Traveling Question - Washington DC Area

[scgstuff]

I sometimes travel to the Washington DC area for work. I always fly into Reagan National Airport because it is on a METRO line, so I don't need to rent a car. My hotel is usually in Rosslyn which is in Arlington, VA and on the METRO line also. Would there me any reason I could not fly with checked firearms and take them on the METRO to the hotel? I know that in DC, it seems this is a no-no, but I do not officially travel in DC and Virginia has reciprocity with Texas, so it seems I should be OK as long as I stay in Virginia. But, 2 of the METRO stops are at the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery. The stations' addresses both list them as Virginia, however. Didn't know if we might have some educated people on here that could offer some assistance.

The NRA HQ Firing Range is there, and I would like to go shooting with some of the people I work with.

The only thing I found on the METRO site is if they search bags, then they will follow whichever state law prevails where the station is located.

 

[TXARGUY]

I'm in the DC area several times a year with work. Because I'm in the commonwealth so much I always err on the "safe" side and leave my hardware at home.
I didn't realize that the NRA range was there. I may have to book a hotel in Pentagon City or Arlington, VA next time.

 

[Bithabus]

The only thing I found on the METRO site is if they search bags, then they will follow whichever state law prevails where the station is located.

This doesn't sound good. Fed law is supposed to protect travelers, but I would not want LE in DC to find me with a handgun.

 

[majormadmax]

I would not take a firearm into the District of Columbia....

 

[scgstuff]

I will be at the edge, but not in DC. It's just the METRO that worried me the most.

 

[TXARGUY]

I said Commonwealth. I meant District. If you are not going to take it into DC you should be fine. You might want to call your hotel and see if your room will have a safe so you'll have a secure place to leave it while you are out running around.

 

[recoveringyankee]

Both The Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery are in the state of Virginia, the Washington DC border with Virginia is the Potomac River. I do not know if the Pentagon station is actually IN the pentagon possibly haveing it's own restrictions. Remember these two items, if you accidently do either of the following, the next station you get to will be in DC.

1. Being on the blue line going north and "missing" the Rosslyn station, next station is Foggy Botton.
2. Being on the Yellow line north of the Pentagon station, next stop is L'Enfant(frenchy name) Plaza.

 

[benenglish]

Keep in mind that DC area METRO stations are occasionally used as TSA testing facilities. They'll set up, take over, and run security as if it were an airport, complete with whatever new toys they want to test. IIRC, this most commonly occurs at the Crystal City station, the one just west of Reagan, and they're not nice about it in the least. Once you get in there and you realize the station is on temporary high-security procedures, you can't back out, you can't argue, and if they find anything they don't like, you won't beat the ride.

TSA has stated repeatedly that they want to control rail security across the country and the DC stations are where they do their testing.