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» Customer Service, Reliability and Other General Metro Topics (4/15/05) from noon to 1 p.m.

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Richard White

Welcome to today's chat.

How about our first-place Washington Nationals! Yesterday saw 60 percent of the sold-out crowd take Metro to the ballgame. We carried 27,325 people to the game. Overall ridership yesterday was 766,184--our fourth highest ridership in our 29-year history.

We ran 17 eight-car trains to helpl move the crowds.

As many of you know, Stadium-Armory Metrorail station was as crowded as it usually was when the Redskins playd at a soldout RFK Stadium. Fans stream to the stadium over the course of several hours and they all want to leave at once (much like what we see on July 4th). Our Transit Police, rail supervisors, station managers and other staff were on hand to ensure safe conditions on the trains and smooth operational conditions.

As a reminder, the station has two entrances, so after the game if the entrance closest to the stadium is backed up tue to crowds trying to get into the station, consider walking the extra two blocks to the second entrance on your way home.

Let's get this chat started.

Shorter Trains During Blue Line Rush Hour

Author	Message
KBusch	Mr. White - considering that 2 new stops were added extending the Blue Line from Addison Rd. to Largo Town Center, why do 4-car trains continue to operate during high-volume rush hour periods (ex: 8:00 am)? It was packed enough with four cars and the original line. Also, why does the train number vary? Some mornings it's 4 or for others it's 6. As a rider boarding at Addison Road I find it extremely frustrating that 4-car trains still come and by the time the train gets to Addison Road, that most cars have no seats available. Thank you.
Richard White	Hi. We have all of our available railcars out there for rush hour--758 cars. Once we get more, we'll add them to the rail line. The Yellow and Blue lines have the lowest ridership and so we operate both four- and six-car trains on those lines. New cars are on order, so relief is on the way. The trains will start arriving next winter.

Dirty rail stations

Author	Message
donovan	The Braddock Road station is always dirty with litter. Doesn't anyone clean it, and if they do, shouldn't they do it more frequently?
Richard White	Hi. Thanks for letting us know. I will notify our Plant Maintenance Department to let them know your concern. Hopefully you will see an improvement soon!

Some like those bus sign gretings...

Author	Message
W McGee	At the Metro metting Tuesday, some fellow commented about those greetings on the metrobus destination signs being a waste. Let me be a voice to the contrary. In a cold distant city that DC sometimes tends to be, this is a little tiny bit of humanity that shouldn't be extinguished. Plus, with a recent programming change, you fixed it so that the message can co-exist with the bus' route number, eliminating the biggest complaint against the signs.
Richard White	Hi. In order to provide the necessary information to our bus customers, we made the decision to eliminate the greetings from teh signage. This was in response to our customer concerns about being able to get all of the information they need as a bus comes down the road.
SmartGrowther	I think those stupid greetings are a waste of space when WMATA planners are telling me they lack room on bus destination signs to lengthen destination names to make them clearer and more accurate. I need to know which neighborhoods a bus is going to a lot more than I need Metro wishing me "Good Morning" at 9pm. I would rather see buses say something like "32 Friendship Heights, via Georgetown", as a number of other cities do.
Richard White	You're in good copmpany. We've heard from several bus customers who told us they'd rather see information about where a bus is going than a "Good Morning" greeting. So, in the spirit of customer service, we el the "Good Morning" and similar greetings from the bus destination signs so that people can see the actual bus destination longer. This improvement should be in place by the end of next month (May). Thanks!

Bus Back Door

Author	Message
dcrider	I know it's Metro's policy to have passengers exit buses using the back door, to make it easier for people getting on the bus to board. So why is it that passengers often have to holler "BACK DOOR!" from the back of the bus to get the driver to open it? Shouldn't this be standard practice? Thanks.
Richard White	Hi. We are retrofitting our buses so when the bus stops and the doors open, both doors will open. About half of our fleet have this new capability. We hope to have all of our buses retrofitted by the end of the summer.
SmartGrowther	Mr. White, you have already emailed me in private that Metro does NOT have a policy encouraging or requiring bus riders to exit through the back doors, as much sense as this would make. Would you please confirm or deny this to the rest of the people in this forum?
Richard White	Sure, SmartGrowther. Metro does not have a policy requiring the use of the back door on our buses. We are doing things to encourage customers' use of the back bus doors, including re-engineering the back door so that it opens automatically when the front door opens, and having our bus operators encourage our customers to move toward the rear of the bus, especially during peak riding times. Our rail operators do the same, encouraging rail customers to use all doors and move to the center of the railcar, instead of bunching up near the doors.

