Transit

Dear PoP – Has weekend yellow line service in the direction of Huntington been suspended north of Mount Vernon Square?

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user rjs1322

“Dear PoP,

Over the last several months, I have made an observation that I can’t seem to make sense of, and I was hoping that you could clear up my confusion. I live in Columbia Heights, but occasionally travel to Alexandria on the weekend. This is an easy enough trip– hop on the yellow line at Columbia Heights in the direction of Huntington. However, for the last several months, I have noticed that there are no yellow line trains at the Columbia Heights (or U Street) stations in the direction of Huntington on the weekend. The board in the station only displays anticipated arrivals for green line trains, and simply waiting for a yellow line train has proved a failure. Instead of boarding a single train, I am forced to transfer at Chinatown (or Mt Vernon Sq) with standard weekend wait times between trains. Despite this lack of service, trip planner on the WMATA website continues to list departure times for yellow line trains from Columbia Heights toward Huntington and no relevant service disruptions are present on the website. Moreover, there still appear to be yellow line trains traveling in the direction of Fort Totten, so the suspended service is only heading out of the city into Virginia. I don’t do this weekend trip very frequently, but my experience has been consistent.

Has anyone else noticed this? Any clarity would be greatly appreciated!”

I know I’ve still been able to catch the yellow line over the weekends – have others noticed any changes in the yellow line over the weekend.

I know it’s possible in the future that it could get cut/reduced in budget cuts but to my knowledge that has not yet occurred (and hopefully never will!).

Big Union Station Metrorail improvements planned

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user dracisk 365/365

From a WMATA press release:

Union Station is the busiest station in the Metrorail system with 68,000 passengers entering and exiting daily, including 18,000 passengers transferring between Metrorail and Amtrak, MARC and VRE services.

Metro and DDOT recently completed a Union Station Access and Capacity Improvements Study, which identified improvements that would increase the Metrorail station’s safety, capacity and accessibility, reduce passenger travel time and improve connectivity to other transportation modes. Proposed improvements include:

• Improved evacuation capacity in the event of emergency at Union Station;
• Significant safety improvements on all three levels, in particular the Metrorail platform;
• Significant capacity expansion on all three levels of the north mezzanine, platform and concourse;
• Direct link to new development, streetcar and intercity bus terminal;
• Improved access to commuter rail, Amtrak and retail at Union Station; and
• Annual travel time savings from reduced congestion at the north mezzanine.

The Metro Board Finance and Administration Committee today (April 14) gave preliminary approval to advance these improvements by establishing a reimbursable project for the environmental documentation, preliminary engineering and design; establishing a budget of $2.55 million using District of Columbia’s Federal Transit Administration grants and local matching funds; and amending the FY2011 Reimbursable Projects Budget, increasing it from $6.07 million to $8.62 million; and authorizing the General Manager/Chief Executive Officer to negotiate and execute the reimbursable agreement with the District of Columbia.

The full Board is expected to vote on the Union Station access and capacity improvements at its April 28 meeting.

68,000 daily passengers. That is wild!

Dear PoP – Southwest Circulator Route and other Changes

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user fromcaliw/love

“Dear PoP,

You’ve probably already heard, but the Convention Center to Southwest Waterfront Circulator route is in danger of being terminated. A new “Priority Plan” recommends that the route end for two years and a new route be added in 2012. This Circulator route directly connects the hotels in the Convention Center area to Southwest Waterfront and provides a really important economic boost to the Arena Stage, Southwest marina and the few new businesses that have begun opening in the area. The city has invested millions of tax payer dollars in Southwest Waterfront’s revival – ending a key transportation source will seriously undermine the economic growth spurred by that investment.

If readers want to submit their comments in support of maintaining the route, they can do so on Circulator’s website here.”

Hmm, according to the press release below it looks like there will still be SW service.

