L'Enfant Plaza Station - DC Metro
Blue Line, Orange Line, Silver Line, Green Line and Yellow Line - interchange station in Washington, DC.
About L'Enfant Plaza station
No other station in the system touches five lines. L’Enfant Plaza is where the Blue, Orange and Silver Lines cross the Green and Yellow, which makes it the single busiest interchange for anyone moving between the Virginia suburbs, the Maryland side of the Green Line and the federal core. Two levels of platforms stack beneath the office slabs of Southwest Washington, connected by escalators that see relentless traffic at peak hours. Eight street entrances scatter riders across a wide footprint, some of them well inside office buildings. It is also a serious tourist station: the National Mall begins a few blocks north, the Air and Space Museum is close, and commuter rail from Virginia stops right outside.
The area around L'Enfant Plaza
Southwest Washington around the station is federal and institutional – large agency headquarters, a 1960s superblock plaza, and office lobbies rather than storefronts. It empties out sharply after work and on weekends, though the redeveloped waterfront to the south and the museums to the north keep visitors moving through. Most weekday users are federal staff, contractors and Virginia commuters.
What is near L'Enfant Plaza station?
Large independent museum at L'Enfant Plaza with interactive exhibits on intelligence work; ticketed, and busy on weekends.
3 min walkThe Mall flagship for flight and spaceflight; free entry but timed passes are usually required, so book ahead.
6 min walkThe Smithsonian modern and contemporary art museum, easy to spot by its circular concrete drum on the Mall.
7 min walkThe historic red sandstone Smithsonian building and the open green sweep of the Mall running east toward the Capitol.
9 min walkRedeveloped waterfront district on the Washington Channel with restaurants, piers, a concert hall and a working fish market.
11 min walkAdjacent Virginia Railway Express platform, useful for connections to Fredericksburg and Manassas line trains.
3 min walkFirst and last trains at L'Enfant Plaza
Departure times by direction. Which way you are traveling matters – the last train toward one terminal can be an hour before the last train the other way.
| Day | Toward | First | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon-Thu | Downtown Largo | 5:43 am | 12:06 am |
| Mon-Thu | Franconia-Springfield | 5:17 am | 11:47 pm |
| Fri | Downtown Largo | 5:43 am | 2:06 am |
| Fri | Franconia-Springfield | 5:17 am | 1:47 am |
| Sat | Downtown Largo | 6:40 am | 2:05 am |
| Sat | Franconia-Springfield | 6:17 am | 1:45 am |
| Sun | Downtown Largo | 6:43 am | 12:06 am |
| Sun | Franconia-Springfield | 6:17 am | 11:45 pm |
| Day | Toward | First | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon-Thu | New Carrollton | 5:33 am | 12:04 am |
| Mon-Thu | Vienna | 5:22 am | 12:00 am |
| Fri | New Carrollton | 5:33 am | 2:04 am |
| Fri | Vienna | 5:22 am | 2:00 am |
| Sat | New Carrollton | 6:33 am | 2:00 am |
| Sat | Vienna | 6:22 am | 2:00 am |
| Sat | West Falls Church | 10:18 pm | 10:18 pm |
| Sun | New Carrollton | 6:33 am | 12:04 am |
| Sun | Vienna | 6:22 am | 12:00 am |
| Sun | West Falls Church | 10:18 pm | 10:18 pm |
| Day | Toward | First | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon-Thu | Ashburn | 5:25 am | 11:52 pm |
| Mon-Thu | Downtown Largo | 5:37 am | 12:14 am |
| Mon-Thu | New Carrollton | 5:41 am | 11:59 pm |
| Fri | Ashburn | 5:25 am | 1:52 am |
| Fri | Downtown Largo | 5:37 am | 2:14 am |
| Fri | New Carrollton | 5:41 am | 1:59 am |
| Sat | Ashburn | 6:24 am | 1:54 am |
| Sat | Downtown Largo | 6:42 am | 2:14 am |
| Sat | New Carrollton | 6:28 am | 1:55 am |
| Sun | Ashburn | 6:24 am | 11:54 pm |
