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#541
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: HomegrownTerrorists)
On Apr 6, 7:30*pm, Tom Sherman
wrote: Pat wrote: On Apr 6, 1:09 pm, "Keith F. Lynch" wrote: Jym Dyer wrote: =v= I've lived in NYC while being tight on cash, and $2/pop for a subway ride can be painful, but not prohibitive. Try DC. *Trips are up to $4.50 each way. *Even more if you transfer to a bus, or if you park a car at a station. *You also have to pay $5.00 for the SmarTrip card, *in addition* to the fare value on it! *They even charge extra for secure (enclosed) bike parking, though you can park your bike on a U-rack for free and take your chances. They've raised the rates once so far this year, after a series of public hearing at which the public was unanimously against any further increases and pointed out that Metro was lying about past increases. It wouldn't be quite so bad if not for the chronic delays. *Typical was what happened the last time I was foolish enough to try to get somewhere on a weekend, about a month ago. *I entered the White Flint Station. *After about a quarter hour, during which there were frequent announcements about "minor delays" on the line due to routine scheduled maintenance, a train showed up headed in the correct direction. *I boarded it, intending to transfer to the Orange Line at Metro Center. It went out of service at Friendship Heights. *Everyone was chased off, after which the train just sat there without moving in either direction. *Everyone was told to catch the next train on the opposite track. *We did so when it arrived after about another 15 minutes, though it was very crowded. *It was going in the wrong direction, back the way I came. *I got off at the next station, Bethesda, and, along with many others, asked the guy in the kiosk how to get to Metro Center. *He said to catch the next train heading in that direction. I did so when it arrived after about 20 minutes. It went out of service at Friendship Heights. *Once again, the train just sat there blocking the track, and people were told to catch the next train on the opposite track. *The station platform was very crowded. *The sign said the next train would arrive in 18 minutes; the destination was blank. *Rather than continuing to go in circles, I exited the station and, along with many others, waited for the next bus heading downtown. A 36 bus arrived after about 20 minutes. *It was almost empty when it arrived, but it was absolutely packed when it pulled out, leaving most of the people waiting behind for the next bus. *I was able to board, but had to stand. *In the crowding, two of my four grocery bags got torn, making them much harder to carry. *The bus slowly made its way downtown, occasionally stopping to let someone off, which wasn't easy with all the crowding. *People waiting to get on at each stop were not allowed on due to the crowding, which got some of them quite upset; I gather that they had been waiting for a long time and all the buses had been too full to let them board. *Metro obviously hasn't bothered to add any additional bus service during the Red Line fiasco. Finally, the bus let us off at the 17th Street entrance to the Farragut West station -- which was closed. *Fortunately, I was familiar with that station and knew there was another entrance which is open on weekends. *Some people followed my lead. *Others gave up on Metro and called taxis. *It was an 18 minute wait for the next westbound Orange Line train, but once it arrived it proceeded without further incident. There was also scheduled maintenance on the Orange Line, but fortunately for me it was at the east end of the line. *Of course I did have to pay two train fares and one bus fare, and spend over five hours traveling less than 20 miles. These "minor delays" are on almost every line on almost every weekend, and frequently at mid-day on weekdays, too. *They don't deign to tell us about these delays until Thursday or Friday, and might forget to update their website at all. *They do mention that their online trip planner is not reliable during these delays. *So if you're aiming for a bus that runs just once an hour, you will arrive at a random time, and may have to wait up to 59 minutes for the next bus. The scheduled delays aren't just for essential maintenance. *The system has been wired so that cell phones will work in the tunnels. But only Verizon cell phones. *And now, nearly every week, there's a message on Metro's website such as: * Metrorail customers traveling between the L'Enfant Plaza, Capitol * South and Potomac Avenue Metrorail stations should add up to 20 * minutes of travel time for their trips because Metro is providing * Verizon Wireless track access to conduct normal contractual * maintenance and emergency work on its cables. *Inbound and outbound * trains will share one