Wheaton Station - DC Metro
Red Line - station in Wheaton, MD.
About Wheaton station
Wheaton is best known among Metro riders for one thing: the escalator. The single run from the mezzanine to the platform is the longest in the Western Hemisphere, at roughly 230 feet, and riding it is a genuinely memorable minute or so. Above ground the station serves a Montgomery County community with one of the most interesting restaurant scenes in the region — Wheaton’s small commercial triangle packs in Salvadoran, Peruvian, Ethiopian, Vietnamese and Nepali kitchens in a few blocks. There is a large Metro parking facility for commuters, a shopping mall a short walk away, and a steady flow of local riders heading down the Red Line toward Silver Spring and the District.
The area around Wheaton
Wheaton is a diverse, unpretentious inner suburb north of Silver Spring, centered on a compact commercial triangle at Georgia Avenue and University Boulevard. It is known regionally for its immigrant-run restaurants and small businesses, and for being noticeably cheaper and less polished than Bethesda. Around the core are postwar single-family neighborhoods and apartment blocks. Riders are largely local commuters.
What is near Wheaton station?
A few dense blocks of independent Latin American, East African and Southeast Asian restaurants right by the station.
4 min walkRegional shopping mall with department stores and a cinema, a short walk from the station along Veirs Mill Road.
8 min walkPublic plaza and county building beside the station, used for community events and markets.
2 min walkFirst and last trains at Wheaton
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 | Glenmont | 5:48 am | 12:36 am |
| Mon-Thu | Shady Grove | 5:03 am | 11:39 pm |
| Fri | Glenmont | 5:48 am | 2:36 am |
| Fri | Shady Grove | 5:03 am | 1:39 am |
| Sat | Glenmont | 6:37 am | 2:36 am |
| Sat | Shady Grove | 6:03 am | 1:39 am |
| Sun | Glenmont | 6:37 am | 12:36 am |
| Sun | Shady Grove | 6:03 am | 11:39 pm |
Travel times and fares from Wheaton
| To | Time | Weekday to 9:30pm | Late night & weekend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metro Center | 27 min | $5.75 | $2.50 |
| Gallery Pl-Chinatown | 25 min | $5.65 | $2.50 |
| L'Enfant Plaza | 33 min | $6.10 | $2.50 |
| Union Station | 21 min | $5.50 | $2.50 |
| Smithsonian | 35 min | $6.05 | $2.50 |
| Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport | 43 min | $6.75 | $2.50 |
| Washington Dulles International Airport | 85 min | $6.75 | $2.50 |
| Pentagon | 38 min | $6.75 | $2.50 |
| Shady Grove | 63 min | $6.75 | $2.50 |
| Glenmont | 4 min | $2.25 | $2.25 |
Travel times and fares published by WMATA. Fares valid July 2026.
Changing lines at Wheaton
Wheaton is served by the Red Line only.
Parking at Wheaton
Tips for using Wheaton
- The escalator from the mezzanine to the platform is the longest single-span escalator in the Western Hemisphere — allow about a minute to ride it, and hold the handrail.
- Wheaton Regional Park and Brookside Gardens are a couple of miles east and not a walk from the station; you will need a bus or a car.
- The restaurant cluster in the Wheaton triangle is within a few minutes of the fare gates, which makes this an easy dinner trip from anywhere on the Red Line.
Wheaton station FAQ
Yes. The single escalator run between the mezzanine and the platform is about 230 feet long and is generally cited as the longest single-span escalator in the Western Hemisphere. The ride takes roughly a minute.
Brookside Gardens sits inside Wheaton Regional Park, a couple of miles east of the station — too far to walk comfortably. Take a connecting bus or drive; check current Ride On and Metrobus routes for the most direct option.
Yes, close to a thousand spaces in the Metro parking facility, which makes it a workable park-and-ride for northern Montgomery County. Weekday fees apply; current rates are posted on wmata.com.
The Wheaton commercial triangle just outside the station has an unusually dense concentration of independent restaurants — Salvadoran, Peruvian, Ethiopian, Vietnamese and more — in a small area. It is one of the reasons people ride out here from elsewhere on the Red Line.