Roads and Rails

Do you think Metro has grown unreliable and become downright unpleasant? Or are you happy with your commutes on rail and bus? Does the thought of the inter-county connector (ICC) keep you up at night or does it seem like it's long overdue? And what of the moves by Maryland and Virginia to encourage the private sector to build road projects, such as widening the Capital Beltway?

Washington Post staff writers Eric Weiss and Lena Sun were online Monday, Feb. 2 at 11 a.m. ET to answer your traffic and transit questions.

The transcript follows.

Discussion Archive

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Eric Weiss: Good morning commuters!

Are we ready for another inauguration? Or an emergency evacuation? How would YOU spend the stimulus dollars for transportation?

Or...hit us with your complaints, questions and suggestions as always. Give Lena the hard questions.

Let's go!

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Arlington, Va.: As a frequent Metrobus rider, I occasionally wonder if the woefully inaccurate automated location announcements mislead people. Given that very few of the announcements are accurate, and they have the potential to confuse people who are vision impaired or unfamiliar with the area, why do they persist? I'm just glad that in all of my travels in buses elsewhere where I don't know where I'm going, I've never encountered any such thing.

Lena Sun: Hi Arlington. Are you referring to the signs outside the bus saying what their destinations are? I understand there's been some computer glitch that's making some of the display signs incorrect.

I know it is frustrating to deal with Metro as a customer because it's hard to get through on the phone line and you often have to wait for a human and when he/she comes on, their customers service attitude could be better. But best to report such things because they sometimes don't know there is a problem. And even if they are aware of it, having customers call in with specific info can help them track it down and fix it.

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Washington, D.C.: Hey guys,

7th Street, NW stinks as a two-way street most of the time for a variety of reasons. How realistic is it to change it to a one-way northbound street, say from Pennsylvania to New York?

Eric Weiss: Not very realistic. The only north-south one-way street I can think of is 15th between Pennsylvania and I.

7th Street by the Verizon Center is now one of the city's most happening restaurant and nightlife areas, and with so many pedestrians around, I doubt the city would want to do anything that would speed up traffic.

And speeding up auto traffic is no longer the highest priority for the District anymore. Instead making streets safer for pedestrians, bicyclists and the growing number of residents in that corridor is more important.

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Union Station, DC: Do you know why the circle outside of Union Station is never treated after ice and snow storms? Last Wednesday the entire area around the fountain was a sheet of ice and you could tell no one had done a thing (this was around 8:30 am). People were falling and slipping everywhere, or else walking around in the street only to be splashed by buses. It seems very unsafe to me.

Lena Sun: There was a lot of ice everywhere last week--and in many neighborhoods, including mine, there was still a lot of ice this morning despite the warm sun yesterday.

I just called Union Station management office and a woman in the front office said the circle outside the station, Columbus Circle, falls under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service. So that's where you should direct your complaint.

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Washington, D.C.: How long will it take D.C. to complete Benning Road, NE? I feel like my car is going to break into a thousand pieces every time I am so unfortunate to travel that road. I can't avoid it for work purposes and if my car does break apart, where do I send the bill?

Eric Weiss: It is a massive three-year infrastructure and streetscape project that just completed its first year. It's one of the city's Great Streets initiative.

As for your car-repair bills, send them to DC city hall, where they will be quickly and efficiently processed and promptly paid.

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one-way streets: Huh? 12th is one-way north; 9th is one-way south.

Seventh should have more parking restrictions during busy hours. That's part of the problem. So it the timing of lights right near Pennsylvania Avenue, which cause massive backups.

Eric Weiss: True, true. But you are missing the point. Parking restrictions and anything done to quicken commuter or other traffic cutting through from Pennsylvania to New York Avenues is just not a priority. If anything, increasing the turnover of available parking spaces to accommodate diners and shoppers is in the cards.

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DC: "As for your car-repair bills, send them to DC city hall, where they will be quickly and efficiently processed and promptly paid."

He's here all week folks - 2 drink minimum..

Eric Weiss: ba-dum-bum!