track between these locations. I don't see why all Metro customers should be repeatedly inconvenienced for the benefit of one private phone company and its customers. There are also plenty of unscheduled delays. *For instance any time someone reports an abandoned package, the line it's on is shut down for hours while police "secure the scene," which consists of waiting outside until, if it was a bomb, they figure it would have already gone off. Fares continue to get higher and higher, and levels of service get worse and worse. *There's no end in sight for either trend. *I think the whole of Metro management should be sacked. -- Keith F. Lynch -http://keithlynch.net/ Please seehttp://keithlynch.net/email.htmlbeforeemailing me. So tell me again why anyone would want to live in a God-forsaken city like that? If everyone moved out of the terrible cities, the countryside would be ruined, no? -- Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia The weather is here, wish you were beautiful- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - Oh, I don't want any one moving out here. STAY WHERE YOU ARE. I was just wondering what would motivate someone to want to live like that. It is beyond my comprehension. |
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#542
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: Homegrown Terrorists)
Pat wrote:
Oh, I don't want any one moving out here. STAY WHERE YOU ARE. I was just wondering what would motivate someone to want to live like that. It is beyond my comprehension. Does anywhere else have a better transit system? New York City, maybe, but who can afford to live there? I keep hearing about how great the DC Metro system is compared to other places. I went to Richmond, Virginia for a convention last year. I walked about 18 miles from the Greyhound terminal to the convention hotel. There was a city bus I could have taken, *but it would have gotten me there even later*. Now *that's* a bad transit system. At least people around here know to trim quotes, keeping only enough to establish context. -- Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/ Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me. |
#543
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: HomegrownTerrorists)
Pat wrote:
Oh, I don't want any one moving out here. STAY WHERE YOU ARE. I was just wondering what would motivate someone to want to live like that. It is beyond my comprehension. What motivates you to be so misanthropic? |
#544
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: Homegrown Terrorists)
On 6 Apr 2008 22:41:25 -0400 in rec.bicycles.soc, "Keith F.
Lynch" wrote: Does anywhere else have a better transit system? San Francisco, where they've been doing it right for about 120 years. |
#545
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: Homegrown Terrorists)
Dennis P. Harris wrote:
"Keith F. Lynch" wrote: Does anywhere else have a better transit system? San Francisco, where they've been doing it right for about 120 years. Last I checked, neither the cable cars nor BART went anywhere near the San Francisco Airport. And bikes weren't allowed on the bridge to Oakland. (I guess you could point out that neither the airport nor the bridge was there 120 years ago.) -- Keith F. Lynch - http://keithlynch.net/ Please see http://keithlynch.net/email.html before emailing me. |
#546
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: HomegrownTerrorists)
On Apr 6, 10:51*pm, Bolwerk wrote:
Pat wrote: Oh, I don't want any one moving out here. *STAY WHERE YOU ARE. *I was just wondering what would motivate someone to want to live like that. It is beyond my comprehension. What motivates you to be so misanthropic? What are you talking about. I can't figure out why anyone would want to live in that city after the poster described the subway ride from hell. Here's my "commute" today. I need to go to a public hearing about 4 hours east of here. I take a few bottle of water (from the tap, not from the store, because tap tastes better), throw in a book on CD from the library (cool history of the Mayflower), and a case with some music. I drive across a lovely expressway. I might hit a bit of traffic in Binghamton but it's never to bad there. Then into the Catskills. Wow. Great place to travel through. Then I have the public hearing. Then back in the car and drive home. Then, for the rest of the week I am working out of my home and don't have to leave it for much of anything unless I want to. Never once will I bitch about the subway or busses or Verizon in the tunnels. Never once will I have the commute from hell. I live in the Appalachians (Appalacia 'R Us) and get to drive through the Catskills and the Adirondacks on a fairly regular bases. Who could ask for anything more. |
#547
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: HomegrownTerrorists)
Tom Sherman wrote:
