Your guide to the region's top events, mixed with some commentary about life, media, gossip and politics in Washington, DC.

Attack on the Street: How Would you Improve the Metro?

Metro scored $1.5 billion in federal funding this week, so we want to know: what would you improve about Metro if you could?

By Alejandro Salinas , Emily Leaman , Jesseka Kadylak

Comments

In this day and age to wait 20 minutes for a train on a Saturday night is ludicrous. On the basis of security for travellers, having the wait time reduced to a minimum. This would reduce the incidence of theft and crime on platforms significantly.

Posted by: Nats, Oct 06, 2008 06:29:55 AM

Wow! With that much cash how about:
- A VMS system that links Metro Train information with overground bus service and place the VMS at the kiosks not just on the platforms
- It’s high time that cellular telephony was facilitated underground- we are in the 21st Century
- COMPULSORY RFID/ biometric based fare cards so that people who buy their cards with cash can also be tracked going through the system ;)
- Music. Some soft background music would be great on platforms
- replace all the worn out carpets an sanitize seating on the trains. Add more trains
- enable a wifi based real-time messaging service to link platform VMS data to subscribers that need to know exactly what the status of their trains will be.
- Graphics. The DC Metro earns high marks for functional design but desperately needs some aesthetics.
- Hire a Usability & Human Factors expert to make the usage of the system more intuitive and to mitigate the many, many errors that users make in navigating the system. These errors compounded, must amount to millions of lost dollars per annum.
- Start to think seriously about Foreign Visitors and multiple language information displays.
- Improve the safety of the train designs (I know, they’re made in Italy)
- LOWER FARES!!!!!

Posted by: Trevor Doyle- Imago Metrics LLC, Oct 05, 2008 08:58:41 PM

Sometimes only one set of escalators is running and its running down. ?? If you they run one then run it up. Better, lock all of them at stations with short stairs. Metro is constantly hiring escalator Techs because as soon as they are trained they go elsewhere for better pay. Lock short ones off permanently and reduce ops / repair expense. Some buses run no schedule on Sat or Sun - run them the same every day. There should be a cash counter at every station to change $. Parking lots should use cash. How is a parking tourist supposed to know they need a smart card to exit. How many times have I seen a tourist family buy a single $20 card for all 4 of them to use - put the station manager at the machines!

Posted by: Martin T, Oct 03, 2008 12:36:46 PM

@ Anna, having stairs isn’t practical at many stations like Bethesda.

@ Brian, other phone companies should pay for the right.

I just want a solid system focus on maintenance, and never hire a business man to run metro again.

Posted by: Metro , Oct 03, 2008 11:36:53 AM

Take a clue from the NYC subway system and add some more trains so you don’t have to wait 8 minutes for a train during rush hour or 20 minutes for a train on weekends. It is ridiculous and unbelievably frustrating. And please, no snarky comments about how dirty the NYC subway is because frankly, I don’t wait in the NYC subway station long enough to notice. I’d rather have a subway come every 30 seconds in filth than wait 20 minutes on a Saturday night for a train.

Posted by: NYC, Oct 03, 2008 09:46:09 AM

Remove all of the escalators and just have stairs. In the long run, metro would save tons of money in repair costs and electricity. Most of the time the escalators function as stairs only.

Then add more trains and increase the frequency of trains on nights and weekends. 18 minute waits between trains is ridiculous.

Posted by: Anna, Oct 03, 2008 07:49:42 AM

Allow other phone companies besides verizon to work underground. Wouldn’t even take a fraction of the 1.5 billion.

Posted by: Brian, Oct 03, 2008 07:02:01 AM