From a DDOT press release:

On April 1, 2011, the DC Circulator will implement service changes affecting the Smithsonian-National Gallery of Art route, the Union Station-Navy Yard route, and the Convention Center-SW Waterfront route. Public notice of these changes was made on March 2 and a public meeting was held to discuss them on March 17. Details of the changes are as follows:

  • All service will end on the Smithsonian-National Gallery of Art route. Last year, an average of 2,427 passengers per month – fewer than 11 passengers an hour – utilized this route. The District was subsidizing each passenger an average of $11.50 per trip and has decided to end the service because it did not meet ridership or financial targets. (All historic ridership metrics can be found on our performance measures dashboard located at circulatordashboard.dc.gov.) Visitors to the National Mall should consult GoDCGo.com or the Metro Trip Planner at wmata.com to discover alternative public transit options in the National Mall area.
  • Savings gained from ending the Smithsonian-National Gallery of Art route will be reinvested to extend hours on the Union Station-Navy Yard route, providing a great travel option for evening activities on Capitol Hill and in the Capitol Riverfront area. Beginning April 1 through September 30, 2011, this route will operate Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., and on Saturdays from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
  • On Nationals home game days, the Union Station-Navy Yard route will continue to operate later into the evening and on Sundays in order to transport fans to and from baseball games. A 2011 baseball schedule with Circulator service hours can be found at DCCirculator.com under the “Where We Go” tab.
  • In the Southwest Waterfront area, service will be moved off Water Street, SW and onto Maine Avenue, SW, a very short distance away. Circulator stops will move to Maine Avenue at 7th Street, SW and Maine Avenue at 9th Street, SW. This change is made necessary due to pending construction of the Washington Kastles stadium on Water Street that will narrow traffic lanes.

You can see the full plan in pdf below:

Circulator-Transit-Development-Plan_Draft-Final_3-23-11

Dear PoP – Cabs Won’t Take Me Home

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user Jess J

“Dear PoP,

I was outside Meridian Pint with a friend in Columbia Heights on Saturday night around 12 am trying to get a cab home. I live around 8th & E NE. I flagged down four cabs and all refused my fare, two saying “I don’t go to Northeast,” one who just said “no” and drove away, and the fourth saying he was on his way home to Silver Spring and my address was out of his way. I was under the impression it was illegal for cab drivers to refuse fares in the District, and when I brought that up to the first cab driver he said he didn’t care. After briefly driving off, he came back and tried to bargain a price with me and when I refused to do so, he told me that my choice was stupid and sped off. Unfortunately, I did not have time to take down his information to report him. Do you know of anyone else who’s had trouble getting home to NE (or anywhere else in the District)? And what can I do about this if it happens in the future?”

When I first moved to Petworth in 2003 cabs used to refuse to take me home all the time. It’s hard to describe how frustrating that feeling was. Fortunately that rarely happens to me anymore. At the time I think folks just recommended taking down their license number on the visor? Does anyone know what phone number/who to contact with that info? Have others encountered a tough time catching a cab to other quadrants of the city? Do folks who go the H St, NE or the Hill have a tough time catching a cab back to NW and vice versa? What’s the best advice for when a cab refuses to take you home?

Friday Question of the Day – How Important is the Yellow Line Service to Ft. Totten to you?

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user D©Bloom

Yesterday we spoke about the possibility of metro reducing weekend hours to midnight from 3am. My ANC commissioner Rob Mandle sent a note with even more potential bad news:

“The WMATA Board is considering cutting late night service hours as well as yellow line off-peak service to Fort Totten. I’d like to hear from constituents on this issue. I personally am against both service cuts, but the offpeak service reductions concern me the most.”

Is the continuation of the yellow line service to Ft. Totten important to you?

Metro Considering Weekend Closure at Midnight to Make time for Track Repairs

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo of metro map circa 1996 by PoPville flickr user ep_jhu

The Washington Post’s Ann Tyson tweets this morning:

Metro deputy Dave Kubicek said if Metro closes at midnight on Fri and Sat instead of 3 am it could gain 45 days/ year for track work.

Metro board members say public hearings should inform riders of the trade-offs from service cuts, such as gaining track work time.

Considering we get frequent WMATA alerts about maintenance closures like:

On the Blue and Orange Lines, there will be no train service between the Metro Center and L’Enfant Plaza Metrorail stations, and the two stations between — Federal Triangle and Smithsonian Metrorail stations — will be closed during the Presidents Day Holiday Weekend from 10 p.m., Friday, Feb. 18, to closing on Monday, Feb. 21. During that time, the agency will undertake work to replace four track switches at the Smithsonian Metrorail station and make repairs to escalators and elevators.