Keith F. Lynch wrote: Jym Dyer wrote: =v= I've lived in NYC while being tight on cash, and $2/pop for a subway ride can be painful, but not prohibitive. Try DC. Trips are up to $4.50 each way. Even more if you transfer to a bus, or if you park a car at a station. You also have to pay $5.00 for the SmarTrip card, *in addition* to the fare value on it! They even charge extra for secure (enclosed) bike parking, though you can park your bike on a U-rack for free and take your chances. They've raised the rates once so far this year, after a series of public hearing at which the public was unanimously against any further increases and pointed out that Metro was lying about past increases. It wouldn't be quite so bad if not for the chronic delays. Typical was what happened the last time I was foolish enough to try to get somewhere on a weekend, about a month ago. I entered the White Flint Station. After about a quarter hour, during which there were frequent announcements about "minor delays" on the line due to routine scheduled maintenance, a train showed up headed in the correct direction. I boarded it, intending to transfer to the Orange Line at Metro Center. It went out of service at Friendship Heights. Everyone was chased off, after which the train just sat there without moving in either direction. Everyone was told to catch the next train on the opposite track. We did so when it arrived after about another 15 minutes, though it was very crowded. It was going in the wrong direction, back the way I came. I got off at the next station, Bethesda, and, along with many others, asked the guy in the kiosk how to get to Metro Center. He said to catch the next train heading in that direction. I did so when it arrived after about 20 minutes. It went out of service at Friendship Heights. Once again, the train just sat there blocking the track, and people were told to catch the next train on the opposite track. The station platform was very crowded. The sign said the next train would arrive in 18 minutes; the destination was blank. Rather than continuing to go in circles, I exited the station and, along with many others, waited for the next bus heading downtown. A 36 bus arrived after about 20 minutes. It was almost empty when it arrived, but it was absolutely packed when it pulled out, leaving most of the people waiting behind for the next bus. I was able to board, but had to stand. In the crowding, two of my four grocery bags got torn, making them much harder to carry. The bus slowly made its way downtown, occasionally stopping to let someone off, which wasn't easy with all the crowding. People waiting to get on at each stop were not allowed on due to the crowding, which got some of them quite upset; I gather that they had been waiting for a long time and all the buses had been too full to let them board. Metro obviously hasn't bothered to add any additional bus service during the Red Line fiasco. Finally, the bus let us off at the 17th Street entrance to the Farragut West station -- which was closed. Fortunately, I was familiar with that station and knew there was another entrance which is open on weekends. Some people followed my lead. Others gave up on Metro and called taxis. It was an 18 minute wait for the next westbound Orange Line train, but once it arrived it proceeded without further incident. There was also scheduled maintenance on the Orange Line, but fortunately for me it was at the east end of the line. Of course I did have to pay two train fares and one bus fare, and spend over five hours traveling less than 20 miles. This trip could have been done in less than half the time (and much less aggravation) on a bicycle. These "minor delays" are on almost every line on almost every weekend, and frequently at mid-day on weekdays, too. They don't deign to tell us about these delays until Thursday or Friday, and might forget to update their website at all. They do mention that their online trip planner is not reliable during these delays. So if you're aiming for a bus that runs just once an hour, you will arrive at a random time, and may have to wait up to 59 minutes for the next bus. The scheduled delays aren't just for essential maintenance. The system has been wired so that cell phones will work in the tunnels. But only Verizon cell phones. And now, nearly every week, there's a message on Metro's website such as: Metrorail customers traveling between the L'Enfant Plaza, Capitol South and Potomac Avenue Metrorail stations should add up to 20 minutes of travel time for their trips because Metro is providing Verizon Wireless track access to conduct normal contractual maintenance and emergency work on its cables. Inbound and outbound trains will share one track between these locations. I don't see why all Metro customers should be repeatedly inconvenienced for the benefit of one private phone company