| Sun | Downtown Largo | 6:41 am | 12:14 am |
| Sun | New Carrollton | 6:29 am | 11:54 pm |
| Day | Toward | First | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon-Thu | Branch Av | 5:28 am | 12:18 am |
| Mon-Thu | Greenbelt | 5:19 am | 12:18 am |
| Fri | Branch Av | 5:28 am | 2:18 am |
| Fri | Greenbelt | 5:19 am | 2:18 am |
| Sat | Branch Av | 6:28 am | 2:18 am |
| Sat | Greenbelt | 6:19 am | 2:18 am |
| Sun | Branch Av | 6:28 am | 12:18 am |
| Sun | Greenbelt | 6:19 am | 12:18 am |
| Day | Toward | First | Last |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon-Thu | Greenbelt | 5:21 am | 11:56 pm |
| Mon-Thu | Huntington | 5:22 am | 12:01 am |
| Mon-Thu | Mt Vernon Sq | 5:33 am | 11:27 pm |
| Fri | Greenbelt | 5:21 am | 1:56 am |
| Fri | Huntington | 5:22 am | 2:01 am |
| Fri | Mt Vernon Sq | 5:33 am | 1:27 am |
| Sat | Greenbelt | 6:21 am | 1:54 am |
| Sat | Huntington | 6:23 am | 2:01 am |
| Sat | Mt Vernon Sq | 6:31 am | 1:27 am |
| Sun | Greenbelt | 6:21 am | 11:56 pm |
| Sun | Huntington | 6:22 am | 12:01 am |
| Sun | Mt Vernon Sq | 6:33 am | 11:28 pm |
Travel times and fares from L'Enfant Plaza
| To | Time | Weekday to 9:30pm | Late night & weekend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metro Center | 5 min | $2.25 | $2.25 |
| Gallery Pl-Chinatown | 3 min | $2.25 | $2.25 |
| Union Station | 12 min | $2.25 | $2.25 |
| Smithsonian | 2 min | $2.25 | $2.25 |
| Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport | 10 min | $2.40 | $2.40 |
| Washington Dulles International Airport | 58 min | $6.75 | $2.50 |
| Pentagon | 5 min | $2.25 | $2.25 |
| Downtown Largo | 24 min | $5.45 | $2.50 |
| Franconia-Springfield | 33 min | $6.75 | $2.50 |
| New Carrollton | 23 min | $5.25 | $2.50 |
Travel times and fares published by WMATA. Fares valid July 2026.
Changing lines at L'Enfant Plaza
1 min away
NEXT · BLUESmithsonian2 min away
PREVIOUS · ORANGEFederal Center SW1 min away
NEXT · ORANGESmithsonian2 min away
PREVIOUS · SILVERFederal Center SW1 min away
NEXT · SILVERSmithsonian2 min away
PREVIOUS · GREENWaterfront2 min away
NEXT · GREENArchives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter2 min away
PREVIOUS · YELLOWPentagon5 min away
NEXT · YELLOWArchives-Navy Memorial-Penn Quarter2 min away
Parking at L'Enfant Plaza
Tips for using L'Enfant Plaza
- Give yourself extra time here: the transfer between the upper and lower platforms involves escalators and a walk, and it is slow when crowds are heavy.
- The Maryland Avenue and 7th Street exits put you closest to the Mall and the museums; the 9th Street and D Street exits are better for the office buildings.
- With eight entrances spread over several blocks, confirm which one you want before you surface rather than after.
L'Enfant Plaza station FAQ
Head for the north side of the station toward 7th Street and Maryland Avenue SW. From there the museum is a straightforward walk of roughly six minutes up 7th Street to Independence Avenue. Signs inside the station point toward the Mall exits, and station staff can confirm which passage is open.
Five – Blue, Orange, Silver, Green and Yellow. It is the only station in the system where all five meet, which is why it is such a heavily used transfer point. The Blue, Orange and Silver share one platform level and the Green and Yellow share the other.
Yes. It is about a ten to twelve minute walk south, crossing over or under the freeway toward Maine Avenue SW. Waterfront station on the Green Line is closer to the western end of The Wharf, so if you are already on a Green Line train it may be simpler to stay on.
It is. The Virginia Railway Express L’Enfant station sits immediately outside, which makes this a common change point for riders coming in from Northern Virginia. Amtrak does not stop here – for that you want Union Station on the Red Line.