Having lived in the area, there are three basic issues that cannot be overcome:
1. No mayor, no governor, and no federal authority overseeing the mess. It’s an executive manager of sorts, with a committee, but practically impossible to fire.
2. The drivers, mechanics, and operations people, that all came after the original crew....got inside info on how to get hired, and there’s suspicion that half of them are not mentally alert enough to do their job.
3. Three separate states/districts oversee the mess with their funding.
I can onky comment as an out of towner who has ridden Metro on occasional visits to Washington. But, have to say, Metro has employees who, as a group, are very unhelpful. They are not helpful when people ask how to use the farecard machines or how to figure out how much it costs to ride from one station to your destination. They are unhelpful if you ask how to get somewhere, where to change trains, etc. The train conductors who make announcements on the trains are often hard to understand, due to poor pronunciation.
I’ve ridden public transportation in many cities but never encountered such basic problems as found on Washington’s Metro. Based on this, I have a feeling that Metro employees just aren’t very well trained. And lack of training had tragic consequences when this smoky train accident happened.
If you want to make sense out of the DC Metro, know one thing. It is not a public transportation system. It is a jobs program. It is a money conduit. This is why no money gets spent on unnecessary things like repairs or maintenance.
Oh, but the gubmint will run the entire health care system just fine, thank you very much.
In a few years, when I'm waiting months for an ultra-sound, I'll just picture myself stuck in a smokey tunnel, no forward motion, and no one in a hurry to get me out.
Pathetic.
The sheeple stayed on the smoke-filled car for over an hour waiting to be rescued at the behest of the conductor. This despite the fact the closest station was less than 300 feet away.
Third rail wasn’t shut off till over 30 minutes after the train reported a problem. Plus the ventilation system wasn’t working.
Sorry, but if I’m underground in a subway car filling with smoke my ass is out the door and walking towards the last platform.
Then just the other day the Metro said they wanted to increase fares or decrease service as they aren’t making enough money. The arrogance is astonishing.
If a malfunction could do this, imagine what a few terrorists could do. These metro folks damn well better get their $hit together in a big hurry.
“First, the DC Fire squad was woefully slow to arrive; victims say more than 30 minutes.”
Well, they had to take the Metro! Duh. ;)