and its customers. Think of the Verizon stockholders! There are also plenty of unscheduled delays. For instance any time someone reports an abandoned package, the line it's on is shut down for hours while police "secure the scene," which consists of waiting outside until, if it was a bomb, they figure it would have already gone off. Fares continue to get higher and higher, and levels of service get worse and worse. There's no end in sight for either trend. I think the whole of Metro management should be sacked. Gee, why doesn't everyone use the inexpensive and convenient mass transit in the US. If one did not know better, one would think that the system was intended to be run badly to make mass transit look bad. Ok, smartass, try living in Lafayette for a week without a car. Southern Comfort my ass. |
#548
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: HomegrownTerrorists)
Pat wrote:
On Apr 6, 10:51 pm, Bolwerk wrote: Pat wrote: Oh, I don't want any one moving out here. STAY WHERE YOU ARE. I was just wondering what would motivate someone to want to live like that. It is beyond my comprehension. What motivates you to be so misanthropic? What are you talking about. I can't figure out why anyone would want to live in that city after the poster described the subway ride from hell. Here's my "commute" today. I need to go to a public hearing about 4 hours east of here. I take a few bottle of water (from the tap, not from the store, because tap tastes better), throw in a book on CD from the library (cool history of the Mayflower), and a case with some music. I drive across a lovely expressway. I might hit a bit of traffic in Binghamton but it's never to bad there. Then into the Catskills. Wow. Great place to travel through. Then when you have heard your book work out how America became the Catholic country we see on tv. |
#549
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: HomegrownTerrorists)
On Apr 7, 9:58 am, Pat wrote:
On Apr 6, 10:51 pm, Bolwerk wrote: Pat wrote: Oh, I don't want any one moving out here. STAY WHERE YOU ARE. I was just wondering what would motivate someone to want to live like that. It is beyond my comprehension. What motivates you to be so misanthropic? What are you talking about. I can't figure out why anyone would want to live in that city after the poster described the subway ride from hell. Here's my "commute" today. I need to go to a public hearing about 4 hours east of here. I take a few bottle of water (from the tap, not from the store, because tap tastes better), throw in a book on CD from the library (cool history of the Mayflower), and a case with some music. I drive across a lovely expressway. I might hit a bit of traffic in Binghamton but it's never to bad there. Then into the Catskills. Wow. Great place to travel through. Then I have the public hearing. Then back in the car and drive home. Then, for the rest of the week I am working out of my home and don't have to leave it for much of anything unless I want to. Never once will I bitch about the subway or busses or Verizon in the tunnels. Never once will I have the commute from hell. I live in the Appalachians (Appalacia 'R Us) and get to drive through the Catskills and the Adirondacks on a fairly regular bases. Who could ask for anything more. I enjoy living with a lot of other people. I love being able to live in the most dense city in Minnesota. A lot just because it's were everything is so "happening" if you will. I like being where everything is going on. If I wanted/needed to, I could go anywhere in the City without using a car. It's cool. And I get to look at a beautiful downtown. Who could ask for more? |
#550
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DC Metro (was Reckless, Aggressive Straphangers: HomegrownTerrorists)
Martin Edwards wrote:
Tom Sherman wrote: Keith F. Lynch wrote: Jym Dyer wrote: =v= I've lived in NYC while being tight on cash, and $2/pop for a subway ride can be painful, but not prohibitive. Try DC. Trips are up to $4.50 each way. Even more if you transfer to a bus, or if you park a car at a station. You also have to pay $5.00 for the SmarTrip card, *in addition* to the fare value on it! They even charge extra for secure (enclosed) bike parking, though you can park your bike on a U-rack for free and take your chances. They've raised the rates once so far this year, after a series of public hearing at which the public was unanimously against any further increases and pointed out that Metro was lying about past increases. It wouldn't be quite so bad if not for the chronic delays. Typical was what happened the last time I was foolish enough to try to get somewhere on a weekend, about a month ago. I entered the White Flint Station. After about a quarter hour, during which there were frequent announcements about "minor delays" on the line due to routine scheduled maintenance, a