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WMATA board cuts late-night service for two years - thru June 2019


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#1 CNJRoss

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Posted 27 July 2016 - 03:22 PM

Greater Greater Washington, 7/26:

 
Metro proposes ending late-night service PERMANENTLY. That's a terrible idea.

Metro may never again be open after midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, and would close at 10 pm every Sunday, under a plan General Manager Paul Wiedefeld will propose to the WMATA Board this Thursday. Please ask the board to reject moving this proposal forward right now.

 

Metro closed at midnight every night before 1999, when it extended hours on Fridays and Saturdays to 1 am and midnight Sundays. The Friday and Saturday close extended further to 3 am in 2007.

 

The current SafeTrack rebuilding program moved closing times back to midnight temporarily. Now, Wiedefeld is proposing making that permanent, and further closing at 10 pm every Sunday, earlier than Metro has regularly closed in decades.

 

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#2 CNJRoss

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Posted 27 July 2016 - 03:23 PM

WMATA news release, 7/26:

 

To support long-term maintenance strategy, Metro GM to propose closing rail system at 10 p.m. on Sundays and midnight every other night on a permanent basis

 

Following rail expert and peer transit agency recommendations, Metro GM/CEO Paul J. Wiedefeld plans to propose closing the Metrorail system at 10 p.m. on Sunday nights and continue midnight closures on all other nights beyond the conclusion of the one-year SafeTrack program. The move will require Board approval following a public engagement process this fall.

Under the proposed schedule, the Metrorail system would be open 127 out of 168 hours in a week. Prior to SafeTrack, the system was open 135 hours per week. The additional track time increases safety and reliability by giving workers the time and space they need to keep Metro's infrastructure in a state of good repair.

To inform this recommendation, Wiedefeld engaged peer transit agencies and rail engineering consultants, all of whom urged that the focus on track safety and maintenance continue to prevent Metro from sliding backward.

Earlier this year, Wiedefeld announced a one-year accelerated maintenance plan, called "SafeTrack," which includes expanded track access through midnight closings on weekends (on a temporary basis), a moratorium on early openings or late closings, and expanded track work during midday and evening hours. The plan is intended to achieve three years' worth of work in one year and allow work crews to eliminate a maintenance backlog and address safety recommendations from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

Wiedefeld is expected to formally propose the change at Thursday's 11 a.m. Board of Directors' meeting.



#3 CNJRoss

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Posted 27 July 2016 - 07:07 PM

The Washington Post, 7/26:
 

Metro general manager proposes permanent end to late-night service

 

Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld will propose a permanent end to late-night weekend subway service, alarming District officials and business leaders who say that a curtailed system would hurt economic and cultural life in the nation’s capital.

 

Wiedefeld wants to shutter Metro at midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, instead of at 3 a.m., to give overnight work crews enough time to make repairs and maintain a safe system. He also wants to close the subway at 10 p.m. on Sundays.

 

The proposal to halt weekend trains at midnight is polarizing in a region torn between its frustrations over a perpetually struggling transit system and its explosive growth in restaurants and night life.

 

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#4 CNJRoss

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Posted 27 July 2016 - 07:11 PM

The Washington Post, 7/27:

 

Dr. Gridlock

Could WMATA get sued if it cancels late-night service?

 

Just as Metro looks to cancel its late-night service, Boston’s subway system is getting sued for nixing after-hours offerings earlier this year.

 

A trio of Boston nonprofits filed a lawsuit against the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority on Tuesday, alleging that the transit agency violated civil rights when it ceased providing late-night weekend service.

 

According to the Boston Globe, the organizations alleged in a federal complaint that the MBTA “incorrectly analyzed how the cancellation would affect minority and low-income riders, and failed to implement alternative services to mitigate the impact.”

 

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#5 CNJRoss

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Posted 02 September 2016 - 05:53 PM

WRC-TV Washington, DC 9/1:
 

Dozens of Maryland Officials Call on WMATA to Keep Late-Night Service

 

Forty elected officials representing Montgomery and Prince George's counties are urging WMATA to keep late-night Metro service.

