Happy New Year From Metro

Or better the first ride from hell on Metro for 2010.

I take the Metro to work every day. I can leave my house and be sitting at my desk in just about 30 minutes. Yesterday, I left my house at 8:10 (I will admit I was running late), I didn’t get into my office until 9:30.

Here’s how the trip to work started. I was running late. I kept forgetting things. I even had to go back and get a letter I wanted to mail. I got to the station and just missed the train on the platform. There was an announcement that there was a problem but it was not in the direction I was going. I started being concerned when three trains came through the station in the opposite direction (the direction that supposedly had the problem). Finally a train going in my direction pulled into the station. It was packed. There was no way to get on to it.

I didn’t try very hard to get on because there was just no room. I hate people who try and squeeze onto a train when there is essentially no room. They usually somehow manage to get in but it ain’t pretty. I decided I would wait for the next one to come along. It finally showed up. In the mean time going in the opposite direction were another three trains (you might notice that this becomes a pattern).

I got on. It was crowded and only got more crowded the more stations we went to. I was close to one of the doors and at Judiciary Square, in order for people to get off the train, I had to step off on to the platform. Well I couldn’t get back on to the train there was just not enough room. OK, I thought I’ll just wait for the next one. It should be by in a couple of minutes.

A couple of minutes turned into 15 minutes. And again while waiting going in the opposite direction three to four trains. Well if the time between trains is 15 minutes and you’re at the stop after Union Station one of the Red Lines busiest guess what you can’t get on the train. The train after that was due into the station for something like 13 minutes. I was less than pleased.

Metro announced that there was a delay on the Blue and Yellow lines because of a sick passenger but nothing about what was going on on the Red Line. Nothing.

The next train rolls into Judiciary Square. I walked up and down the whole length of the train. I was able to do that because it was held at the station. If I wanted to squeeze like a sardine I probably could have gotten but I decided I wasn’t going to do that. The train eventually went on its way

The time to the next train was a decent interval. I was able to get on but it was still crowded. It got even more crowded at the next station Gallery Place, which is a transfer station to another line. We were packed in. Thankfully I only had one station to go.

The problem I have is that Metro should have been aware of what was happening on the Red Line and letting people know what was going on. But then again Metro had never been good at giving out information to passengers. Good to see the new year hasn’t changed anything.