WMATA: One-third of Nats fans took Metro after Thursday night's game

It is a truth almost universally acknowledged that the Metro, for all its flaws and aggravations (and there are many), is still the best way to get to and from Nationals Park. (Unless, of course, you like sitting in traffic. And it's cool if you do. No one's here to judge.)

In the aftermath of Thursday's dramatic 2-1 win in Game 4 of the National League Division Series, WMATA's PlanIt Metro (geddit?) blog released some ridership data for the hours after the game. And away we go:

The total number of game-related entries to the Navy Yard-Ballpark station from 7 p.m. to midnight was 12,835 ... Of course, not all Nats fans enter the system at Navy Yard. When you include increased post-game ridership at nearby stations (e.g. Capitol South), one third of all Nationals attendees used Metro after the game (14,786 total).

Honestly, we thought that number would be larger. Our guess is that these people were more regular attendees who know their way around getting to and from the park.

You can read the whole thing if you want. There are some pretty graphs and charts and what have you, including one showing that most Nats fans like to have a drink around Gallery Place after the game before heading home to Northern Virginia.

Game 5 is Friday night at 8:37, which means that Metro will be open late, which means that LivingSocial money won't be needed until the NLCS (if, God willing, the Nats make it there).