Transportation

GETTING TO AND FROM THE DEDICATION CEREMONY

The Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial is located on the north-west corner of the Tidal Basin just north of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial and across Independence Avenue from the Lincoln Memorial.  In anticipation of large crowds, below are suggestions for reaching the dedication site.

Walk

The memorial is a short walk from downtown D.C. and the National Mall.  Attendees staying in the downtown area and in close proximity to the mall should walk or use public transportation or taxi to get as close to the memorial site as street closures permit.  Walking distance from the Washington Convention Center is approximately 2.5 miles. Download this brochure with walking directions to the Dedication Ceremony.

Metro

The Metro subway system is easily accessible from many areas in D.C., VA and MD. Attendees are encouraged to arrive early to avoid crowds. The Metrorail system opens at 5:00AM on the morning of Dedication. Please visit the Metro website at www.wmata.com for details concerning the opening of a specific station and the travel time to your suggested destination. For walking directions from the Metro station, download this brochure.

Due to the possibility of extremely crowded conditions and limited capacity at all stations servicing the Official Dedication Ceremony, we advise you to use the following stations when arriving to or leaving from the memorial site:

Arriving from Stations for access to the Official Dedication Ceremony
Virginia (south): Franconia-Springfield (BLUE LINE) / Huntington (YELLOW LINE) Arlington Cemetery
Virginia (west): Vienna (ORANGE LINE) Farragut West
Maryland (east): New Carrollton (ORANGE LINE) / Largo Town Center (BLUE LINE) Farragut West
Maryland (north/south): Greenbelt or Branch Avenue (GREEN LINE) L’Enfant Plaza
Maryland (north): Shady Grove or Glenmont (RED LINE) Farragut North

TIPS for Metrorail Riders:

  • August in Washington DC can be very hot and humid. Dress appropriately.
  • Wear comfortable shoes.
  • Each passenger must have his/her own fare card or SmarTrip card.
  • Purchase a One-Day Pass or be sure to have enough fare value on their SmarTrip cards or farecards to make a round trip so as not to have to stand in line to add fare more than once.
    One-day passes: $9.00 Pass is valid for one day of unlimited Metrorail travel on weekdays after 9:30 a.m. or all day on Saturdays, Sundays, and some federal holidays. Pass expires at the end of the operating day: 3 a.m. on weekends, midnight on weeknights.
  • MLK Commemorative Metrorail One Day Pass - A Limited-Edition paper pass to commemorate the dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. Valid for one day of unlimited Metrorail travel on weekdays after 9:30 a.m. or all day Saturdays, Sundays or federal holidays. The pass expires at 4:00 a.m. on the day following first day of use.
  • Do not bring large coolers, signs or chairs. Trains will be very crowded and you will be carrying your items over a mile to and from the memorial site.
  • Identify multiple routes to the memorial site in case the station you were planning to use is inaccessible. Trains may not stop at a station that is too crowded. The Smithsonian Metrorail station on the National Mall can become overcrowded on a typical summer weekend and trains may bypass the station. The escalators at the Foggy Bottom station are undergoing an extensive replacement project and access to the station is affected.