Unsuck DC Metro: "Sometimes when you stop them, they never start up again."

Thursday, July 7, 2011

"Sometimes when you stop them, they never start up again."

illustration via @learntofly3

From Michael:

This morning at Dupont, of the three main escalators on the north entrance/exit, only one was operational.

The operational one was carrying customers down from Q Street/20th.

The other two escalators were inoperable AND blocked off from foot traffic, so the only way out of the DuPont Station was via an elevator (30 minute wait) or the south exit, several blocks away and totally jammed.

Additionally, the station manager was repeatedly announcing the escalators were "not turned on" which implied you could walk up them, when in fact, this was not an option.

I was told by station manager that one up escalator was under scheduled maintenance, but the other broke down.

She also said they were afraid to stop the down one to allow it to serve as staircase, because "sometimes when you stop them, they never start up again."

She also said, "we wouldn't want to have another incident where the stair collapses."

Broken escalator=stairs, in many situations. At Metro, it apparently means possible deathtrap.

Comments (53)

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+15 Vote up Vote down

HurricaneDC 76p · 716 weeks ago

Very philosophical comment really. Combined with a mafioso-like threat:

"we wouldn't want to have another incident where the stair collapses."

They should have used that for the fare increase ads. An offer you can't refuse.

4 replies · active 716 weeks ago

-1 Vote up Vote down

Guest · 716 weeks ago

You got "threat" out of that comment? Seemed more like resignation and frustration with the system, but don't let that stop your imagination from running wild.

+4 Vote up Vote down

HurricaneDC 76p · 716 weeks ago

it's called a joke, chief.

-3 Vote up Vote down

Guest · 715 weeks ago

Difficult to gather your tone from reading that, boss.

+1 Vote up Vote down

bet · 716 weeks ago

The reason: to get more of your taxes and money. STOP riding and then you will stop complaining. When people stop riding then the bloated salaries will come to a hault.

+13 Vote up Vote down

John · 716 weeks ago

You put Lacosse in charge of the escalators department, he fails.
You put Lacosse in charge of the parts department, he fails (Parts problems brought up in the union town hall)

How many different languages can we say "FIRE DAVID LACOSSE!" in?

1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago

+3 Vote up Vote down

Guest · 716 weeks ago

If you will "lie" for management you don't get fired.

+4 Vote up Vote down

ManyLanguages · 716 weeks ago

English is my language. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
Therefore, I don't know if the following translations are correct.

DAVID CONTRA INCENDIOS LACOSSE
ZJARRI DAVID LACOSSE
ՀՐԴԵՀ ԴԱՎԻԹ LACOSSE
TŰZ DAVID LACOSSE
פייַער דוד לאַקאָוסי

1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago

+3 Vote up Vote down

John · 716 weeks ago

LMAO at the "THIS IS MY RIFLE!" reference!!!! Brilliant!

+20 Vote up Vote down

edfsadf · 716 weeks ago

What is Metro going to do when (not if) they need to evacuate that station in an emergency?

3 replies · active less than 1 minute ago

+1 Vote up Vote down

Kara · 716 weeks ago

I am going to guess they calculated how much it would cost them and weighed that against doing things right.

+2 Vote up Vote down

HurricaneDC 76p · 716 weeks ago

They'll probably get ready to pay a lot of wrongful death lawsuit settlements.

0 Vote up Vote down

2Guest · 716 weeks ago

you will all suffer!

+15 Vote up Vote down

dcniv · 716 weeks ago

Maybe if we all switched to standing on the left, we could balance the wear to the escalator components and things would run smoothly again.out

+9 Vote up Vote down

dcn8v · 716 weeks ago

Also, I wonder why Metro escalators are so much more tempermental than say, airport escalators or shopping mall escalators, or any other kind of high-traffic escalators.

7 replies · active less than 1 minute ago

-1 Vote up Vote down

ShartingExcellence · 716 weeks ago

Not to carry water for Metro, but the are outside.

Dumb design choice, but there you go.

+13 Vote up Vote down

horseydeucey · 716 weeks ago

They aren't all outside... right? I mean some perpetually broken escalators are inside... right? Don't bother answering. We both know the answer to that.

The real point you should be making is that there are other outside elevators in existence that don't break down nearly as often as Metro's.

And look at that, I spared you your self-appointed water-carrying duties.

