposed the country celebrate holidays on Mondays rather than the day they fell on the calendar so that workers could have three-day weekends, it was proposed to be changed. That didn't go over so well at first.

During debate on the bill, it was proposed that Washington's Birthday be renamed Presidents Day to celebrate the birthdays of both Washington on Feb. 22 and President Abe Lincoln's birthday on Feb. 12. Congress actually rejected the name change in 1968 version of the bill. But after the bill went into effect in 1971, Presidents Day became the commonly accepted name anyway.

Here's a look at the type of things that are open and closed on Presidents Day, Mon., Feb. 18, 2019 in D.C.:

Government offices: Closed

Schools: Closed (in addition, students will be out the rest of the week)

Libraries: Closed (however, select D.C. public libraries will be open from 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.)

Metro: The following is a WMATA statement on Metro service on President's Day:

Metrorail: The rail system will open at 5 a.m. and close at 11:30 p.m. Off-peak fares will be in effect all day, and parking will be free at all Metro-operated facilities. Customers should be aware of
scheduled track work on the Orange, Silver, Blue, Yellow and Green lines on Monday. Trains will run as follows:

• Red Line trains will operate on a Saturday schedule, every 12 minutes.
• Yellow Line trains will operate on a Saturday schedule, every 12 minutes between Huntington and Reagan National Airport Only.
  • Customers should transfer to the Blue line to continue their trip.
• Green Line trains will operate every 18 minutes, with single tracking between L'Enfant Plaza and Mt Vernon Sq.
• Orange Line trains will operate every 20 minutes. Blue Line trains will operate every 20 minutes, with single tracking between Stadium-Armory and Addison Rd.
• Silver Line trains will operate every 20 minutes between Wiehle-Reston East and New Carrollton

Metrobus: Buses will operate on a Saturday supplemental schedule, with some late-night (post-midnight) trips cancelled on selected routes. For details, please check the timetable for your route.

MetroAccess: Service will operate normal hours. However, subscription trips will be cancelled unless specifically requested. MetroAccess customers whose holiday subscription trips have
been cancelled should use the online booking site or call 301-562-5360 option 1 to make or change a reservation.

In addition, Metro's administrative and customer service offices will be closed Monday in observance of the holiday.

Additional reporting by Patch editor Samantha Mercado

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