Unsuck DC Metro: Email Alerts Fail

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Email Alerts Fail

Anyone else get caught off guard because of lack of word from Metro?

From Dave:

So I really wonder what the point is of the Metro email alerts.

This morning, after scraping all of the ice off of my car, I headed to the Rockville Metro station to head into work. When I got there, a cone was blocking the gate to the parking lot, which seemed unusual.

Normally, they'll do that when the lot is full, so you don't enter and waste your time looking for a non-existent parking space, but in this instance, the lot was clearly not full.

The woman in the parking kiosk said that train service between Shady Grove and Twinbrook had been suspended, but she didn't know why.

Well, that's just great.

You'd think that would be something Metro would email out to customers, since it's a major service disruption and delay.

I checked my inbox, nothing from Metro.

They emailed about delays earlier in the morning, but nothing regarding this.

How can there be a suspension of service at three stations and NO email alert has been sent?

I went to Metro's website and sure enough, it shows the Red Line as being on time but under that it says "Red Line: No service btwn Twinbrook & Shady Gr. due to Pepco wires hanging over roadway. Delays both directions."

So it says the line has no delays, and then under it says delays in both directions. And on top of that, WHY DIDN'T THEY EMAIL THEIR CUSTOMERS AND TELL US THAT?!?

My solution to the problem? Work from home and not give those bastards my money. I swear Metro thinks if they don't REPORT the problem/delay, then it never happened.

What a joke.

Comments (20)

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+2 Vote up Vote down

Glad · 740 weeks ago

That is exactly what happened to me. I sat on a train for 2 hours and if I had received an e alert, I would have driven!

-30 Vote up Vote down

Joshua · 740 weeks ago

I don't see why the OP is so bent of shape. Before the Internet one would not have received any alert whatsoever. Metro could do better, but all the outrage... please.

3 replies · active less than 1 minute ago

+3 Vote up Vote down

James · 740 weeks ago

Whatever Metro employee. We DO have the internet now and Metro is advertising that if you sign up for their own alert system, you will receive emails precisely about the type of thing in this post.

+9 Vote up Vote down

@keekerdc · 740 weeks ago

The point is that if Metro says they're going to use email alerts (among other tech-based services) to keep riders up to date on critical parts of their operations that would impact the business of riders, there exists a reasonable expectation that Metro would use it every time something adverse was going on with said critical parts of their operations.

In other words...follow through...

+4 Vote up Vote down

John · 740 weeks ago

What is your position in WMATA, Joshua?

+3 Vote up Vote down

Heather B · 740 weeks ago

And this is exactly what happened when Pentagon was closed thanks to that Christmas ornament. I had tried 2 metro stations by the time I finally got an email from Metro. Thankfully, my husband was able to come pick me up and take me to L'Enfant so I could get to work.

+5 Vote up Vote down

@kara_h · 740 weeks ago

I finally unsubscribed from those things. They were constantly telling me about delays after I finally reached my destination. Or not at all.

Another annoyance (unless it is fixed now) is that the page says you can sign up for text messages .... but the form only accepts email addresses.

+6 Vote up Vote down

Kim S. · 740 weeks ago

@Joshua; your line of thinking makes no sense. IF there was no promise of a service, you're right - there would be no outrage. At the same time, Metro touted this service as another way of providing improved/quality customer service. Why offer it if you're going to pick-and-choose when you notify your customers of incidents that will affect their travel?

I wasted money (no biggie, can get that back)....time (can NEVER get that back), to get to Shady Grove to find out that the station was closed, (even the sign at the station doesn't explain why), and I thought I might have missed the e-alert. Imagine my surprise (NOT!), to get back home to discover that I indeed had NOT missed the alert, because one was not sent out!

To add insult to injury, you call customer service to file a complaint, and you're told that they can't help you as they have nothing to do with the E-Alerts....WOW! Thanks WMATA for appreciating my patronage! I guess since I have no other options, I should just 'suck it up' and accept it - right Joshua?

