Metrorail will be opening earlier and closing later on weekends this summer as part of service improvements built into the new Metro budget approved Thursday.

Fares won’t increase despite the hour expansion, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority said in a release.

Starting on June 22, Metrorail will open at 6 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, an hour earlier than the current time, and will close at 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, an hour later than usual.

Plus, more trains will roll on certain lines during peak hours. On the Red Line, trains will run every four minutes, instead of five, during the busiest times.

On the Silver Line, additional trains will run from Wiehle-Reston East to New Carrollton during morning rush hour, while additional trains will go from Stadium-Armory to Wiehle-Reston East during afternoon rush hour.

In addition, Silver Line service will be split into two patterns, with half of its trains running from Ashburn to Downtown Largo, and the other half between Ashburn and New Carrollton. An extension of Yellow Line service, with half its trains running from Huntington to Mount Vernon Square and the other half from Huntington to Greenbelt, is planned for December.

For Metrobus riders, starting on June 29 WMATA will be implementing its “Better Bus Network” redesign, which includes 11 new routes with service every 12 to 20 minutes, the elimination of 500 underused bus stops, renaming of routes with more easily understood designations, and new connections to Potomac Yard in Virginia and National Harbor in Maryland.

The Metro Board of Directors approved a nearly $5 billion budget, with just over half of it dedicated to operations and the remainder for repairs, equipment replacement and other capital expenditures. The inflow of money comes on the heels of years of rising ridership.

“We’ve now accomplished 48 months of ridership growth with continued increases to service and continuous improvements for customers. I want to thank our Board of Directors for their support of this budget and our jurisdictional partners,” Metro CEO Randy Clarke said in the WMATA release.

• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.