train showed up headed in the correct direction. I boarded it, intending to transfer to the Orange Line at Metro Center. It went out of service at Friendship Heights. Everyone was chased off, after which the train just sat there without moving in either direction. Everyone was told to catch the next train on the opposite track. We did so when it arrived after about another 15 minutes, though it was very crowded. It was going in the wrong direction, back the way I came. I got off at the next station, Bethesda, and, along with many others, asked the guy in the kiosk how to get to Metro Center. He said to catch the next train heading in that direction. I did so when it arrived after about 20 minutes. It went out of service at Friendship Heights. Once again, the train just sat there blocking the track, and people were told to catch the next train on the opposite track. The station platform was very crowded. The sign said the next train would arrive in 18 minutes; the destination was blank. Rather than continuing to go in circles, I exited the station and, along with many others, waited for the next bus heading downtown. A 36 bus arrived after about 20 minutes. It was almost empty when it arrived, but it was absolutely packed when it pulled out, leaving most of the people waiting behind for the next bus. I was able to board, but had to stand. In the crowding, two of my four grocery bags got torn, making them much harder to carry. The bus slowly made its way downtown, occasionally stopping to let someone off, which wasn't easy with all the crowding. People waiting to get on at each stop were not allowed on due to the crowding, which got some of them quite upset; I gather that they had been waiting for a long time and all the buses had been too full to let them board. Metro obviously hasn't bothered to add any additional bus service during the Red Line fiasco. Finally, the bus let us off at the 17th Street entrance to the Farragut West station -- which was closed. Fortunately, I was familiar with that station and knew there was another entrance which is open on weekends. Some people followed my lead. Others gave up on Metro and called taxis. It was an 18 minute wait for the next westbound Orange Line train, but once it arrived it proceeded without further incident. There was also scheduled maintenance on the Orange Line, but fortunately for me it was at the east end of the line. Of course I did have to pay two train fares and one bus fare, and spend over five hours traveling less than 20 miles. This trip could have been done in less than half the time (and much less aggravation) on a bicycle. These "minor delays" are on almost every line on almost every weekend, and frequently at mid-day on weekdays, too. They don't deign to tell us about these delays until Thursday or Friday, and might forget to update their website at all. They do mention that their online trip planner is not reliable during these delays. So if you're aiming for a bus that runs just once an hour, you will arrive at a random time, and may have to wait up to 59 minutes for the next bus. The scheduled delays aren't just for essential maintenance. The system has been wired so that cell phones will work in the tunnels. But only Verizon cell phones. And now, nearly every week, there's a message on Metro's website such as: Metrorail customers traveling between the L'Enfant Plaza, Capitol South and Potomac Avenue Metrorail stations should add up to 20 minutes of travel time for their trips because Metro is providing Verizon Wireless track access to conduct normal contractual maintenance and emergency work on its cables. Inbound and outbound trains will share one track between these locations. I don't see why all Metro customers should be repeatedly inconvenienced for the benefit of one private phone company and its customers. Think of the Verizon stockholders! There are also plenty of unscheduled delays. For instance any time someone reports an abandoned package, the line it's on is shut down for hours while police "secure the scene," which consists of waiting outside until, if it was a bomb, they figure it would have already gone off. Fares continue to get higher and higher, and levels of service get worse and worse. There's no end in sight for either trend. I think the whole of Metro management should be sacked. Gee, why doesn't everyone use the inexpensive and convenient mass transit in the US. If one did not know better, one would think that the system was intended to be run badly to make mass transit look bad. Ok, smartass, try living in Lafayette for a week without a car. Southern Comfort my ass. Where is Lafayette and why would I even want to remotely consider living there? -- Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia The weather is here, wish you were beautiful |
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