Richard A. White

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Washington Transit
With Richard A. White
General Manager, Metro
Friday, March 21, 2003; 1 p.m. ET

As general manager and chief executive officer of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, Richard A. White is responsible for the operation of Metrobus and Metrorail.

In the past few months, Metrorail has been under scrutiny after a six-car train derailed near Reagan National Airport. (Read the article.) Metro also came under fire for its performance during the February snowstorm. (Read the article.) Metro is also trying to find ways to meet the demands of its riders, including a possible Purple Line in Montgomery County and extending its hours of operation.

White has led WMATA since 1996. He came to Washington from San Francisco, where he was the general manager of the Bay Area Rapid Transit system. Before that, he worked for the New Jersey Transit Corporation and was a program analyst with what is now the Federal Transit Administration.

Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.

Arlington, Va.: I would like to thank you for the work you and your employees perform. The Metro system is the best of any U.S. system I have used. The subway is clean, safe, and reliable. I know you have a thankless job, but many people do appreciate your work.

Richard A. White: What a great way to start! Seriously, thank for very much for those very kind comments. We don't always hear those kinds of compliments, and I want you to know it is very much appreciated by our employees.

Cincinnati, Ohio: What extra precautions are being taken to ensure riders' safety on board the Metro in light of increased danger of terrorism activity on U.S. soil?

Richard A. White: We are actually doing a lot, particularly since the nation moved back to Code Orange and the war with Iraq began earlier this week. We have increased our police presence in our system, including more security sweeps, K-9 units, and officers with automatic weapons. We have also increased our surveillance at our bus divisions and railyards, increased communications with our customers asking them to be alert and vigilant, and are in constant contact with other area law enforcement agencies including the FBI. We are doing everything we can to keep your Metro system as safe and secure as possible.

Gaithersburg, Md.: Can you tell me when the parking garage at Shady Grove will be completed. The completion date was originally Fall 2002, then March 2003, but the structure still looks far from complete. Meanwhile, parking at Shady Grove is a nightmare.

Richard A. White: According to our partners in Montgomery County, who are actually building this garage for our customers' use, the operative opening date is mid-April.

17th and Penn: This may seem really trivial with all the other issues Metro is facing but why do some train operators honk their horns as they enter and exit stations?

Thanks!

Richard A. White: Primarily for safety. Our operators almost always sound the horn when coming out of, or going into, a tunnel or "portal." But they may also sound the horn if they see passengers too close to the platform edge. The horn is a subtle reminder to move back a little.

Alexandria, Va. : Don't know if you have any input on subway car design, but just want to say, PLEASE, please, keep the seating configuration as it is now! After traveling in Boston on those bench seats along the sides, and getting squished from both sides - hate it, hate it, hate it. Let's continue to ride in more-or-less comfort with the two-by-two type seating we have now.

Richard A. White: Rest assured, we are not planning any changes to make our railcar interiors look like those in Boston or New York. We plan to keep the same seating configuration that we have today, although with future railcars we buy we do intend to slightly change the placement of poles or stantions our passengers hold onto, and eliminate the "windscreens" near the doors to encourage people to move closer to the center of the railcar instead of clustering near the doors. We believe these changes will improve our customers' ability to get off and on the train, especially when it's crowded at rush hour.

Washington, D.C.: When is it likely that the smart pass readers will appear in buses in D.C?

Richard A. White: We are now finishing up our in-service testing of the new bus fareboxes that will accept the SmarTrip card. We expect to complete this testing phase this spring, and be able to start putting them on buses "in service" in the District and other bus systems around the region by the end of this calendar year. We're all looking forward to adding this technological improvement to our bus system!

University Park, Md.: Overall, I think Metro is doing a splendid job of moving us in reasonable comfort and safety. Thanks.

One comment -- could you please have your maintenance people look at the parking garage at PG Plaza? There are several places where water from one deck just cascades down to the next. Some seals are broken or something.

Richard A. White: Again, thank you very much for those kind comments. On behalf of all of our employees, we appreciate it. Yes, I will make sure our maintenance department takes a look at the Prince George's Plaza parking garage to find out what the problem is there. Thanks for bringing it to our attention!

Forest Glen, Md.: Yesterday, at 8:23 a.m., at the 18th Street exit of Farragut West, I saw a maintenance worker taking newspapers out of the recycle bin and throwing them in her regular garbage can.

