West Falls Church Metro. (Photo: Wikipedia)

Starting next month, the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority plans to make significant cuts to parking at Falls Church metro stations for nearly the rest of the year, just a week after it was announced three stations were closing and reducing Orange line service for the summer.

According to a press release, the transit authority will close surface parking lots at both East Falls Church and West Falls Church — and at Vienna — metro stations for seven to nine months starting Sunday, March 15. The closures will mean parking at West Falls Church will be reduced by 50 percent, 10 percent at Vienna and East Falls Church will lose all its 422 daily parking spaces.

The parking garage will remain fully open at the West Falls Church station, however, WMATA forecasts that the garage will be full before 7 a.m.

The Kiss and Ride lot will stay open at the East Falls Church station for pick-up and drop-off only.

Both stations’ surface lots will be used as staging areas for the heavy equipment required to complete the platform repairs taking place from May 23 through Sept. 7.

WMATA warns that vehicles parked in the lots at 12:01 a.m. on March 15 may be subjected to towing.

Other Orange Line stations undergoing repairs at Vienna and Dunn Loring will face lesser cuts to their parking.

The Vienna station’s Parking Lot 1 will be temporarily closed, but its garages and other surface lot will remain open. The Dunn Loring station will experience no parking cuts.

Representatives of WMATA reported to the F.C. City Council at its work session earlier this month that the East Falls Church, Vienna and Dunn Loring stations will be closed to the public between May 23 and Sept. 7 this summer as part of the system’s platform repair and upgrade program.