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Washington, D.C.: Now that someone in authority has laid out the dire financial status Metro finds itself in(thanks Mr. Zimmerman), in plain talk, it is time for the region to do what must be done. Metro must have increased, and more regular and predictable funding, just to maintain current service levels, much less expand or increase. However, Metro's riders already contribute a disproportionate share of revenues. It is time for progressive leadership from elected officials across the region- the contributing jurisdictions must dramatically increase subsidy levels to Metro. Riders understand that fares will also rise eventually, but the longstanding imbalance between fare revenue and local subsidy must be reversed, out of fairness to riders and to ensure adequate revenue for the maintenance of current service levels. We can all hope for added support from the federal government, but the bottom line is that local elected officials must find the political will to coax more funding from each of the jurisdictions in the compact. All over the country people have been voting to tax themselves more to provide funds for transit- we must join the trend if we are to continue to have a working, reliable transit system in the national capitol area.

Lena Sun: Hi Washington. You are quite right that Metro is not the only transit agency that finds itself with increasing ridership and greater demand for service but forced to make equally unpalatable choice between service cuts and fare increases. New Yorkers are facing huge fare hikes this spring and last year the NY system, largest in the country, had phenomenal increase in ridership.

And you are right again that Metro riders, really Metrorail riders, cover a much higher percent of their rides than other agencies. (Not so for bus riders, so in effect, the train folks are subsidizing the bus folks.)

But the elected and appointed officials that make up the Metro board hail from three jursidictions, and they have said repeatedly that there is simply not the funds to give more. Metro's budget for the coming year assumes the jurisdictions will only be able to provide the same level of subsidies as in the current budget.

The jurisdictions have sent in their list of recommended service cuts, and that is supposed to be made public later this month.

Lobby your elected representatives. Sorry for this long-winded answer.

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washingtonpost.com: $5.28 Million Asked for Inaugural Transit (Post, Jan. 30)

Lena Sun: The budget process is going to go through the spring and the Metro board must pass a budget in June.

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Alexandria, Va.: What's the deal with the slug lot at Bob's? I am a driver and I heard they might be moving the line?

Eric Weiss: Check out Slug-lines.com, the place to find out about all things slugging.

http://slug-lines.com

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Washington, D.C.: Is there a number to call to let someone know when the traffic lights are malfunctioning or the timing is off? Yesterday the lights around Thomas Circle were badly mistimed, causing a long backup. Thanks!

Eric Weiss: You can lodge a complaint in the District by calling 311.

But I have found that the lights around circles are designed to make it a slog for vehicles.

A true roundabout, as in Europe, has no traffic lights and is designed to circulate traffic by smooth merges without stops.

If measured against that standard, Thomas, Scott and Logan Circle fail miserably.

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Atlanta: I'm not from D.C. but I was there for President Obama's Inauguration. I thought the Metro system was a big failure on Inauguration Day. It took my family two hours to get from Springfield, Va. to the Capitol South stop. I was hoping for more efficiency.

Mired at the Metro

Lena Sun: Hi Atlanta. Not sure if that two hours included time spent waiting to get into parking lot and then waiting to get on a train. The Metro officials here had been warning folks that there would be long long lines and extremely long waits, which seemed more pronounced in the afternoon when officials controlled the flow of people into the station.

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Clifton, Va.: Sorry no new taxes and no redistribution of taxes to Metro from Virginia. Metro needs to go on a budget diet to include outsourcing of every union job first and some real budget controls.

Roads come first. Mass transit can wilt!

Lena Sun: Boo on you Clifton! I disagree.

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Virginia: Can I make a public service announcement? People, when you're on the train or the bus (or even in your car sometimes), please remember you're in a PUBLIC place. Please don't pick your nose and then eat it (true story, I've seen it happen), don't pick your ears, etc. You may feel like you're in the privacy of your own home, but you're not. We see you, and you should be ashamed of yourselves.

Lena Sun: Okay, I know it's approaching lunchtime for many folks and we are NOT trying to gross people out here on this chat. But I have to include this public service announcement.

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Arlington, Va.: I was talking about the voice announcements on buses. It is a woman's voice saying things like "North Quincy Street" when we are nowhere near N Quincy St. I've never really kept track of which buses have the wrong announcements to make a formal report, but quite a few do. Mostly (always?) I have heard it while on metrobuses in Virginia.

Lena Sun: Hi Arlington. Thanks for those specifics. Let's post it here and hope that the ever-vigilant folks at Metro who sometimes follow along on the chat will pass this along to the folks in the bus division, especially the ones that run in Virginia.

