Unsuck DC Metro: Another Escalator Close Call?

Monday, October 15, 2012

Another Escalator Close Call?

Via @jaxyeary Graffiti on the metro. "What's going on here? Sheer incompetence!" ‪#wmata‬ pic.twitter.com/bngXDP4g

So in addition to Metro's social media faux pas after the Nats' devastating loss, there was a scary post-game incident at Navy Yard.

RT @aka_tk: Shit escalator just slid down packed full of ppl. Yikes#wmata
— Unsuck DC Metro (@unsuckdcmetro) October 13, 2012

@aka_tk wrote with a few more details:

We were all walking down two sets of stopped escalators, as the station was packed.

About half way down, the escalator next to us just started to slide or fall about five feet or so. So people just grabbed onto the railing to hold on. Then the escalator seemed to catch itself. I don't think anyone was injured at least. I have never seen that before.

Another reader, Peter, claimed to be on the escalator that slid and said people were "terrified" as the escalator slid "at least 10 feet" before stopping.

A source familiar with Metro's escalator operations, said he couldn't be sure what happened, but that "an escalator that does that is not properly maintained. I would never get on a fully loaded Metro escalator. They are just not safe."

Two years ago, a Metro escalator brake failed leading to several injuries at L'Enfant Plaza after the "Rally for Sanity" event.

After the incident, Unsuck DC Metro broke the news that Metro had been made aware of the brake problems through a report by their escalator consultant, VTX. Metro appeared to ignore the warnings issued by VTX until after the L'Enfant incident when they ordered an emergency inspection of the escalator brakes.

Was this Friday another close call?

After the 2010 report, VTX came back in the Spring of 2011 to assess Metro's progress in addressing the numerous problems found in 2010.

VTX did, but now, well over a year later, Metro will not release the report to the public.

Another source familiar with Metro's escalator operations filed a freedom of information request for the report but was denied because the report was not "completed/finalized."

Regardless, it is unlikely that Metro addressed the fundamental problem at the core of its escalator problem.

Here's the horrific footage of the L'Enfant incident:

Other items:
Cell phone coverage still three years away (Examiner)

Metro's failures bring entrepreneurs into breach (Examiner)

Comments (28)

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+5 Vote up Vote down

MLD · 649 weeks ago

This person didn't specify which exit, but after Friday's game we were coming into the Navy Yard station at the USDOT exit (not the one nearest the ballpark). One entrance escalator was on and the other was not, everything was packed. We were walking down the non-working escalator when the functioning one did exactly what was described here - it accelerated for about two seconds and then came to a stop. Kinda scary for the people on it, but it didn't look like anyone was hurt. It wasn't a freefall like in L'Enfant plaza though. Agree with your source - this is not how it should work. The escalator should just stop if it is overloaded.

+13 Vote up Vote down

BrianKal · 649 weeks ago

We were just helping to get people into the station faster. You are welcome. -Danny

+4 Vote up Vote down

Natsfan · 649 weeks ago

I was there waiting to enter when I heard a collective gasp coming from the station.
By the time I got there, everything seemed to be normal, so I wasn't sure what had happened.

+5 Vote up Vote down

PDC · 649 weeks ago

How can any agency watch that video and not immediately try to fix the escalator issues?

+5 Vote up Vote down

VeggieTart · 649 weeks ago

"an escalator that does that is not properly maintained"...well, that's Metro for you. It's easier to say what IS properly maintained on Metro.

1 reply · active 649 weeks ago

+7 Vote up Vote down

Matt · 649 weeks ago

Richard and Danny's hair styles are the only things properly maintained at WMATA.

+2 Vote up Vote down

John · 649 weeks ago

Somewhere, David Lacosse is laughing his ass off collecting a 200K a year paycheck...

The guy still has a job at Metro. Unbelievable!

+2 Vote up Vote down

John · 649 weeks ago

Somewhere, David Lacosse is laughing his ass off collecting a 200K a year paycheck...

+5 Vote up Vote down

Ryan · 649 weeks ago

Has anyone ever actually SEEN David Lacosse? I have never, ever seen any evidence that he is a physical human being. I just hear about how stupid and incompetent his department is.

1 reply · active 649 weeks ago

+6 Vote up Vote down

John · 649 weeks ago

He's a complete hermit. He refuses to be interviewed by anyone. Apparently Metro allows you to stonewall people like this. He gets paid a ton of money to have escalators break down, people get injured, and not have to answer for anything. Great huh?