Off-peak headways

Author	Message
nashpaul	I am very disappointed by the headways outside of rush hour periods. Let me provide two examples. During last Saturday's Cherry Blossom Festival, ridership was almost as much as on an average weekday. Yet trains were still running on long headways. While there were many Metro personnel on platforms telling people not to crowd trains, why weren't there more trains? Instead of paying 10 people to stand on a platforms and apologize for the crowds, why can't you reduce the crowds by simply running more trains. You do this during rush hour. Common sense would tell you to do it other crowded times as well. On a recent Friday evening (before 10 pm), a trip advertised as taking 18 minutes on the website and on station signs (that usually actually takes 25-30 minutes) took about 75 minutes. I had to wait 20 minutes for a Red Line train and 25 minutes for an Orange Line train. This is longer than the published headways. Even those posted headways are unacceptable long. Crowds were comparable to or greater than a rush hour commute. There should be plenty of rolling stock. What is Metro doing to accommodate riders during non-peak periods. With the summer heating up, trains must be added to the meager non-peak schedule.
Richard White	Satruday's ridership was well over twice the amount of a typical Saturday ridership day. We responded with eight-car trains tro provide additional service/capacity. As always, safety will remain our utmost priority. That is why we put additional personnel on the platforms.

Increasing Metrobus Service

Author	Message
Tom Fuchs	What are the prospects of increasing Metrobus service? One goal to establish is to have any routes with off-peak service to operate the same hours as Metrorail. Personally, I would like to see the evening hours extended and Sunday service established on routes C2, C8, R12 and T16.
Richard White	Hi. We made some bus changes last month including some Satuarday improvements on the C2 bus line. We periodically review all of our service and make adjustments where required. We will work with our colleagues in Montgomery County to review the other services you mentioned.
Tom Fuchs	Last month's changes involved increased frequency. My request is mainly for expanded hours of operation.
Richard White	Hi. We have recently expanded the service hours of the C2-C4 to meet the rail closing times. However not all bus lines operate that late in the evening. Currently, we do not have any plans to expand the bus hours for any additional bus routes. We will work with Montgomery County staff to better understand the need and identify options.

RailCars

Author	Message
dpete47	I see that not all the 3000 series have been rehabiliated. Are they still being worked on? Does the oringial manufacturer, Breda, exist anymore? Also, can we expect to see the new 6000 series this summer?
Richard White	The 3000 series cars along withthe 2000s--364 in total--are presently undergoing a mid-life rehab. The contractor is ALSTOM, and as of March 31st, 104 cars have been rehabbed. This contract is targeted for for completion in spring '07. Related to the 6000s, this summer, we will receive from ALSTOM the first cars for testing. This contract is for 184 cars and is targeted for completion in late '06 or early '07. The first of the cars will start to get on the line this upcoming winter.

Taking photos in Metro

Author	Message
donovan	Is it against Metro rules/regulations to take photographs using a still camera while on the train or in the station? If so, where is this particular rule displayed? I have been asked not take pictures.
Richard White	Metro has regulations regarding photography, but the regs don't cover the type of photography you described. It is unlawful to take photos on Pentagon property and Pentagon Police do enforce that regulation at our station. Post-9/11 law enforcement officers nationwide do contact people who are taking photos to determine if this is a suspicious activity. Bottom line is that visitors/tourists who want to take some snapshots in our system are welcome to do so.

Kids terrorizing travelers on train

Author	Message
Metro customer	A group of young people terrorized the other travelers on the train. A group of about a half dozen teenagers were being loud, insulting, verbally threatening a passenger and they were hanging from the bars on the ceiling of the car, and also being extremely disruptive. There is hardly any police presence in the subway cars and these kids are permitted to travel unattended. Not too long ago while in a subway car with my husband and daughter a group of teenagers were acting in the same manner. When asked to quiet down, one of them threw a bottle at my husband almost striking our daughter. What are customers supposed to do when this happens? Should we go to the callbox and call the conductor?
Richard White	Hi. Transit police officers are assigned to cover stations and trains everyday after shcool to deal with the behavior that you described. We have requested the school staff be assigned to accompany their students to ensure transit-appropriate conduct occurs from their students. In the future, feel free to contact the train operator on the intercom to request police respond. You also may want to move to another car if you are uncomfortable, or while you are waiting for the police. If you have a cell phone, you can call our transit police at 202-962-2121 for assistance.

