However, to put it in perspective 1000's of people travel on the redline every day (not to mention every trip during rush hour). Is it too much to ask that the Red line be brought back to normal service even after 2 weeks?
I was reading the examiner this morning when I read this article: Redline delays irk customersThere was a comment by the president of the Metro's largest union Jackie Jater:
But Jackie Jeter, president of Metro's largest union that represents train operators, did not have such kind words for disgruntled commuters.
"I understand that you want to get to work a little sooner," she said, but "everybody should back off that. ... At least you're alive."
That ticked me off. If you've traveled on the metro, and especially the red line, you'll probably already know, it's overcrowded most of the time. If you've traveled by metro anytime at all, you'll have encountered bad drivers, with absolutely no sense of customer service. I've personally witnessed a train driver letting a guy sweat it out after his bag got caught in the door. She saw him (it was the first door after next to her window), and when someone brought it up, she said "I know I know" with an expression " I want to teach him a lesson". I wanted to go up to her and tell her to DO HER JOB, but then, I didn't want to start a fight and have 1000 people on the line hate me!
These drivers, more often than not, are obnoxious (and increasingly the metro staff, because 3 yrs ago, I was pleasantly surprised at their courteousness) and don't care. They think they're doing the world a favor.
There was another article that mentioned that the drivers are scared to drive the trains after the accident (because of the system)! What BULLSHIT! I think, as a passenger, I'm more scared that the driver is driving the train and not an automated system.
I want to find out how much a train operator is paid and what benefits they get as compared to a different city and also compared to a cab driver on the DC streets. I would hazard a guess that they're paid significantly better than a cab driver (and work less hours than a cab driver).
So - Ms. Jackie Jeter, DO YOUR JOB. TELL YOUR PEOPLE TO DO THEIR JOB. The circuit as far as we understand was replaced about 5 days before BY YOUR OWN MEMBERS and it still malfunctioned! So, as passengers we probably should be MORE SCARED, that you guys show SO MUCH INCOMPETENCE after being in existence for over 30 years.
Perhaps its time for a large scale privatization of the metro and some large scale firings. I'm supposed to work hard and do my job well. Why the hell aren't you?
End of rant....
