. >>> two of the three escalators at wheaton station are off line. one is closed for rehabilitation and another is broken. a recent audit outlined a host of problems, including a lack of proper training for mechanics. the escalator between the mezzanine and the platform should be running again by friday. wheaton's escalators are the longest in the western hemisphere. >>> coming up next, howard and the forecast. >>> gorgeous now. if you are going to be outside today no problems. outside tomorrow is a different story. i'll exmaybe plain when nine -- i will explain when 9 news now returns. bob ehrlich says he wants to fix maryland. but he increased state spending by record amounts. ehrlich raised $3 billion in taxes and fees... including property taxes... and a 40% increase in college tuition. and now he's made over $1 billion in new promises... with no plans to pay for them... except for cutting education. cuts that will lay off teachers and increase class sizes. that's not a budget. and bob ehrlich's not the kind of leader... we can trust. >>> a littl

. >> reporter: there are three escalators at the wheaton station. one is closed for rehab and another is broken. metro says these escalators are the long nest the western hemisphere. >>> driving through tysons corner just got longer by 20 minutes to be exact. vdot has begun major change traffic changes which are expected to last two years. we look at the good, bad and the ugly of the new construction. >> reporter: the sights and sounds of progress. >> it will take time and part of the time is pain. >> reporter: starting tonight 495 north off of 128 will be shut down for the next 18 to 24 months. instead drivers will have to merge over to the far two left lanes where they will hit a set of traffic lights. at the green arrow they will loop back on to 495 north. the new pattern allows crews to work on the beltway hot lanes. four additional loo lanes for high occupancy lanes. demo is slated for friday forcing a weekend only shut down of 123. >> we will have a bridge across here. >> this will be a new bridge. thereby one of the hot lane entrances in to t

. >> reporter: yeah, there are three escalators at the wheaton station. one of them are closed for rehab. another one is broken. and metro says that these escalators are the longest in the western hemisphere. >>> while filming a transformers 3 is set to roll tonight. involving the film's bumblebee car and the dc police suv. no one seriously hurt. but it prompted police to take a look at their safety procedures when it comes to police vehicles, driving onto roads that have been closed for special purposes. and that was the case yesterday. the crash remains under investigation. >>> a popular bar near the university of maryland is now in the cross hairs of authorities who say it should be shut down in the wake of the stabbing involving several students last night. and the fite started inside the thirsty turtle on baltimore avenue, moving inside, where three underage fraternity members and another man were stabbed. a fifth man seen in this photo is being sought as a suspect. he is six feet two with a black mohawk haircut. >> a hearing with the county board of

. >> reporter: there are three escalators at the wheaton station. one is closed for rehab and another is broken. metro says the escalators are the longest in the western hemisphere. >>> another big breakup in hollywood. that's coming up in entertainment news. >>> with less than three weeks until the november elections, the democratic party unleashes the not so secret weapon, first lady michelle obama. we all love a bargain, and coming up, i'm revealing the secrets of a super shopper. how to get the deepest discounts and money back at your favorite stores. you are watching 9 news now. [ music throughout ] [ male announcer ] looking for a complete picture of your money? meet pnc virtual wallet. it comes with a calendar that shows you all your finances at once. it lets you know when your money's going out. and when it's coming in. it even tells you when you're running low. we call that danger days. it's built to help you see your money in a whole new light. experience everything virtual wallet has to offer at pncvirtualwallet.com. pnc. for the achiever

. >>> the wear on metro well that on the wheaton station the entrance escalators are out of service. they have a shuttle established for you this morning. when you hit the road, you'll find a long ride on 270, on the toll road and off the green with an accident before and after the toll plaza on the shoulder. in and out of baltimore has slowed traffic on the baltimore- washington parkway. 66 and 95 are pretty saturated this morning. we will take you live to a picture so you can see the pace of the traffic. northbound out of springfield has delayed the goal all the way to the 14th street bridge. >>> we will go to the rooftop in an hour -- with our hd camera. it has been a nice morning with some areas of clouds overhead but it is mild again. 62 degrees in arlington. average height is 69 today and we will be in the low 80's this afternoon with a slight chance of late day storms and cooler tomorrow with the best chance of rain coming thursday. have a heads up for drivers and tysons corner. the ramp from when a 23 is now closed. -- 123 is now closed. drivers should add at least 20 minutes