Vienna Station overcrowding

Author	Message
viennaorange	I would like to get Metro planners thinking about severe overcrowding at Vienna station in the near future. First, the Fairlee-MetroWest development and other development will require 8-car trains, but 8-car trains will cannot be serviced at Vienna during PM rush without a second mezzanine--similar to the recent King Street station improvement. What are the plans for a second mezzanine above the underutilized Western end of the platform? For details and pictures, see http://filebox.vt.edu/d/dziepak/research/vienna.htm Thanks. "Viennaorange" http://filebox.vt.edu/d/dziepak/research/vienna.htm
Richard White	Thanks for the question about our Vienna Metrorail station, which just happens to be my "home" station. At the request of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, we have undertaken a station capacity assessment there. Supervisor Linda Smith's office has been working closely with our planners and architects to determine what improvements should be made there. This analysis will explore all options, including a second mezzanine. We can both look forward to future improvements at Vienna.

Flyer distribution at Metrorail stations

Author	Message
Metro customer	I wanted to know what your policy is on flyer distribution. Thank you.
Richard White	Hello. People can distribute flyers 15 feet away from our station entrance areas such as our escalators. We prefer that they are distributed to people on their way out so that they don't end up discarded in the rail system.

WMATA Bus Decision

Author	Message
Bus to Subway Ri...	It was reported that the WMATA Board of Directors may backtrack on their decision to expand natural gas buses in their fleet. (The W.Post had this story last week.) Why is Metro going back toward (dirty) diesel and (untested and expensive) hybrid buses? Virginia and DC have already invested in natural gas stations -- why would Metro change this environmentally prudent direction? There is no question that natural gas is the cleanest and most widely used fuel in transit systems today! Why is WMATA doing this and why are they rushing their decision for a vote on 4/21? Earth Day is coming next week -- please don't give us dirty air as a present; stay on the road with clean natural gas!!
Richard White	Hi. We are committed to operate the cleanest proven technology buses. Staff is following the Board's direction to procure 100 hybrid and up to 117 clean diesel buses. Hybrid electrics are now operating in reliable service in Seattle and NY. Clean diesel emissions technology has advanced to emit near-CNG levels of emissions. We can best impact regional air pollution by getting our older technolgoy diesel buses off the street and replacing them with newer technology-CNG, hybrid electric--or be that part of the solution to regional air pollution.

Car trouble in parking lot

Author	Message
otter	A month or so ago I was at the Greenbelt Metro late at night and went to start my car, it would not start. I was told that if I called AAA or any place to help me they would have to pay to get out of the lot. Is it possible for Metro to have a battery charger available to assist motorists, or have a company or companies under contract to assist motorists at the Metro lots? Also, that same evening I asked a woman in the booth if there was a restroom I could use and she said it was not working. Can't Metro have more than one working restroom at the stations that are at the end of the line or at least have Port a Potties a safe distance away from the station, if security is a concern. It can be a long ride to the end of the line for some folks. Thanks.
Richard White	Hi. Sorry for the inconvenience. We recently made restrooms available in Metro stations, which required some capital improvements. Currently no discussions have occurred, nor have funds been committed to procurfe port-a-poiiies for parking lots. Tow trucks are permitted into our parking lots to assist customers without having to pay to enter or exit.

Adding Commuter Rail To WMATA's Operations

Author	Message
Tom Fuchs	Is it possible for WMATA to add commuter rail to its operations? WMATA could take over operations of both MARC and the Virginia Railway Express. Run-through service could be established so that trains could operate between, say, Fredericksburg & Brunsick and Manassas & Baltimore (Camden Station). The DC area certainly has regional commuting patterns that would benefit from such a merger. Philadelphia's transit authority, SEPTA, did this several years ago when it merged the commuter rail services that were operated by the Reading Railway System and the Pennsylvania Railroad. DC has the advantage that no expensive infrastructure (such as a new tunnel) would need to be built.
Richard White	When the Congress created WMATA in 1967, it created our mandate to build and then operate a subway system. In 1973, it expanded our mandate to assume the responsibilities to operate certain regional bus services that were being provided by four privatae bus operators that were going out of business. In the early 1990s, we created a paratransit operator to fulfill our requirements under the ADA. There have been no additions to these responsibilities since then. How's that for a quick little history of WMATA! As you know, VRE and MARC are operated by separate entities, and I believe they are successful operations the way they are handled today.