 

The Maryland officials sent a letter to Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld on Thursday, asking him to reconsider his proposal to permanently stop service at 10 p.m. on Sundays and at midnight during the rest of the week.

 

The letter reads in part, "we are extremely concerned about the long-term effect of the service changes you have proposed."

 

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#6 CNJRoss

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Posted 02 September 2016 - 05:57 PM

Curbed, Washington, DC 9/2:
 

Do You Want the Metro’s Late Night Hours Back?

You’re not alone. Others want WMATA’s night owl transit service to make a comeback.

 

Ever miss the Metro’s late-night train service? If so, join the club. Forty of Maryland’s elected officials from Montgomery and Prince George’s counties are pushing for its return—and not stop service at 10pm on Sundays and at midnight for the rest of the week.

 

People who work late at night would be left without an affordable option home. And others who have gotten buzzed at bars won’t have a safe way back.

 

And then there’s the effect on people who live in mixed use developments that are centered around the Metro. If the Metro isn’t running as long as it could each day, then the convenience of living in the costlier homes will not prove worthwhile.

 

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#7 CNJRoss

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Posted 08 September 2016 - 09:02 AM

WUSA TV, Washington, DC 9/8:

 

Video report:  Metro considering three early closing options



#8 CNJRoss

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Posted 08 September 2016 - 09:07 AM

The Washington Post, 9/7:
 

Metro unveils options for cutting late-night service. You probably won’t like them.

 

It’s been two months since Metro General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld first floated his proposal to permanently cut late-night service and give Metro track workers more time to perform repairs.

 

Now, Metro is presenting a couple other options — but they all involve painful cuts to nighttime service and, in one case, Sunday morning service.

 

In documents released this week in advance of Thursday’s meeting of the Metro board, agency staff posed three different scenarios for cutting service on the rail system.

 

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#9 CNJRoss

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Posted 12 October 2016 - 07:29 AM

WTOP radio, 10/11:
 

DC Council OKs resolution urging return to Metro late-night service

 

WASHINGTON — In a unanimous decision, the D.C. Council approved an emergency resolution urging Metro’s board to restore late-night hours.

 

Council member Jack Evans, who is also the chairman of the Metro board, introduced the resolution after months of backlash against the proposal by Metro’s Paul Wiedefeld to permanently cut late-night service in order to give Metro crews more time to do regular maintenance work.

 

Evans said the resolution is only a sense of the Council and is not binding. But the measure sends a signal “that the District of Columbia wants the late night hours,” he said.

 

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#10 CNJRoss

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Posted 13 October 2016 - 04:55 AM

The Diamondback, Univ. of Md. College Park 10/11:

Metro is looking to cut its hours. WMATA want riders to weigh in on the options.

 

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority is seeking feedback from the public on the four proposed schedule cutbacks to the Metro, one of which will most likely go into effect around next fiscal year, said Morgan Dye, WMATA spokeswoman.

 

The public comment period is open until Oct. 25, and a 9.5-hour hearing at WMATA's Washington headquarters where the public and officials can make statements is scheduled for Oct. 20,  .  .  .

 

SNIP

 

Here are the proposals for the shortened hours:

 

Proposal # 1

Mon-Thu: 5:00 a.m. ­— midnight

Fri: 5:00 a.m. ­— midnight

Sat: 7:00 a.m. ­— midnight

Sun: 7:00 a.m. ­— 10:00 p.m.

 

Proposal # 2

Mon-Thu: 5:00 a.m. ­— 11:30 p.m.

Fri: 5:00 a.m. ­ midnight

Sat: 7:00 a.m. ­— midnight

Sun: 7:00 a.m. ­— 11:30 p.m.

 

Proposal # 3

Mon-Thu: 5:00 a.m. ­— 11:30 p.m.

Fri: 5:00 a.m. ­— 1:00 a.m.

Sat: 7:00 a.m. ­— 1:00 a.m.

Sun: 8:00 a.m. ­— 11:00 p.m.

 

Proposal # 4

Mon-Thu: 5:00 a.m. —­ midnight

Fri: 5:00 a.m. ­— 3:00 a.m.

Sat: 9:00 a.m. ­— 3:00 a.m.

Sun: Noon —­ 11:00 p.m.

 

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