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WMATA track-work overhaul to require ‘sacrifice’ from riders, GM says


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#11 CNJRoss

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Posted 06 April 2016 - 07:49 AM

The Washington Post, 4/4:

 

Dr. Gridlock

Riders vent about Metrorail rebuilding strategy

 

Whether or not Metro ever gets to the point of closing a line for lengthy repairs, the discussion of it has allowed riders to focus on their dissatisfaction with the five-year-old transit rebuilding strategy and distrust about what comes next.

 

My online chat Monday was dominated by those themes, but there were many comments I didn’t get a chance to publish. Here are some of those, followed by my responses.

 

[See a transcript of the Dr. Gridlock chat]

 

WMATA
What is left to be said? Years of travel disruptions, weekend travel on Metro made unreliable, billions of taxpayer dollars and apparently the system is at best in the same condition that it was and perhaps in worse condition. And what is WMATA’s response to all of this? Give us more money and let us disrupt service even more than before and we promise to fix it right this time.  .  .  .

 

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#12 CNJRoss

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Posted 06 April 2016 - 08:00 AM

The Washington Post, 4/6

 

Metro general manager says no lengthy line closures are needed to make repairs

Partial closures could lead to bus bridges between stations, Paul Wiedefeld said.

 

Metro General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld said Tuesday that he has no plans to close any rail lines for months at a time to do maintenance work, saying that targeted repairs can be done by shutting down segments of track temporarily.

 

“I don’t see any need for a long closure of any part of the system,” Wiedefeld told reporters after a lunch meeting in Rockville with the Montgomery County Council.

 

Tracks, for example, could be shut down between a couple of stations, he said. In that case, bus bridges would carry passengers between stations. He said he’s also considering the possibility of limiting the train schedule to allow more time for overnight work. Wiedefeld said he will announce a plan in the next few weeks, specifying which lines or other parts of the system need attention first.

 

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#13 CNJRoss

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Posted 06 April 2016 - 09:19 AM

WTOP radio, 4/5:
 

Metro GM steps back from specter of monthslong shutdowns

 

ROCKVILLE, Md. — There will be no need to shut down an entire Metro line for six months, Metro’s general manager assured the Montgomery County Council during a meet-and-greet session and lunch Tuesday.

 

“I don’t see anything that would require anything near a six-month shutdown,” Paul Wiedefeld told the council members in reference to statements Metro board chair and D.C. Councilman Jack Evans made last week.

 

Evans said that some Metro lines could be shut down for months for repairs needed to improve the system’s safety and reliability.

But Wiedefeld did say that comprehensive maintenance is needed to replace the piecemeal approach of the past.

 

“So for instance, not just looking at the fasteners, or not just looking at the boots, or not just looking at the rails, but coming in and basically doing something where we take care of it all at one time,” he said.

 

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#14 CNJRoss

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Posted 13 April 2016 - 04:53 PM

The Washington Post, 4/13:

 

Dr. Gridlock

How much more rebuilding can Metro riders tolerate?

By Robert Thomson Columnist

 

When you consider how much of a Metrorail maintenance disruption the Washington region can tolerate, don’t measure your scenario against a hypothetical shutdown of an entire subway line. Compare it with the reality of what Metro has been doing for the past five years.

 

I’ll elaborate after you’ve had a chance to read this thoughtful letter from a traveler who worked out a strategy that would be less radical than the lengthy shutdown of a line that Metro Board Chairman Jack Evans speculated about last month.

 

Dear Dr. Gridlock:

Basically, this strategy would limit the area of disruption at any one time, and confine it to hours when Metrorail has fewer riders, reducing the number of people inconvenienced and making that inconvenience easier to bear.

 

For example, suppose a designated rebuilding sector of Metrorail shut down at 9:30 p.m Monday through Thursday. This should allow workers at least three hours more for maintenance than they now get on weeknights.

 

Robert Thomson is The Washington Post’s “Dr. Gridlock.” He answers travelers’ questions, listens to their complaints and shares their pain on the roads, trains and buses in the Washington region. View Archive

 

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#15 CNJRoss

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Posted 29 April 2016 - 07:17 AM

WTOP radio, 4/29:
 

Metro track-work overhaul to require ‘sacrifice’ from riders, GM says

 

WASHINGTON — The plan to bring station closings and single-tracking to Metro more often will require “sacrifice” from riders, the system’s general manager said.

 

While General Manager Paul Wiedefeld did not set a timeframe Thursday for announcing details of the track work plan, he now says that the plan will be a draft that could change.

 

“It will require more sacrifice from our customers in terms of the impact it will have on the service availability, but clearly with 168 hours in a week, and 135 of those being used for revenue service, it’s awfully hard to catch up, and the current plan just is not working in my estimation,” Wiedefeld said.

 

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#16 CNJRoss

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Posted 29 April 2016 - 02:13 PM

The Washington Post, 4/29:

 

Dr. Gridlock

At the end of the tunnel, riders see only smoke

By Robert Thomsen

 

Dear Dr. Gridlock:

Will it never end? The repair work, the single-tracking, the garbled announcements, the emergencies, the misleading promises about when the next train will come and the endless waiting on platforms?  .  .  . 

— Mary Ann Wren , North Bethesda

 

SNIP

 

That deep tunnel along the west side of the Red Line is notorious for mixing water with electricity. It needs extensive repairs.

 

For now, Wiedefeld said, he was ordering a “maintenance surge” through the weekend that will include checking the insulators, power cables and the third rail as well as plugging water leaks, cleaning drains and removing mud.

 

“I’ll be coming up shortly with a track plan to basically avoid some of the problems we’ve been having and to create a time frame for getting the system back up to a state of good repair,” Wiedefeld said.

 

More here.

 

Robert Thomson is The Washington Post’s “Dr. Gridlock.” He answers travelers’ questions, listens to their complaints and shares their pain on the roads, trains and buses in the Washington region.






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