By Lena H. Sun
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, October 27, 2006

The fliers look official enough. They are 8 1/2 by 11 inches, have an official-looking Metro "M" logo and the number for a customer call center.

And they come with a sweet promise: Customers who call the transit agency to report a late bus will be rewarded with a free pass "good for ONE WHOLE WEEK of unlimited rides."

Sound too good to be true?

It is.

Metro says it's an early Halloween trick, probably pulled by a frustrated bus rider.

"Obviously, this is a hoax," Metro spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said. "There are no free rides. It still costs $1.25 to ride Metrobus, 35 cents with a transfer from Metrorail."

Metro officials don't know how many fliers are out there. They were alerted to the prank when a customer called the listed number Wednesday afternoon to ask about a free ride. The rider had seen a flier at a stop for L1 and L2 buses at Connecticut Avenue and Military Road NW. The customer took a picture of the flier and sent it to Metro, Farbstein said.

"She fell for it. She thought it was real," Farbstein said.

Bus supervisors were told about the fliers and removed a few along Connecticut Avenue, north of the Van Ness-UDC Metrorail station, she said. Transit police were also put on alert. Bus operators were told of the hoax yesterday and asked to report the locations of any sightings.

By midday yesterday, the customer call center had received only two calls, which were forwarded to the bus division.

"Standing out in all sorts of weather waiting for a late bus is no fun," the flier states. "You rely on Metro to get you to work, to school, shopping, appointments -- safely and ON TIME.

"We know that this route is chronically slow, and we need your help."

The sentiment expressed on the flier is sure to ring true for many Metrobus riders, who have long complained about unreliable schedules. Bus managers have no idea whether buses run on time because they don't monitor performance.

Metrobus carries about 443,000 passengers a day. On an average weekday, about 4,000 people ride L1, L2 and L4 buses, which travel the busy Connecticut Avenue corridor.

"On the serious side, I do think it has raised awareness of the scheduling with the L1 and L2 buses," Farbstein said. "I'm sure street supervisors will be taking an extra look at those routes."

This year, Metro officials proposed a major overhaul of the bus system, scrapping routes with few riders, reducing crowding on heavily traveled routes and skipping some stops to speed trips along certain congested corridors.

The proposals were a first attempt to address Metrobus problems by shifting resources from underused routes to routes that need more service. As a rule, transit officials have shied away from the politically difficult task of cutting bus routes.

What about penalties for posting the fliers?

"I would imagine they have violated copyright of our logo," Farbstein said.

She added that the matter of punishment would have to be taken up with the agency's general counsel. But first, Metro would have to catch the prankster.

"Do you think the likelihood is high? I don't think the likelihood is too high," Farbstein said. "It will be interesting to see if the person resurfaces on April Fool's Day."