Loudoun Gateway station

Loudoun Gateway station is a Washington Metro station in Loudoun County, Virginia, on the Silver Line. It is located at SR 606 (Old Ox Road) in the median of the Dulles Greenway (SR 267). The station opened on November 15, 2022, as the western terminus of the Silver Line. The station has a pedestrian bridge crossing to the north side of SR 267, leading to bus bays, a kiss and ride lot, as well as an expanded 2,750-space parking facility at the Dulles North Transit Center.^[2] It is the least-used station on the system, averaging 317 daily boardings in 2024.

Loudoun Gateway
Loudon Gateway station platform on opening day
General information
Location	22505 Lockridge Road Sterling, Virginia
Coordinates	38°59′34″N 77°27′42″W
Owned by	Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority
Platforms	1 island platform
Tracks	2
Connections	Loudoun County Transit: 333, 381, 382
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Parking	2,000 spaces[1]
Bicycle facilities	113 racks, 10 lockers[1]
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Station code	N11
History
Opened	November 15, 2022 (2022-11-15)
Passengers
2024	317 daily
Rank	98 out of 98
Services
Preceding station Washington Metro Following station Ashburn Terminus Silver Line Dulles International Airport toward Downtown Largo
Route map Dulles Airport Ashburn
Location

History

The Silver Line was developed in the 21st century to link Washington, D.C., by rail to Washington Dulles International Airport and the edge cities of Tysons, Reston, Herndon, and Ashburn.^[3] It was built in two phases; the first phase, linking Washington, D.C., to Wiehle–Reston East, opened in 2014.^[4] The funding and planning of Phase 2 through Dulles Airport continued while Phase 1 was being constructed. In 2012, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors voted 5 to 4 to extend the line to Dulles Airport and into the county.^[5] On April 25, 2013, the Phase 2 contract was issued at a cost of $1.177 billion.^[6]

In April 2015, project officials pushed back the opening date for the station to late 2019, stating that stricter requirements for stormwater management caused much of the delay. Per officials, the line also had to incorporate improvements to the system's automated train controls that were a late addition to the project's first phase.^[7] Around the same time as this announcement, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) approved the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors' name for the stop. The station was previously referred to as Route 606 in planning documents.^[8]

In August 2019, project officials reported that they expected construction on the second phase of the Silver Line to be completed by mid-2020.^[9] The opening date was postponed to early 2021,^[10] then to late 2021.^[11] In February 2021, Metro announced that it would need five months to test the Phase 2 extension.^[12][13] The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) then announced that the Phase 2 extension should be substantially complete by Labor Day 2021,^[14] although MWAA subsequently missed this deadline.^[15]

MWAA declared the work on the rail line to be "substantially complete" in November 2021. However, WMATA estimated that it could take five months of testing and other preparations before passenger service could begin.^[16] Simulated service testing began operating along the Phase 2 tracks in October 2022.^[17][18][19] Phase 2 opened on November 15, 2022.^[20]

By 2024, it was the least-used station on the system with 317 daily riders - barely half that of the second-least-used (Cheverly). Although the station had been intended to support mixed-use transit-oriented development, several factors interfered. The COVID-19 pandemic reduced ridership and development demand, land became more valuable for building data centers than other uses, and a 2012 county zoning rule prohibited residential construction due to the proximity of Dulles Airport.^[21]