Over the past six weeks, we've been documenting Metro's "disruption" reports. Granted, they're often cryptic and don't give an indication of the ripple effects one disruption can cause. Still, it's good WMATA reports them.We've unscientifically documented 232 disruptions that appear to be serious enough to cause ripple effects and leave people thinking Metro sucks. We leave out reports like "train delayed because of door problem" because it sounds like that train was able, in the end, to move people. We also omit sick passenger issues since those aren't Metro's fault.
232 disruptions over 30 work days is an ugly record of disservice in our opinion. It's almost 8 per day.
That said, your odds of being victim to a Metro meltdown, you might think, vary depending on the line you're on. Here's the ugliness broken down by line:
Red Line: 90 disruptions (39%)*
Orange Line: 61 disruptions (26%)
Green Line: 32 disruptions (14%)
Blue Line: 31 disruptions (13%)
Yellow Line: 14 disruptions (6%)
But ... these numbers are startlingly in line with the percentage of Metro's deployed cars each line utilizes. These are from 2008 (page 12),
Red Line: 34% of cars
Orange Line: 24% of cars
Blue Line: 17% of cars
Green Line: 16% of cars
Yellow Line: 7% of cars
Basically, it appears all the lines have about an equal chance of ruining your day. Yeah, the Red Line gets a lot of the glory, but its screw ups are pretty much par for the course.
Metro's own Jan. 2009 findings about "on-time performance" ranked the Red Line first. Metro's measurements include only peak-service times.
Red Line: 95%
Orange Line: 93%
Yellow Line: 93%
Blue Line: 91%
Green Line: 90%
* Percentages are rounded
Tweet of the day:
@theKyleBogucki escalators were down in the metro, i watched a man stand on the bottom reading a news paper for at least 15 second before he noticed
Other news:
Metro Transit Police arrest suspects for breaking into cars at Branch Avenue
all the stupid disruptions and delays are totally taking over my twitter feed. I thought it would be a good idea to get tweets from WMATA, now not so much.
ReplyDeleteThat's pretty bad considering how much newer the Green line, for example, is compared to the others. I wonder if you did location-based tracking how the locations might compare to the age of the track — of course, aging cars are a factor too. I wonder how many of the newer cars Metro has deployed on each line, and how often it is that an older car causes the problem.
ReplyDeletehow is this for a comparison
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/archives/2010/02/the_subway_suck.php
Thanks to METRO and the Blue line for starting my day off in a totally sucky manner.
ReplyDeleteWhat about the unreported delays? Anyone keeping track of those? Past couple of weeks, have spent many rides on the Red line going no faster than 15mph between two to three stations. And today, my commute which normally takes 40-45 minutes took 1 hour 20 min. Trains were sharing a track near Grosvenor. I received no email alerts, and multiple visits to WMATA's website revealed that all lines had "no delays." Bullshit.
ReplyDeleteDC Metro is a disgrace.
ReplyDeleteI lived in Seoul for a number of years. Their subway system is much larger and has far less problems. I think there are more outages, delays and problems on the DC Metro in one given day than there is in the Seoul subway in 6 months.
Of course the Hong Kong and Singapore subway systems also do a bang up job of making the DC Metro look like something that belongs in a 3rd world country.
Ditto.... I just returned from a rather lengthy business trip. All I have to say is the metro systems in Singapore, Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei, and Hong Kong put the DC Metro system to shame. They run like clockwork. Of course on my way home from the airport I encountered another escalator not working and the red line single tracking it for most of downtown.
ReplyDeleteI am more than tired of getting on a Glenmont bound train only to be told that we need to get off at Silver Spring. It happened again today!!! One time, it wasn't even announced and I sat on the train waiting for it to leave SS and then next thing I knew, the doors closed and the operator said "train to Shady Grove". Luckily, the doors opened and I was able to get off. What gives!!!
ReplyDeleteI live in Silver Spring and rode the Red Line for years. Of course at that time the shoddy maintenance, lousy service and heavy crowds had yet to materialize. At a certain point in my career, and because I needed to go to job sites, I got a parking space at my office. Ever since I've been driving to work.
ReplyDeleteI want to personally thank each and every one of you who put up with WMATA's crap, tolerate the poor service, rudeness, stenches and take your life in your hands every time you board a train. You are no longer have to deal with my fellow drivers who tailgate me, cut me off, fail to use their turn signal or eat and talk on the phone while doing 50 on 16th Street.
All of you make the driving not only possible, but tolerable.
I salute you all.
(To the woman I used to see putting on her mascara while riding downtown, I'm sure you're blind by now, with the jerky train movements and manual train driving. I'm just glad I wasn't there to see you puncture your eyeball.)
I was on the Red Line at Union Station today. I boarded my first train of the day and then proceeded to watch the doors try to close, again and again, and again. With the doors unable to close, we, of course, were off loaded. We then loaded a second train and made it to Judicary Square. There again, the doors tried to close and were unable to. We all were then forced to offload the train, again. Finally, a third train came, totally crowded, and was about to become extremely packed with three times the amount of people normally on the train. Needless to say, we barely made it to Metro Center.
ReplyDeleteAll I can say is good thing it was an amazing weekend at the Jon Stewart Rally and that I'm glad I didn't have a meeting first thing Monday morning. God help us and at very least, the Red line...
Please unsuck DC Metro.
Want the elevator and escalator problems to go away? Go back to private contractors. They are more competent and skilled. Metro hired consultants several years ago and they recommended to go back to the private contractors.
ReplyDeleteAnd I thought Aussie trains were bad. After living in DC for 10 nonths, you think this was a 3rd world transport system. Although the best line is when you are waiting 20 minutes for a train and once you get on they say "we are stopped for train in front". seriously do they really think their commuters are stupid?
ReplyDeleteThe metro system in Baltimore move more faster than the DC metro. DC metro claimed they is the best system, NOT!!!!!! The DC metro stations are stink, I mean all 86 DC metro stations smell like homemade shit!
ReplyDeleteI don't like the DC Metro system because every weekend they always have single track work
ReplyDeleteAnd besides, they did a halfass job. I rather ride the subways in Baltimore than the ones in DC.
Please forward:
ReplyDeleteMetro stooges and imbeciles,
I am writing to inform you of your gross incompetence problem. In case you have not noticed, Metrorail has become the laughingstock and joke of all who are fortunate enough to have any reasonable alternative transportation available. If your tiny feeble minded jackanape brains can comprehend a few simple concepts, this list of superior alternatives may help you to understand the magnitude of your incompetency:
Motility via sweaty goat wreaking of primate feces and covered with placental waste
Walking 10 miles, with a corpulent monkey on your back, in 120 degree weather
Hang gliding into DC with a 97% chance of death by collision
Jumping out of a crashing helicopter with a poorly constructed home made parachute above your desired destination
Swimming across the Potomac during a hurricane
Being drug from the back of an overloaded clown car--face down
Some advice: The cretins in charge should fire all of the otiose imbeciles working for metro. Subsequently they should fire themselves, and relocate their posteriors to a locale where they may witness a properly functioning mass transit system, for the purpose of failing miserably at comprehending it's existence. I would also suggest that all metro and metro union associated individuals bescumber themselves using the excreta of swine made ill from the overconsumption of McDonalds cheeseburgers.
Thank you,
A person more intelligent than all metro employees combined
Is anyone other than me having problems with their smartbenefits disappearing off their card a week into January?
ReplyDelete