Rider Concerned by Metro's Sandy Planning

UPDATE 3:  Limited rail and bus starting at 2 p.m. Tuesday

UPDATE 2:  Metro will be closed tomorrow.

UPDATE:  Feds closed Monday.

Metro has changed their information since I received the below email. It now reads:

Based on the current weather forecast, we plan to operate scheduled bus and rail service on Monday, October 29. However, modifications to service levels are possible based on changes in the forecast, electrical power status and actual weather conditions, including flooding.

If sustained wind speeds reach 50 mph or greater, Metro would consider a suspension of above ground service.  Current forecasts do not contemplate sustained wind speeds greater than 50 mph in the Washington, DC, area.

From Tom:

Am I the only one concerned about the so-called "planning" for Sandy posted on Metro's Website?  When Isabelle came through in 2003, they shut down  (they said then 40+ mph winds would cause suspension, now, they say 50+.) Metro because of concerns that the trains would blow off the tracks.  Now, the word is that if the winds get to 35-40 mph, they'll slow the trains down?  Yeah, that's great for the 35-40 mph sustained winds - but what about the 50-60 mph gusts?  I don't know about you, but I don't want to be on the Red Line train approaching Rhode Island Avenue station when those hit.

Metro is behaving like this is just going to be a stiff breeze, while the forecasters seem to be predicting much stronger winds and even stronger gusts.  I don't know that I want to go to work Monday morning, only to have Metro suddenly change its mind and stop running the trains, leaving me stranded in downtown DC because they couldn't do some simple math.  Or, worse, try to run trains in unsafe conditions.  Oh, but Metro would never put its passengers' lives in danger, right?  Wait, never mind - we already know the answer to that.

I'm told that the MTA in New York has already announced that it will stop running trains at 7:00 tonight.  Admittedly, their concerns are probably more for track flooding than wind, but at least they seem to have realistically assessed the potential problems. Again, though, realistic assessments aren't exactly Metro's long suit, are they.