+15 Vote up Vote down

finch2012 84p · 649 weeks ago

I am Metro free!! My wife is pregnant and I don't want her anywhere near the Metro now. And it's cheaper/faster for both of us to drive together anyway (though I'm not factoring in gas, which would probably make it a push). So, bought a space in my office's garage. Today was the first day Metro-free and I am so. freaking. psyched. Had to share.

-6 Vote up Vote down

Bitter Brew · 649 weeks ago

The linked Twitter exchanges with @wmata "faux pas" actually cast whoever was tweeting @wmata in a good light. And props to him/her for being active on the account during "night service."

2 replies · active 649 weeks ago

+6 Vote up Vote down

unsuckdcmetro 92p · 649 weeks ago

I suggest going back and looking at the reaction to the "peak fare" tweet. Metro made NO friends that night.

-3 Vote up Vote down

Bitter Brew · 649 weeks ago

After the suck that was the Nats collapse, there's not much anyone on Twitter was going to do to help things. Charging peak fare for late-night so-called "service" is an embarassment, and one that would have been compounded if someone else were paying. That said, I stand by my earlier comment. @wmata's "Apologies" tweet was a credible effort to do something that Metro is often unbelievably bad at, and -- as I think this blog usually does -- I'd prefer to see decent service applauded rather than mocked.

+5 Vote up Vote down

Ryan · 649 weeks ago

I gave up metro in June, I went from spending $10 a day on Metro, to $10 a week in gas and saving about 2 hours per day. I'll walk the 15 miles to work before I ever step foot on Metro again.

+7 Vote up Vote down

jimlcunningham 80p · 649 weeks ago

How many people have to get hurt before the Federal Government gets involved and WMATA is restructured? I find it hard to believe than any other city in the world would stand for this. Even in China, government officials would be punished for the kind of incompetence we put up with at Metro.

1 reply · active 649 weeks ago

+10 Vote up Vote down

guest · 649 weeks ago

don't hold your breath; wmata just plain killed 9 people a few years ago, with, apparently, no consequences. :

-28 Vote up Vote down

Guest · 649 weeks ago

How come there's no story here about those racist anti-Islam ads in the Metro? Is unsuck a Jew?

4 replies · active 649 weeks ago

+19 Vote up Vote down

unsuckdcmetro 92p · 649 weeks ago

What's the story? That the First Amendment applies to Metro? Old news. Remember the "Go to hell Barack" ads from a while back?

No, not Jewish. From Kenya, but nice try.

-5 Vote up Vote down

Guest · 649 weeks ago

Kenya? Cool! Did you go to school with Obama?

+4 Vote up Vote down

jkuchen · 649 weeks ago

Look at "other items" from Tuesday the 9th.

The only aspect that could potentially apply to this blog (and this is a stretch) is what WMATA is doing with the ad revenue from that group.

+3 Vote up Vote down

PeeWee · 649 weeks ago

Guest:
Your comment reminds me of how quickly MindMixer rushed to judge Unsuck without doing a little research and ended up pissing off a lot of people

+2 Vote up Vote down

RedLine · 649 weeks ago

It sounds like the STOPPED escalator slid down- is this correct?

+21 Vote up Vote down

Dan Stessel · 649 weeks ago

This is our new rapid customer transit program called METRO DOWNWARD. We strive each to get you into our stations and through our fare gates as fast as possible. Since our customers sometimes break our escalators, we realize this slows you ability to enter the stations. METRO DOWNWARD is designed to accelerate you rapidly into the stations. The faster you can enter our stations, the faster you can pay your way through our fare gates.

1 reply · active 649 weeks ago

+7 Vote up Vote down

John · 649 weeks ago

You're Welcome!!!

+6 Vote up Vote down

hrh king friday 13 · 649 weeks ago

And then Jackie Jeter pedaled out on her mini-tricycle with her clown mask on and in a deep sinister voice asked the pile of mangled bodies, "Do you want to play a game?"

+4 Vote up Vote down

Stan Dessel · 649 weeks ago

Heh heh. Hope you enjoyed the little pre-Halloween scare!

I promise everything worked just like it should. You should be happy.

You're welcome.

+3 Vote up Vote down

James · 649 weeks ago

Hey Metro! Look at Detroit as an example of what your future looks like. I have several friends who have gone to drastic lengths to avoid Metro. Wifey and I are looking at houses that will make Metro unnecessary for me. Soon, Metro will descend into a death spiral like Detroit has.