From WMATA:

“Metro has published a project webpage to keep customers and the community informed about the effort to rebuild the Traction Power Substation outside Stadium-Armory that was heavily damaged in a fire on September 21.

Following a full week of equipment testing, the project remains on track for completion this calendar year — about three months sooner than originally projected. Metro will restore normal service on the Blue, Orange and Silver lines as soon as the substation is returned to service.

Riders can view a video [above] and get details about upcoming project milestones by visiting here.


farrgut

Certainly there are bigger fish to fry but it is indicative… A reader writes:

“It took me two phone calls to convince WMATA that having “Farragut” spelled wrong in their Next Train feature on the website was a problem they should be embarrassed by. All the “next train” apps pull from this site, so it’s spelled wrong when you pull up the station info in the app. It gets better. It’s also wrong in the arrival signs in Union Station, so everywhere …”

One week later:

“Ok. Farragut is still spelled wrong.”


8190063882_c19abee8a0_z
Photo by PoPville flickr user Josh Bassett

I love these. Just found out about them and their author, John Nicoll, yesterday and he’s agreed to submit a new poem every week. You can spot John on the Red Line commuting between Brookland and Bethesda. “MetroHaikuDC‘s daily transit musings are brightening DC’s metro tunnels, 17 syllables at a time. I started writing a haiku a day on my 40 minute daily train ride to and from work. It passes the time and keeps things lighthearted in some of the metro’s darkest times.”

Let’s kick things off with Level Up:

“Businessman types hard
Must be really important
Brick Breaker high score”


CRiKn8QWwAAGBnp

A reader reports just after 10:30am:

“16th Street, NW closed in both directions since about 10:30 between Taylor and Upshur. A motorcycle going south crashed into a Prius turning left onto Upshur. Police officer at the scene says the motorcycle driver is alive. I saw a little girl being transported. The motorcycle was in a burnt up heap in the middle of the street. Traffic is being diverted down Webster and Varnum.”

michael sends us the photo above around 1pm.


metro
Photo by PoPville flickr user kellybdc

Ripping the band aid right off:

“Reconstruction of the Metrorail system will continue over the weekend of October 16-18 with service adjustments on five of six lines beginning at 10:00 p.m. Friday and continuing through system closing on Sunday.

Green Line trains operate at regular weekend intervals.
Red, Orange, Silver, Blue and Yellow line trains will operate every 24 minutes.


potworth
A real typo from a North-South planning session in 2013.

“Dear PoPville,

I wanted to ask if you have any information on the Georgia Avenue streetcar. Is it just a myth that one will be coming our way? I live in North Petworth near Georgia, which is unequivocally remote, and a streetcar would be a boon for business and home values up on Georgia. I checked the website for the streetcar, but it doesn’t provide much information.”

hahahahha ah wait a second, wait a second. I’m sorry, I apologize – I’ve gathered myself. There was a time not that long ago where I’d say – 100% it will absolutely happen. However after the utter debacle of the H Street/Benning Road implementation I’m not so sure. What’s the expression: Fool me 500 times shame on me? Maybe if H Street/Benning starts carrying passengers and is an incredible success it might still happen. Though I should note that as recently as Feb. 2014 there were still active meetings to discuss “a 9-mile, North-South corridor that connects the Takoma/Silver Spring area to the Buzzard Point/Southwest Waterfront area.”

I figure, God willing, I have around 40 years left on this earth and I would not bet that a Georgia Ave Streetcar will be carrying passengers in my lifetime. It saddens me because I think it would’ve been great for north country and around the Walter Reed development – but based on recent experiences I’m not encouraged. I think gondolas will be flying into Georgetown before a streetcar is running on Georgia Ave. I would love to be wrong though! For it to happen I think there’d need to be a serious advocate at the highest levels of leadership. At this point I just don’t think an extensive streetcar line is a serious priority for the powers that be. Anyone think a Georgia Ave Streetcar Line will actually happen? In the next 40 years? What happens first – Georgia Ave Streetcar or DC Statehood?


View More Stories