Unsuck DC Metro: Is Rush+ Over on the Orange Line?

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Is Rush+ Over on the Orange Line?

From Brian:

Just an open question from an Orange Line rider (East Falls Church station).

Over the past few months, it seems like the frequency of trains going into DC has slowed. I get on around 7:30 a.m. each day, and lately I've gotten onto an already crowded train that's 5-6 minutes after the preceding train, and the monitor shows another 5-7 minutes until the next one comes. Granted, there are other windows where a train might be 2-3 minutes behind, but all in all, it sure seems like WMATA has quietly reduced the number of trains coming through.

This link about the Silver Line says there would be 19 Orane Line trains per hour during Rush Plus. I really have a hard time believing that there are 19 Orange Line trains per hour right now.

I have a job and don't have time to monitor this, but I'm curious if anyone has the ability or wherewithal to simply plant themselves at one of the Arlington Orange Line stations (Clarendon, EFC, whatever) and simply count the number of inbound trains from, say, 7:00-9:00 a.m.

If WMATA is correct, then 38 trains should come through over that 2-hour period, give or take one or two. I dunno; just curious if anyone else has noticed anything, and I'm weary from being on one packed train after another.

Editor's Note: Posting is going to be hit or miss for the next little while as real life has been encroaching on Unsuck time.

Other items:
Ride Metro at your own risk (Examiner)
Ridership continues to fall (Examiner)

Comments (20)

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+4 Vote up Vote down

Kim · 616 weeks ago

I completely agree with this! I find that at VA Square between 7 and 730 the train comes 4 times ( 7:06, 7:12, 7:18, 7:25) So that would mean it comes 8 times in one hour. Which doesn't go along with their "19 trains per hour."

+3 Vote up Vote down

Mike · 616 weeks ago

Based on PIDS data from the last 2 days, it looks to be between 17-19 trains/hour at Ballston, so they're not far off..

+5 Vote up Vote down

drew · 616 weeks ago

yesterday at Ballston I arrived at the station at 740am. The PIDs were showing 9, 10, 13 min wait times. Could it be they are slowing the trains because of the heat and worried about the tracks cracking again?

+4 Vote up Vote down

@MetroDerp · 616 weeks ago

This seems to be a recurring thing on the Green Line now, too. At best a train every six minutes, but more and more frequently there will be a gap of ten minutes or more, and right during roughly 0825-0835 - which is, of course, like THE peak moment when you need LOTS of trains. And more overcrowding than usual, too, though I don't know how much of that is due to Red Line Relief.

I've been wondering if maybe they're just starting to run really low on rolling stock? Based on the car I was on this morning - which looked like it had just come out of (poorly-maintained) storage - they may be resorting to the dregs of the fleet, and even that might not be enough.

+11 Vote up Vote down

karah 81p · 616 weeks ago

Prep for the silver so you can see what blue line riders have been yelling about?

+3 Vote up Vote down

Emily · 616 weeks ago

I ride the Orange Line to work every morning. I was baffled this morning after waiting 12 minutes for a train (the first train was too crowded to get on) that they had to hold at the VA Square stop for "schedule readjustment"... WHY, Metro? WHY??

+4 Vote up Vote down

Nathan · 616 weeks ago

We're lucky we even have train service in the mornings. You're welcome!

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@VeggieTart · 616 weeks ago

I was at the reception area putting stuff through the postage meter at work when one of my colleagues and the receptionist were chatting, and the colleague says that she lives in Alexandria, just south of 495 and drives to work because 1) it's cheaper to drive to Rosslyn (where we work) and park than it is to park at a Metro station and take rail and 2) it's a lot faster to drive, given how Metro has screwed up the Blue Line.

I know this is a common complaint, but Metro should be looking for ways to make it more convenient than driving, (for those of you who have a choice) not less.

-10 Vote up Vote down

James · 616 weeks ago

Stop complaining. At least you people have mass transit.

So what if it's 50 times slower than driving somewhere (even with our horrible car induced traffic jams). The money we keep throwing at it is WORTH IT!

No accountability is a good thing as long as public transit is on the receiving end.

Read my blog!: www.ohyouthoughtIwasgone?.com

2 replies · active 616 weeks ago

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karah 81p · 616 weeks ago

Dan?

+4 Vote up Vote down

John · 616 weeks ago

You forget to sign in as Dave Alturd?

+3 Vote up Vote down

Matt G · 616 weeks ago

I would say that given fluff of a few minutes since trains are operating on manual mode -- that the same Rush+ trains come at EFC mostly every day. However, the 1st train at the head of the pack of 3 back-to-back is a 6 car usually, and the last of the pack is usually 8 cars. It should totally be reversed. Also, there are other days when no 8 car shows up -- clearly because there aren't enough to put into service.

In short, I'd say most of the time I see Rush+ trains. There are, however, occasions when that is not the case - although that is rare.

+1 Vote up Vote down

John · 616 weeks ago

Wow, like many of us predicted, Rush + is a horrible failure. Shocker...

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Jason · 616 weeks ago

Hadn't been on the Orange line in a month but I had to go to Clarendon last night at 5 PM. Upon getting off the Blue at Rosslyn and going downstairs it was something like 5 minutes until the next Orange to Vienna. When I was taking it regularly it was more like 3 back-to-back. So my experience would seem to support the claim of reduced Orange line service compared to what was promised with Rush+.

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jkuchen · 616 weeks ago

Instead of physically being at an Orange Line station, could someone just monitor the "How F*cked is Metro" data to determine this? How reliable is the data?

1 reply · active 616 weeks ago

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very!(lol) · 616 weeks ago

Probably about as reliable as the service.

+2 Vote up Vote down

dddddda · 616 weeks ago

It also seems that there are at least balancing issues - if outright not enough trains, on the red line lately. This morning I got on at the super-happy hour of a few minutes after 8, and trains were 5, 10, and 16 minutes away INBOUND (and I had not "just missed" a train, so the wait for the first one was >5 min.). I waited for the 2nd train because I was in zero rush and the first train was (obviously) packed. In that time, twice as many trains (hey, how many are supposed to run!) came through outbound. This happens a lot later in rush (just after 9) when I normally board, as well. So, it strikes me that they only put about 3/4 of the trains they need to in service, and do a terrible job of keeping them evenly spaced.

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yayTransparency! · 616 weeks ago

This makes perfect sense to me. Was Rush+ advertised as a permanent thing?
I assume, like other metro PR stunts, it's hyped and dropped/ ignored when it fails.
Certainly, they wouldn't admit that Rush+ is failing/ abandoned. I assume in the future, every line will receive some sort of "+" "upgrade". If metro truly improved service, there'd be no reason to hype it: it would speak for itself ( and improvement WITHOUT hype would be an indication that metro has slowed its spiral down the tank-- this will not happen any time soon).