+1 Vote up Vote down

John · 716 weeks ago

They were outside since metro opened. Only now they are all having problems.

+3 Vote up Vote down

Kara · 716 weeks ago

Umm .... and why?

Look at places like Philly. The external entrances to the underground system have *gasp* doors. You can even add doors that open all by themselves if you want to get fancy.

+6 Vote up Vote down

VeggieTart · 716 weeks ago

Yeah, but even the interior ones break a lot.

+5 Vote up Vote down

James · 716 weeks ago

The indoor escalators are broken just at much as the outdoor ones. That argument carries zero weight.

+2 Vote up Vote down

lou · 715 weeks ago

nope. one of the worst broken down escalators is a decidedly interior one -- at Union Station. Moscow also has outdoor escalators and doesn't break down like this. and they have worse weather.

+3 Vote up Vote down

El LuchadordeMetro · 716 weeks ago

What is today's percentage of non working escalators? I think it runs around 20%? I'm taking bets that the escalators at the Amtrak platform side coming up out of Union Station never work again. Life would be easier after three months if they just gave up and made one an 'up' stairs and the other 'down' rather than have to fight the 2 way staircase battle although El LuchadordeMetro is always ready to take on those who feel they should cary large objects up and down through the eye of the needle.

22 replies · active less than 1 minute ago

-46 Vote up Vote down

ANON · 716 weeks ago

you're a moron,the escalators are being rebuilt after 30 years of use and two shifts by the contractors 6 weeks for each escalator not 3 months.
If you had any knowledge at all you would know the difference between broke and being rebuilt.

GET A LIFE YOU LAZY CRYBABY AND STOP RIDING METRO IF IT IS SO BAD.

+11 Vote up Vote down

John · 716 weeks ago

You guys always estimate 6 weeks but it ends up taking 3 months.

+8 Vote up Vote down

Metro Ryder · 716 weeks ago

or more

+16 Vote up Vote down

Steve · 716 weeks ago

"GET A LIFE YOU LAZY CRYBABY AND STOP RIDING METRO IF IT IS SO BAD"

why should we stop riding metro "if it is so bad?" some of us require metro to get to and from our jobs, our doctors, our families, the airports, etc, etc etc. just because i rely on the metro to get from place to place does not give metro the green light to constantly have problems. so yes, metro is awful, but i dont even have the option to not take metro. if i did, i probably would stop.

how about YOU get a life, anon? get real. metro is a service that we pay for both with our taxes and our fare fees, and like any service, we have the right to complain if it sucks.

-18 Vote up Vote down

ANON · 716 weeks ago

you pay for the train ride not an escalator ride.

+9 Vote up Vote down

horseydeucey · 715 weeks ago

I'm fairly certain we pay/have paid for infrastructure, buses, MetroAccess, AC, heat, janitorial services, safety systems, WMATA and contractor salaries, Metro police, lights, elevators, AAAAAAAND escalator rides (to name a few services).

Your wanton stupidity needed a calling-out, stupid.

+4 Vote up Vote down

John · 715 weeks ago

You have no idea how a business operates, huh?

+4 Vote up Vote down

Steve · 715 weeks ago

you CLEARLY stated that if someone has a problem with metro (which INCLUDES the escalators), then we should not ride it.

how does one enter the metro station, let alone get to the platform, without the use of escalators, elevators or stairs? that is part of the metro system, my friend, and we all pay for it.

do you work for metro, anon? i kinda feel like only a metro employee would think that the escalators are not a part of the metro service.

+8 Vote up Vote down

MadAsHeck · 716 weeks ago

Why did they build a little fort around the escalator being repaired at Union Station? Do they not want us to see that either (a) nobody is inside, or (b) the guys inside are just sitting around drinking coffee.

-19 Vote up Vote down

ANON · 716 weeks ago

those barricades are required and they do more work in six weeks than you do in six months.

check the log in the kiosk and you will see the escalators were out for six weeks each. you can't even keep track of time.

+5 Vote up Vote down

MadAsHeck · 715 weeks ago

Sorry, didn't mean to disturb you between sips of your latte. Now run along back to your fort, while the rest of us climb up a non-functioning escalator.

+6 Vote up Vote down

John · 715 weeks ago

You guys have never finished an escalator in 6 weeks... NEVER

-1 Vote up Vote down

ANON · 715 weeks ago

I will bet my pay check you are wrong and I can prove it.