. >> reporter: just last month, all the escalators were out at the wheaton metro station and forced a shut-down. for rider advocates, there's also a reality about the aging system. >> metro's escalators take a lot more wear and tear than escalators say in a mall or any other escalator. there are people going up and down them all the time. >> reporter: roby chavez, fox5 news. >> safety findings were immediately addressed. 11 new mechanics that graduated in september will be on the job soon. metro has started hiring supervisors to oversee escalator and elevator repairs. >>> sex education in schools has always been a controversial topic from how early too early to educate kids and what topics should and should not be discussed. a recent study identified metro teen aid, a group dedicated to fight aids. they asked seventh graders like, how sure are you you can put a condom on yourself or a partner. how sure are you you can recognize the symptoms of an std. in the past 30 days, how many times have you used marijuana. adam center joins us now. adam thanks for joining us. your survey has been

. >> reporter: just last mark all of the escalators an elevators were out at the wheaton metro station. there is also one reality about the aging system. >> the metro escalators take a lot more wear and tear than let's say in a mall. there are people going up and down them all the time every day. >> reporter: robey >> reporter: roby chavez, fox 5 news. >>> let's take a live picture at the mine in chile. this is the seventh miner coming up. they are bringing the miners that are the most physically fit up to the surface first. if there are any problems, they would be able to handle it. they would also be able to let the rescuers know what else is happening should they need to make adjustments as they bring others up. we mentioned that they would bring the most physically fit up first. then they would go to miners who may be sphruferg some type of illness or -- who may be such suffering some type of illness or other issue. we understand that this is a man who has diabetes. he would be the first one with any type of medical condition able to to be brought up to the surface. you see the res

and the escalators at the wheaton station metro's red line are not working. pat? >>> all right. thanks a lot, jerry. coming up on nbc 4, diabetesesting? it's all the same. nothing changes. [ man ] then try this. new and improved freestyle lite® blood glucose test strip. sure, but it's not gonna -- [ beep ] wow. [ man ]eah, at's the patented freestyle zipwik™ design. [ woman ] did it just -- target the blood? target the blood? yeah, it drew it right in. the test starts fast. you need just a third the blood ofnetouch®. that is different. so freestyle lite test strips me testing... [ man ] easy? easy. [ man ] great. call or click -- we'll send you strips and a meter, free. free is good. [ man ] freestyle lite test strips. call or click today. >>> 7:30 now on a tuesday morning, the 12th of october, 2010. it was a rainy night, wild weather in the northeast. hopefully it's nice where you're waking up. nice to have this group of people outsi on our plaza. we'll say hi to them in just a couple of minutes. inside studio 1a. coming up, were some college students intentionally drugged

. >> i'm lindsey mastis in the wheaton metro. the escalators are broken and the commuters are having to walk. >> you're getting a good workout. that was a long escalator. >> reporter: this isn't the only metro station affected. an independent audit found serious problems with metro's escalators and elevators. detailing problems that include failure to clean and adjust the switches. they are making their way into the machine room and work areas. mechanics need more training and there is a shortage of supervisors. riders say they just want the problem fixed. >> they need to do better. this is uncalled for. i think they should get these fixed as soon as possible. >> only one is working. maintenance crews are hoping to get the other up and running by tonight or tomorrow morning. >> and we are looking live right now on the flip screen rather at the scene in chile, where those 33 trapped miners will be hoisted to the surface. and the rescue capsule you see right there, they will come up one by one. just keep in mind when we first began

. >>> lindsey mastis joins us live from the wheaton metro where they are out, lindsay? >> we have a ride going on all day. you know, this is one of the busiest metro stations that people are getting off their buses. they are walking up and realizing that the escalators are not working as normal. basically right now what they have done to make things a little easier for the commute at this time, that if you want to get down to the metro that you would take an elevator. they would have one escalator that goes up only. but that's not the way that it was for most of the day. >> everybody is getting a good workout. >> i'm out of breath. i was along yesterday. >> reporter: they say it's the longest escalator in the western hemisphere. >> now you tell me. >> reporter: when it doesn't work, there are a lot of moans and growns. >> you're scared to run. >> this escalator is being reshaped. it won't be ready until february of next year. meaning when one of these escalators go out, everything has to stop. lots of people crowd into the elevators. >> that is still high. how do you th