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Washington, D.C.: Oh, Eric--you are so funny! The District is more focused on improving pedestrians safety than speeding up traffic! Ha, Ha, Ha! Having lived in the District a decade without a car, I know that's not true. In fact, in the area you were talking about, Penn Quarter, I was in a crosswalk while three cars ran the red light endangering me and the other pedestrians all while a police officer watched and did nothing. I have frequently seen such violations in front of police officers and never seen them ticket a driver. And the fact that drivers will commit such violations right in front of the police clearly demonstrates that drivers in this area know that the police will do nothing to help keep pedestrians safe.

Eric Weiss: I'm shocked, shocked at your sarcasm, Washington!

I was talking about official city transportation policy. You are complaining about lack of enforcement of crosswalk rules by Metropolitan Police officers. Clearly, the police officers you saw were not doing their jobs.

The police also do not enforce traffic rules broken by rogue bicyclists, who want all the rights of being a vehicle and none of the responsibilities, such as stopping at traffic lights and yielding for pedestrians.

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Arlington, Va.: Has Metro already started cutting service? Trains seemed to be a good bit farther apart this morning on the Orange and Blue lines.

Lena Sun: No. Metro is talking about cutting service, but we're some months away from knowing whether that will happen, and how that will happen. I checked with Metro a little while ago and was told they were not aware of any particular incidents on Orange and Blue this morning. There was a sick passenger on the Green Line.

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Re: Slug Lines: Why are slugs treated differently from hitchhikers? How come one is encouraged and the other discouraged?

Eric Weiss: First off, slugs don't rob you, shoot you and steal your car.

Second, slugs are commuters picked up at designated areas off of highways such as park-and-ride lots and bus stops, and there are at least two slugs to a car, making all three strangers feel safe. And slugging has a surprisingly good safety record.

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"Please don't pick your nose and then eat it (true story, I've seen it happen)": But it's okay to wipe it on the metal poles on the Metro?

(In all seriousness...wash your hands after you ride the subway. How many other thousands of hands have touched that pole today?)

Eric Weiss: You just ruined my lunch.

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Washington, D.C.: There's a frequent poster who always asks why the Post focuses so much on public transportation and why so much money goes towards public transportation when most people commute by driving. I want to point out that 1) those taking public transportation are greatly reducing road traffic and helping the environment and 2) Far more money is spent subsidizing drivers and the auto industry--by having tax dollars pay for roads--than goes towards public transportation. The airline industry is similarly subsidized.

Yet there's a group of people who complain that Amtrak should operate like a private business (nonsense) and there's too much tax money spent on public transportation. What can we do to make people aware of the disproportionate amount of tax money spent subsidizing the auto and airline industries?

Lena Sun: Keep writing in and pressure your elected officials.

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Alexandria, Va.: As a daily commuter over the Wilson Bridge, a huge shout out of joy over the fact that the new roads actually seem to work! I haven't had single backup in months in the morning from Virginia to Maryland, and have noticed little backup from Maryland to Virginia in the morning as well. Plus the 295 approach to the Wilson Bridge in the afternoon rush hour now flows nicely. Uh oh, have I just jinxed this?

Eric Weiss: Woo-hoo! Let the record show actual praise for the Wilson Bridge!

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Navy Yard: I spend quite a bit of time in the 7th street area, and given the massive crush of crowds on the sidewalks on a typical night, and its even worse if there's a Verizon center event or a weekend night (And if there is both? Watch out!), I have to say, I'm all for slowing down the traffic! If I get bumped off the sidewalk and into the road, which I've seen happen frequently, at least traffic is usually going slow enough to avoid an accident.

I know we're all having a tough time trying to balance our automotive needs with those of a changing city-scape that is trying to be more pedestrian friendly, but I'd much rather make someone's commute a little longer than see someone seriously injured or killed.

Eric Weiss: I think that is the balance that city officials are striving for, even though not everyone gets the message.

The greater point is that when faced with a decision that will favor cars or pedestrians, the city has, for the last few years and for the foreseeable furture, choose pedestrians. They see it as a key to encouraging more people to live downtown.

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Re: Clifton: I ride Metro constantly and I agree with Clifton. Metro is a mishmash of escalator and elevator repairs that take eons, numerous employees that earn absurd overtime, and a board that enjoys leather chairs and rejecting FOIA requests while pleading poverty.

Every time Metro complains, we find more money under another roll of fat.