Do you think it makes sense to for metro to close at midnight on weekends to free up more time for track maintenance/repair?

So What Happens to the H St, NE Shuttle Vans Now that they are no longer in Service?

By Prince Of Petworth

At the end of this year the H St, NE shuttle stopped running from Chinatown to H St, NE (and a bit of Bladensburg Rd) and back. I noticed one of the shuttles (pictured above) by Mt. Vernon Square. Do you think the shuttles will be painted over and used for something else – or will they just get mothballed in case the service gets funded again?

On a related note, has the suspension/end of the service affected how often you got to H St, NE?

Friday Question of the Day – Is Selling Naming Rights to Metro Stations a Good Idea?

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user Sandra Sitar

It’s long been known that metro’s budget is facing tough times. As I mentioned yesterday, they even seem to be looking the other way on questionable ads. A reader writes:

“[From U Street Metro] The first sign you see on your way in is Metro’s “this is not a diner” anti-eating/drinking campaign. The second one you see is this one, essentially telling people to bring their Green Mountain coffee on Metro.”

On Thursday TBD reported:

“Metro CFO Carol Kissal said this morning that the agency is considering selling to corporations the naming rights to Metro stations. She said the move could bring in up to $2 million to the cash-strapped agency.”

This almost sounds like a joke but if it’s actually being considered – I gotta ask – do you think it’s a good idea?

Also who do you think would have the deep pockets to purchase a name? Well there are 86 stations so that would come to roughly $23,000 for a metro station. And how would it work – would it be something like, “next stop Georgia Ave/Petworth” sponsored by The House? Next stop “Columbia Heights sponsored by Ellwood Thompson’s Target”?

Foggy Bottom Metro Closed This Weekend, No service between the Rosslyn and Farragut West Metrorail stations

By Prince Of Petworth

From a WMATA press release:

Metro will conduct significant safety and reliability work on the Blue, Orange and Red lines to comply with National Transportation Safety Board recommendations during the Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK) Holiday Weekend, causing some temporary service changes for customers. The agency will replace four track switches at the Foggy Bottom-GWU Metrorail station, conduct repairs on escalators and elevators and improve cell phone coverage.

On the Blue and Orange Lines, there will be no service between the Rosslyn and Farragut West Metrorail stations, and the Foggy Bottom-GWU Metrorail station will be closed during the MLK Holiday Weekend from 10 p.m., Friday, Jan. 14, to closing on Monday, Jan. 17. From 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Jan. 15 to 17, extra Metro employees will be available at the Rosslyn, Foggy Bottom-GWU and Farragut West Metrorail stations to help customers navigate around the weekend closure. Virginia riders headed into the city are encouraged to use the Yellow Line to get downtown to avoid the track closure, yet still conveniently transfer to Blue and Orange trains at L’Enfant Plaza.

And on a side note, this is a head scratching advertising campaign considering you can’t drink on metro…

Do DC Bus Drivers Have a Deserved Bad Reputation?

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville flickr user dcienne

From Monday’s random reader rant and/or revel post:

“I’m fairly new to town, do DC bus drivers have a reputation of being nasty or is it just me? I’ve not had a pleasant experience with a single one. Including a recent ride where I was unsure of specifics and entirely ignored by the driver after asking him some four times if I was going in the correct direction. Even my pleas for a simple nod went unnoticed. I might add that it was way too early in the evening and me way to sober and polite to have been misconstrued as some prank by a drunk ass****, nor was the bus at all crowded.

I’ve spent the better part of my life between New York and New Orleans and have never dealt with such s***-bag transit workers. Well, except on Boston regional rail… Different story though.

Do all DC bus drivers hate the world?”

I’m more of a metro, bike, walker. So, for the regular bus riders – what have your bus riding experiences been like? I imagine that bus drivers probably have to deal with particularly stressful/difficult situations often. Do you think bus drivers get a bad rap?

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