Is there any point to putting newspapers into that tiny slot in the recycle bins, or should I just throw them in the regular trash?

Richard A. White: I'm not sure why that would have happened, but I encourage you to please continue to discard your newspapers in the special 'Washington Post' newspaper recycling bins we have on the mezzanine levels of our stations. These bins are specially designed for safety. I thought you'd be interested to know that we collect and recycle an average of six tons of newspaper and trash daily!

Washington, D.C.: What evacuation plan does Metro have, if there is some kind of attack on a subway car, or in a train station?

Should we look at the Metro website for guidance?

Richard A. White: In the event of an evacuation, we plan to carry as many people "out of town" as we bring into town on a regular day. Our current maximim capacity is approximately 220,000 people in a three-hour peak period, and roughly 80-85,000 in the peak one hour of that period. There are also plans to bring in school buses and privately owned commercial buses to assist in the evacuation effort should they be needed. We hope our customers will realize that we would not be able to carry more than those number at this time without the additional resources we need, such as more railcars to enable us to operate eight-car trains.

Washington, D.C.: Will you look at extending the rails even further outside the beltway? Dulless, Price William County?

Richard A. White: There are studies now underway for bringing additional transit service to practically every major corridor in the region, including those you mentioned. Those studies are being undertaken by the states of Maryland and Virginia, and the District of Columbia. If you have an interest in Dulles, Prince William County, or any other corridor, I would suggest you contact the Virginia, Maryland, or District of Columbia departments of transportation to make your feelings known.

Proposed fare changes: I am totally against eliminating the bonus when purchasing a card for $20 or more. You should be encouraging people to buy large-value cards, not discouraging them.

You would save additional wear and tear on the fare card machines.

Richard A. White: Thanks for your comments on this fare increase proposal. Although we have already completed the nine public hearings on the various fare increase proposals, the public record is still "open." I would encourage you to send any comments you have about any of the menu of fare increase options to the Secretary of the Board of Directors, c/o W.M.A.T.A., 600 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20001. Thank you.

Arlington, Va.: Regarding the poster about seat configuration, I have to agree -- keep it the way it is. Bench seating encourages people to spread out -- luggage, themselves, newspapers -- and it makes it hard for people to find a place. Also, people tend to leave space between each other when they sit on benches, leaving the last boarders trying to perhaps squeeze into a space and making all shift around. The current seats are much better. I've had the opportunity to be on one of the new cars and I must say that I can't wait until they're throughout the entire system! Will it be much longer?

Richard A. White: We have good news on both fronts. We have no plans for bench seating, and we are adding more and more of the new "series 5000" railcars into our rail system every week. We now have more than 120 accepted for service. We are operating them on all lines right now except for the Red Line. Which means you may be able to ride on one of them any time you're on the Green, Orange, Yellow, or Blue lines. We'll be adding them to the Red Line soon.

Washington, D.C.: Please replace the human annoucements of stations to something that's pre-taped. Many of the announcers don't pronounce them properly.

Richard A. White: This sounds like a question from Post columnist Bob Levey! Seriously, we honestly believe what we gain from having personal announcements by our operators far outweighs what we gain with proper pronunciations. Often our operators make announcements that are very specific to the train he or she is operating. The operator may ask customers to move closer to the center of the railcar, allow people to get off the train before other passengers get on, or assure passengers that the train is stopped in a tunnel simply because there is another train directly ahead. All in all, we still believe the personal touch is better than the "canned" announcements. Sorry!

Potomac, Md.: Sir, I am a handicapped driver who uses the White Flint Metro stop. There are a number of handicapped spots at that stop, but with the closing of the west parking lot there the handicapped spots fill us well before 8:00 a.m. To make matters worse, the Station Manager has comandeered one of the handicapped spots for himself or herself. The walk from the only parking lot at White Flint now is terrible for a handicapped person. Can't something be done to alleviate the situation?

Richard A. White: Thank you for bringing this situation to my attention. As you might imagine, I had no idea this situation was taking place at our White Flint station. I will ask the staff who oversee parking here at Metro to look into the handicapped parking situation at our White Flint station to see if there is anything that can be done there. Again, thanks for bringing it to my attention.

Georgetown, D.C.: Hello! And thank you for your fine job!

Can you talk a bit about Gov. Ehrlich's recent decision about the proposed Purple Line? I hope federal funds are available for the inner purple line, and think it is a smart idea.

