Here are the answers to whichWMATA week 61

On Monday, we posted our sixty-first photo challenge to see how well you know Metro. Reader Mr. Johnson took photos of five Metro stations. Here are the answers. How well did you do?

This week, we got 46 guesses. Eight got all five. Great, work, JamesDCane, Peter K, Andrew, Russell Harris, RyanS, MB, FN, and cythrosi!

This week was a themed week. Each of the stations has a state in its name.

The first image shows the platform at Minnesota Avenue. One clue is the wooden surface, which is present while Metro replaces the platform. Another way to narrow this down is the presence of the freight tracks on the left and the catenary supports on the right. Only two stations have that setup, the other being Deanwood.

You can narrow this one down to Minnesota Avenue because the tracks rise in the distance in order to climb over DC 295 and meet the Blue and Silver Lines.

Thirty-three got this one.

The second picture is of Rhode Island Avenue, looking north. The view from here is distinctive because of the station’s height above the surrounding terrain. At left, you can see the Metropolitan Branch where it crosses under Franklin Street.

Thirty-five knew this one.

The third image is from College Park, which is appended with the name of the University of Maryland. At left, you can see the College Park Post Office. Another clue to help you figure this one out are the railroad tracks in the foreground, which carry MARC’s Camden Line.

Forty guessed correctly.

This image shows the mezzanine at Georgia Avenue. From the ceiling, you can narrow this down to one of the five arch II stations.

It can’t be Columbia Heights, since the coffers at that station are very shallow. You can also rule out Glenmont and Congress Heights because they’re only served by one line, and this picture shows several line bullets.

Of the remaining two possibilities, it can’t be Mount Vernon Square because the end of the mezzanine there has a stair and escalator rather than a pair of escalators. Therefore, this has to be Georgia Avenue.

Fourteen figured this one out.

This is Virginia Square. This one was a bit harder, though the process of elimination should’ve helped you figure it out. First, this is a side platform station, which narrows the field considerably. The waffle architecture and side platforms means this can only be one of nine stations.

You can also see that there’s only one mezzanine, which cuts the field to five. At right, you can just see the Blue and Silver lines on the sign, indicating that this is an eastbound platform. Since WMATA’s new signage includes lines that share later on, all the Orange/Silver and Blue/Yellow stations show the Blue/Silver interlining, too.

It can’t be Ballston, Pentagon City, or Crystal City because those mezzanines each have three pairs of escalators, instead of just two. You can rule out Clarendon because the bridge from the mezzanine to the vault wall is over the Largo/New Carrollton track. At Clarendon, it’s above the Vienna/Wiehle track. So this must be Virginia Square.

Thirty-three guessed Virginia Square.

Next Monday we’ll have five more photos for you to identify. Thanks for playing! And a special thanks to Mr. Johnson for supplying the photos this week.

If you have pictures you think would be good fits for whichWMATA, please send them to whichwmata@ggwash.org.