+9 Vote up Vote down

Sam B · 716 weeks ago

Funny, because I was talking to two escalator repair guys the other day and they were complaining about how the escalator they were fixing was only 3 years old and there were others that needed to be repaired first. They aren't just repairing 30-year-old escalators.

-10 Vote up Vote down

ANON · 716 weeks ago

you must have been talking to metro techs and if they did proper maintenance after they were rebuilt the escalator would in better shape.

+7 Vote up Vote down

James · 716 weeks ago

Thanks for that comment, inept WMATA employee...that was very helpful...

-15 Vote up Vote down

ANON · 716 weeks ago

Not a wmata employee but I am an escalator mech. and I do know what I'M talking about unlike these morons that are making these comments.

SO TRY AGAIN

+6 Vote up Vote down

John · 715 weeks ago

You're an escalator mech for Metro. Hence you're a METRO EMPLOYEE!

Dumbass!

+4 Vote up Vote down

Betty · 716 weeks ago

Lets all stop and the union's bloated salaries will cease! Everybody is broke!

+5 Vote up Vote down

El LuchadordeMetro · 715 weeks ago

Moron, Crybaby? NICE. As for the knowledge, why should I care, it's called transparent. All that I care about is I'm paying for a service I'm not receiving as well that Metro has created an amazing recipe for disaster.

I wasn't calling out the Techs, you have to eat the $hit sandwich you have been handed and I do appreciate the level of work you put out. The folks who designed and spec'd the station and systems as well those who don't seem to grasp anything other than 'fix on failure' maintenance techniques are the ones to blame. I do feel the need to call you on your timing, 6 weeks for each escalator off the Metro platform is 12 weeks, 12 weeks/4 weeks per month give or take = 3months.

I'm not even counting the ones up to the AMTRAK platform area which were stairs for at least 2 months total, or that both ends of the station, 2 of the 4 escalators are down at the same time.

So, instead of a life, if you can't take the complaining, why don't you find something different to do for employment.

+2 Vote up Vote down

VeggieTart · 715 weeks ago

Hey, troll, some of us don't have cars so we have no other choice but to ride Metro. And I can only imagine the nightmare traffic would be if people didn't ride. I don't think it's asking too much that the components of a transit system fucking WORK the way they're supposed to. Excuse us if we get cranky because there are multiple escalators out of service at ONE station.

0 Vote up Vote down

Rob · 715 weeks ago

ANON: I'm going to take a wild guess that you work for Metro. Has it occurred to you that endless problems resulting in declining ridership will also result in job cuts at Metro? So then WE end up with no functioning Metro and YOU end up without a job. Is that really the ideal solution?

+7 Vote up Vote down

RedLineROFL · 716 weeks ago

Rip them all out and put stairs in. Problem solved. Oh, and those high speed elevators? What do you think the chances are that those are going to seriously injure someone when (not if) they fall in to a state of disrepair?

2 replies · active less than 1 minute ago

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Red Line Fail · 715 weeks ago

I totally agree- They could replace the short platform escalators with stairs and use the extra resources to properly maintain the street escalators and all elevators- for those people who really need them! The frequent elevator outages must make using Metro a pretty frustrating experience for handicapped customers.

+1 Vote up Vote down

NYC subway 4 life · 715 weeks ago

I forget if this was at Farragut North or Adams Morgan last night (don't use either station regularly) but I was pretty shocked to see an escalator for what wouldn't have been more than 10 or 15 steps. I mean, really?

+12 Vote up Vote down

governmentbasement 70p · 716 weeks ago

The choice is yours, be inconvenienced or die. Simple enough.

+6 Vote up Vote down

no one · 716 weeks ago

That photo is amazing. Pretty much sums up Metro.WOW

1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago

+4 Vote up Vote down

2Guest · 716 weeks ago

Cover ups are rampant at metro. you may want to talk to the insiders.

-2 Vote up Vote down

2Guest · 716 weeks ago

Ha! You still ride those trains?

0 Vote up Vote down

Guest · 716 weeks ago

You still ride on metro! I quit a long time ago. When will some people ever learn.
They just want more money and you might want to find out what these many managers make downtown and the the union officials and the supervisors and employees. Then you will stop riding.