Lena Sun: There are definitely folks at Metro who have that entitlement attitude, from those on the front line to ones at the highest levels. But at the same time, there are tons of folks who are trying to do a good job and get folks where they need to go. A lot of that was on display on Inauguration Day.

And based on your remarks, I wonder if this is Michael sending in this comment?

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Washington, D.C.: re: "Metro needs to go on a budget diet to include outsourcing of every union job first and some real budget controls."

Metro has its budget posted on the Web for all to see (and complain about). With the increasing privatization of building and maintaining roads, I doubt we'll see even that level of accountability.

Lena Sun: On those union jobs, which account for the largest portion of Metro's budget increase every year: the contracts and provisions date back to when Metro was created decades ago. Which means the unions, particularly the largest one that represents more than 7,000 of Metro's 10,000 employees, have a great deal more leverage than management.

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Why not one-way?: Many cities alternate one-way streets. I'm not advocating speeding up 7th street, but just keeping it flowing would be nice. As it stands a driver wanting to turn left must wait for both pedestrians AND oncoming traffic and ties up the only clear lane.

Eric Weiss: Many of the city's east-west streets are one-way.

For urban planners, a congested area such as around the Verizon Center means it is successful. People want to be there.

Do you think drivers in NYC would be taken seriously complaining about how traffic in Times Square slows down their commute?

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For Clifton: Move to Kansas or Montana, where there are plenty of roads. Not many people or cities, but heck, you'll be able to drive as fast and far as you like.

Lena Sun: Posting some other opinions.

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Arlington, Va.: I understand that the area jurisdictions have budget problems too, but the representatives need to recognize that part of what makes places like Arlington, Silver Spring, and DC desirable places to live is Metro. The more they cut back on service, the less enjoyable it is to live in those places.

Lena Sun: Hi Arlington. If you live in Arlington, as I suspect, your representative is Chris Zimmerman, who is one of the longest current serving members on the board and had his turn as chairman last year.

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Washington, D.C.: Ha ha ha ha! The chatter was correct about the lack of enforcement of egregious violations such as running red lights or bicyclists/motocyclists zipping in and out of traffic. But you can rest assured if your car is parked 30 seconds over an expired meter, you will get a ticket. Or if you are too far from the curb. Or if you didn't display your tag correctly. Or... you get the idea. D.C. cares WAY more about parking than safety. Best example ever of that is Novak hitting a homeless guy and getting a $50 ticket. I parked in the no cars after 4:30 spot and was towed and ticketed $100. Glad to know D.C. has its priorities straight!

Eric Weiss: I am not going to defend the city's traffic enforcement system.

But when I was covering the D.C. Council, most council members and residents complained about the LACK of traffic enforcement, especially in the neighborhoods. And DC has nothing over NYC over enforcement. New York tows!

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Crystal City, Va.: Why does Yellow line rush hour service end at 9 a.m.? After 9 a.m., the terminus switches to Fort Totten (the off-peak hour terminus) and trains run about every 10-11 minutes. But I still pay rush-hour fare! Why does blue still run every six minutes and orange every four minutes while yellow barely runs -- but I pay the same?

Lena Sun: Before rush-hour ends at 9:30, personnel start to reduce the number of trains, on all lines. But it's not supposed to happen as early as 9 a.m. Is it happening every day? If so, you need to jot down the date and time and location, and let Metro know.

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Washington, D.C.: Oh, now you did it, talking about bikes. As a regional bike commuter, I have been hit two times in the last three years by cars while in a marked bike lane. I don't count pushing matches with vehicles where I don't end up in the ER. Drive up or down 11th street one day and count the number of cars parked in the bike lane, average 1 per block, and the number of cars using the bike lanes as passing lanes 2-3 per round trip per day. On a bike you are on your own. Sure there are really bad bike riders, guess what those are the ones who get hit the least.

Eric Weiss: I commute by bus, bicycle and sometimes car. And while there are many cyclists who play by the rules, there are many others who don't. A bicycle is considered a vehicle under the law, and is entitled to many things. But I see a lot of cyclists who take advantage of the priviledges but who consider red lights a suggestion, ride the wrong way down one-way streets and ride on sidewalks.

We all have to share our public space and play by the rules.

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Shout out for Blue line Metro operator: I've had the pleasure of riding the Blue line in the direction of Springfield -- with a particular Metro operator -- occasionally on the weekend and during the week between 4:15-4:45 (I get on at Farragut West) who is personable, explains clearly what is happening when there is a delay of any length and keeps you informed the entire time and passes along safety and ridership tips at each stop. Just wanted to give credit where credit is due.

