DC Metro Now

Need to know where the nearest Washington, DC Metro station is? How to get there? What lines it serves and what trains are arriving and departing? Are there any Metro alerts I should know about? Let DC Metro Now be your guide. DC Metro Now offers the same real-time train arrival data and Metro alerts that the WMATA offers trackside and at their website in an iPhone-friendly format.

Each train's posted arrival and departure time is listed in order of arrival time, and the number of cars is also listed. The arrival and departure information refreshes every 60 seconds, and can be manually updated as well. Trains slide into the list as they are posted, and slide off as they depart their stations, making monitoring the real-time data intuitive and useful.

All stations are available by line color, and if you phone has location services turned on, a list of all the stations in order of distance can be brought up. Once you select a station, you can view a map showing your location relative to the station. Clicking on the "detail" icon inside the map, you will be taken to Apple Maps, where directions to the station will be given.

Finally, a scalable, scrollable Metro system map is available for easy reference.

Real-time metro alerts keep you up to date on line delays or other service notices to help smooth your trip. They too update every 60 seconds, and can be manually refreshed. Metro alerts can be pushed to your phone and notify you even when you're not using the app! Set the push alert preferences so that you only receive notifications during your workday, and only for the lines you're interested in. Whether you receive a full notification or not, icon badges indicate how many alerts you haven't seen await you. If you choose not to use push, the badges indicate how many alerts are posted.

Network connection required for real-time train data and location services required for nearest-station information. This app will probably be most useful before you get to a Metro station, but wifi services at stations and trains is becoming more available.

Metro System Map and Metro Real-Time Arrival Data used with permission.