Also, are there plans to streamline the bus-to-Metro commute many of us embark on each day? I'm thinking specifically about facilitating transfers from bus TO Metro (transferring from metro to bus is quite simple and inexpensive right now).

Thanks for your response.

Richard A. White: As you may know, we are working closely with Governor Ehrlich's office on the proposed "purple line" or bi-county transitway. Several options, including a bus option, are currently being examined. Clearly we believe it is essential to create a transit system of some kind to connect the stations at the outer spokes of our current rail system, such as New Carrollton, College Park, Silver Spring, and Bethesda. We'll all be watching very closely to see the outcome of these studies and the funding that is available, both at the state and federal levels. As for the smoother bus to rail transfer, that will become possible once we begin to use our new 'SmarTrip' bus fareboxes later in this calendar year. And thanks for your nice comment that started off your question!

L'Enfant Plaza: Why doesn't the Metro just remove one set of escalators (where there are three sets)? That way passengers always have an easy set of stairs to climb rather than trying to climb a turned off escalator.

Richard A. White: At this point, no decisions have been made about changing the original design of our escalator system, including pulling out a third escalator and replacing it with a set of stairs. We are currently considering a wide range of options, including replacing our worst performing escalators with new units, to improve the reliability of the many escalators and elevators we have in our rail system. Next Thursday, our Board of Directors will be discussing these options and in the weeks ahead will be making some critical decisions that we believe will result in an improved "vertical transportation" system for Metro.

Rockville, Md.: Mr. White, the trains at the White Flint Metro always stop well down the platform, about 150 feet away from the escalator that is at the end of the platform. As a result, people arriving at the platform are running to catch a train -- and inevitably missing the one that is on the platform. Why don't the trains stop closer to the escalators? And please don't respond that people shouldn't run because another train is soon on its way -- that is not the answer.

Richard A. White: Part of the reason depends on whether the train is operating with four cars or six. If it is a shorter four-car train, our operations control center will aim to stop the train as close to the center of the platform as possible. When that happens, it may be further away from an escalator at the end of the platform than if it were a six-car train. Additionally, keep in mind, the train movements are generally controlled by a computer when we are in "automatic" operation, so the operator usually does not determine exactly where his or her train stops on the platform.

Washington, D.C.: I love the Metro! There's always room for improvement, however. When you leave stations, especially ones with multiple exits, it can be hard to know where to catch a given bus. In London, the Tube has maps inside each station letting you know which exit to take to catch a given bus. In places like L'Enfant Plaza, Metro Center, and many others, this would be a big help! thanks.

Richard A. White: We don't disagree with your assessment. The current situation goes back to the original design of our Metrorail system, which relied on a "less is more" approach in terms of signage and other amenities. However, we now recognize that we need to do a better job communicating with our customers about their various transit options in a given station, including bus service. We are doing a test project of new, improved signage at our Gallery Place-Chinatown station and hope to use the results and lessons learned for application at other stations in our system. Thanks for the suggestion!

Silver Spring, Md.: Mr. White: In general I remain a satisfied customer of Metro. I took the post-snowstorm troubles in stride and the occasional delay is part-and-parcel of a big-city subway system. I was wondering though if your office has ever considered an opt-in e-mail alert system for Metro riders, to alert them about potential delays. So many newspapers and other media outlets use these e-mail systems that something tailored to Metro could be of value. (It could also be used to dispel rumors such as occurred yesterday on the Blue Line.) With so many people using wireless e-mail devices and mobile phones which receive text messages, I suspect you would find a captive audience for alerts, etc., coming from Metro. It's something to consider. Overall, thanks to you, your crews and especially the overlooked Metro police for doing good work.

Richard A. White: We started with a great question, so why not end with one! Thanks for your positive comments about our service, especially in the aftermath of the two-foot, once-in-a-decade snowstorm. You'll be pleased to know we now have an e-mail alert system! You can sign up on our Internet Web site (www.metroopensdoors.com) and register to have service information delivered to anyplace you receive e-mails: computer, pager, cell phone, palm pilot, etc. You can specify the line, time of day, day of the week, etc. This is the latest in customer service enhancements that we've added to make it easier for our passengers to use our system. Thanks to you and the folks at Washingtonpost.com for giving me this opportunity to chat with you today!