+7 Vote up Vote down

John · 740 weeks ago

Well this system, like the PIDS system, would work if metro hired someone competant with a background in computer science.... however, Jackie Jeter's nephew needed a job, so he go the position of being in charge of these systems...

At least I wouldn't be surprised if that were the case.

1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago

+3 Vote up Vote down

Guest · 740 weeks ago

Metro hires who they know , not what they know. I do not ride the bus or train. The corruptions with mgmt. and union does not give me confidence to ride. Until there are major changes in Metro/Union, you can't expect anything less than what you are getting. The system was not ruin overnight. It took years for the uncompetant, lazy, greedy, rude and irogant people to run the system in the ground. The Board should hire someone like the former DC Chan. Rhee. She demanded and required that teachers know their jobs. She did not let the Union compromise her standards for the children of DC. Riders needs a GM with a backbone, not a whinning GM who complains about money problems-- when the problem can be solved by firing the junk that is running the system and hiring competant people.

0 Vote up Vote down

Guest · 740 weeks ago

Every cell phone carrier's text messages have an address- such as (PHONE NUMBER)@att.txt.net or something similar. Check with your cell phone provider. Doesn't mean the form shouldn't be easier.

I just bookmark the WMata Alerts page on my iPhone and check it every time something doesn't feel right...so most days I guess.

2 replies · active less than 1 minute ago

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@kara_h · 740 weeks ago

True. Although I have had the same carrier for awhile and I do not remember their email address off the top of my head. I doubt many do.

Even so, I am guessing the format for a text message (where you can say as much as you want) and an sms message (shorter unless you use several) would be different.

+2 Vote up Vote down

Sam · 740 weeks ago

You're correct. SMS messages go through the cell towers like an actual phone call. They are added into the unused portion of the data header that travels from tower-to-tower, which is why they have to be limited in size. Text messages go through the provider's SMTP servers like email.

Not sure which one WMATA users since I don't use their alerts, but I wouldn't be surprised if they use the text messages since they are cheaper to send. However, I also wouldn't be surprised if the cell companies are to blame for them arriving late. SMS messages usually get higher priority (mostly because they are using unused space, so there is no real overhead and because cell companies make more money off them) than text messages (which are costlier for the cell companies to send. The cell companies are probably more to blame here than WMATA in the event that alerts were sent and received hours late.

+5 Vote up Vote down

Kim · 740 weeks ago

What's even more aggravating is that the local news outlets were all reporting that there were no delays on Metro. They even sounded half surprised while saying it, so they should know better by now.

0 Vote up Vote down

ifartinyourgfsmouth · 740 weeks ago

Death to metro!

+6 Vote up Vote down

steph · 740 weeks ago

I don't get WMATA alerts for this very reason, but check the #wmata hash tag on twitter before you leave. You'll get WAY more reliable information. You can also get these sent directly to your phone - though you'd get A LOT.

+2 Vote up Vote down

UnSuck Fan · 740 weeks ago

WMATA e-alerts?? What a joke! I get most, if not all of my information from this great website! I don’t have a Twitter account (although this site and one other one is making it really tempting for me to join), but since UnSuck has a feed ABOUT Metro (definitely NOT to be confused WITH Metro’s own unreliable feed), I have found a way to view the feed from my Blackberry and get all updates that way from more reliable sources without actually joining. Thanks UnSuck and numerous riders from the feed for always keeping me in the loop! :-)

+4 Vote up Vote down

@deafinthecity · 740 weeks ago

Everyone should have a Twitter account cause the #wmata is always poppin. You will get more information than from metro.

+1 Vote up Vote down

@Rizzz · 740 weeks ago

I tweeted the smoke single-tracking from my train to #WMATA. No one, including TBD, reported it for at least 30 minutes.

0 Vote up Vote down

@Markerbuoys · 740 weeks ago

There have been at least two occasions so far where Metro has single-tracked trains through Friendship Heights and there is no word of it to be found no their page. Of course if you use trip planner they'll tell you your train arrives at a specific time. You then show up and tack on another 20 minutes and have two annoyed friends from out of town to confront.