overall metro ridership

Author	Message
braddockroadride...	My family just moved close to the Braddock Rd. stop and we're thrilled to take the metro to the airport and into the city on weekends to avoid parking problems. Just a general question: why do you think more people don't use the metrorail more often? What is Metro doing to encourage ridership like you see in other major cities?
Richard White	We're doing several things to increase ridership--especially during off-peak hours where we have capacity on rail and bus to carry more riders. This includes joint promotion partnerships with organizers of major events. We also work with the tourism industry and have partnerships with businesses and advertising both in and out of our system. Ridership has grown by 33 percent in the last 8 years. The arrival of the Nationals will increase ridership, and if we could get the NHL and the players to end the lockout, we'd see even more riders. Personally, I'm both a baseball and ice hockey fan!

Bus-rail parity

Author	Message
SmartGrowther	Hi, Metro seems to treat Metrobus as the inferior stepchild to Metrorail in so many ways. What I want to know specifically is why you are appointing and publicizing rail line managers but not bus route managers. It seems to me the buses are more subject to the whims of traffic, police activity, etc. than the trains, and simply have worse service than the rail system to begin with. Recently I was stuck waiting for 30 minutes on 16th Street for a bus that never came due to "police activity". I would never have known that had I not called on my cell phone. In a rail station it would have been clear that there was a delay from the PID signs and PA announcements. As it was, lots of unsuspecting bus riders were stuck waiting for one they didn't know wasn't coming.
Richard White	We've heard this criticism before, SmartGrowther, and I want to assure you we are very concerned about the quality and reliability of our bus service. However, the major difference between rail and bus is that our buses are subject to the region's traffic congestion - the second worst in the nation. We are making some major investments which should improve our bus performance. We recently installed a new radio system so we're able to better communicate with all of our buses. We've installed an automatic vehicle locator (AVL) system on our buses so we can track the location of any bus, any time. We are working with all the local jurisdictions in our region to explore possibly connecting this new bus technology to the local road traffic network to help keep our buses on schedule. And we will continue to explore new, creative ways to make our bus system better in the future.

5A Express to Dulles good but hard to find

Author	Message
Metro customer	I enjoyed using your new 5A Express service from Dulles Airport to downtown D.C. today. I found it to be much quicker and cheaper than the Flyer-Metro combination. However, there are two major problems with this service: 1) The timetable does not specify what "bay" or "location" at Dulles that you need to wait for the bus. It simply says "Dulles Airport." 2) Signage at Dulles is not clear as to where you need to wait for the bus. As for the later, I understand the delicate "competition" issue with Washington Flyer, but there should be ability to post rudimentary information. I look forward to using this service again in the future and hope to see it grow to more frequencies.
Richard White	Hi. We are working with the Airports Authority to improve the signage for the 5A Express service downtown. There was information targeting this service, but it has been removed during the ongoing construction at the airport. We are working with the Airports Authority to get the signage updatede

Nightly noise from Metro grates

Author	Message
Metro customer	I live at "The Lansburgh" building on 7th St. N.W. between D and E Streets. Metro has some type of generators or cooling devices that are firing up for the entire night right through the morning, making a very loud groaning sound. This is particularly noticeable late at night, after the traffic is gone, and people here are trying to sleep. It comes from under the grates at on 7th near the NW corner of E St, in front of The Shakespeare Theatre and Jaleo's Restaurant. Air comes up from the grates, and you hear this wining, groaning engine sound that permeates the night. Can you please explain this and see if something can be done about it? I know it's relatively new, as we lived in this building in 2000 when we were back here, and this sound was not there then. thanks.
Richard White	Hi. We will investigate this issue because there are no ongoing rehabilitation projects in this location that would create the type of noise you are describing. The Gallery Place station vent shaft structure is located in this area, which could result in noise associated with train movement and a pump station.