Lena Sun: Isn't that nice when it happens? If you can remember, write down the train car number (on the inside doors at the two ends of the rail car and also on the outside of the rail car) and fill out one of the cards that the station manager has at kiosk. They can figure out who the operator was by the time and the rail car and station.

Or if that's too much trouble, push the intercom button on the way out and let him/her know.

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One-way on 7th: I'm not necessarily trying to make traffic faster for cars just safer for peds and cars. Right now, it's a little chaotic in an unsafe way.

It's hard to cross the street most of the time because traffic is coming from all directions. Also, there is not proper bike or transit lane because cars what is now just painted lines as a full traffic lane. I proper transit/bike lane and one-way traffic could help that a little.

Eric Weiss: The city has taken a big step by deploying traffic officers at troubled intersections. Maybe some should be deployed around the Verizon Center area.

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Washington, D.C.: Do you agree with me that bus's failure to pull to the curb is a safety issue (also one of accessibility, of course)? I see buses block traffic, then traffic tries to go around them all the while pedestrians are trying to cross the street, etc. One of the worst examples is on Belcrest Road by the mall in Hyattsville. There is a special lane for the bus stop yet buses routinely fail to pull in there. So you have buses blocking traffic, traffic trying to go around, right by a mall entrance and a pedestrian crosswalk. Crazy! And it is not like traffic is so bad that buses that pulled to the curb could not get back out into traffic fairly easily. I cannot convince Metro this practice is dangerous.

Eric Weiss: Buses should use the bus stop area and pull over to the curb when possible.

But when it is not possible, They should take up an entire road lane, so as not to encourage drivers to sneak by.

Also, do not make a right in front of a stopped bus. Very dangerous.

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Vienna, Va.: What about spending some of the stimulus money on Metro expansion? In addition to various extensions from current terminal stations (like the Orange line from Vienna to Centreville) that are occasionally discussed, what about some additions that would allow at least some people to avoid transferring at the crowded Metro Center and L'Enfant Plaza stations?

Yes, a pedestrian tunnel between Farragut North and Farragut West would be helpful, but what about a branch of the Red Line running from the Tenleytown station down Wisconsin Avenue with stops at Cathedral heights (Wisconsin and Mass Aves.), Georgetown, Rosslyn and Arlington Cemetery (the latter two on the current Blue Line), and then tunnel under the Potomac River to connect with the Green Line at the Waterfront station?

Add a connection from the eastbound Orange Line to the southbound Blue Line, connecting the Court House and Arlington Cemetery stations, and a large number of passengers could avoid changing trains at one of the downtown DC stations. It would also make getting to and from Nationals games much easier for many passengers. Yeah, this would cost several billion dollars to construct, but sometimes bold, outside-the-box thinking is needed. Your thoughts?

Lena Sun: All of these are good ideas, but the stimulus money is supposed to go for projects that can be done relatively quickly. That more or less rules out big projects like a pedestrian tunnel or anything involving digging, tunneling, and adding stations. That's an enormous amount of work and time.

On Metro's $530 million wish list are things like repairs to station platforms that are falling apart; buying new buses and fixing/building new bus garages to replace really old ones. Some bus garages are almost 100 years old.

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New to Maryland: Hi. I just became a daily MARC rider two weeks ago. So far, I've been VERY impressed. Clean cars and seats, reliable service (so far), and an honest attempt to stick to the schedule.

So, I bought my monthly pass for February. But where do I get those neat plastic protector things? I don't think this flimsy piece of paper is going to last a whole month!

Lena Sun: That's good to hear. I think you can go back to where you bought your pass and ask for one of those protectors. They call them lanyards. Good luck.

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Lena Sun: folks that's all for today. Small incident at Mcpherson Square: report of smoke coming from an auxillary room so trains are being turned back at Farragut West and Federal Triangle. Gotta run. thanks.

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Eric Weiss: Re: Union Station. The National Park Service's Bill Line says the park service does clean the area around the statue and plaza during snow and ice storms. The maintenance staff did clear it that day. But the NPS also had responsibility for Dupont Circle, Farragut Square, McPherson Square and other areas downtown, so Union Station might have been cleaned up later, but it was cleaned up.

station.

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