A rare double hat-tip today to Read Express. The first is for the their question of the day. It reads, "Are you getting your money's worth from Metro?" You all know what to do. Click the link, find the poll, and answer "No."
I try to avoid writing two Metro posts in a row, but, a $116,000,000.00 budget shortfall? Jesus Christ. Now fares may be increasing and weekend service will be trimmed. But, to make up for all that, Metro is considering discounts for "reverse commuters." Eff that. Those motherfuckers should be paying more. They actually get to sit down on their trains. Hell, they have enough room to stretch their legs. Today on the crowded Metro, some moron was using my back as support for his Sudoku game. Fuck reverse commuters. Riding to Rockville in the morning is like riding on a cloud of luxury.
If DC had any extra money to spend on Metro to prevent a fare increase, that would be nice. But, as we all know, DC money is tied up by stadiums and lawsuits. So, the second hat-tip to Read Express is for leading me to this pleasant story: Judge Lets Abuse Claim by D.C. Prisoners Go to Trial.
When the men and women behind DC's blue line aren't hog-tying innocent bystanders watching a protest, they may be withholding prisoners' food, water, toilet privileges, and medications. It's nice to have a second hobby. Unfortunately, this hobby also leads to class-action lawsuits.
I say "may" because it's not like anyone has been found to have a preponderance of guilt or anything like that. Some correctional officers are merely accused of being dickheads of unconstitutional proportions. It's an accusation from a particularly litigious set of prisoners, but it's not exactly something that the city wants to deal with right now. I would be more inclined to dismiss the accusations as rubbish if Washington weren't involved.
12.12.2006
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What the fuck is a reverse commuter?
ReplyDeleteI am seriously considering finding a job within walking distance of my home.
ReplyDeleteI believe it's someone traveling against the traffic grain. For example, from Dupont to Rockville in the morning instead of the other way around.
ReplyDeleteThe problem with Metro is that they can't count on long-term financing from DC, MD, and VA.
ReplyDeleteDC needs Metro for its survival. Without a Metro rail and bus system, the city's economic health shuts down completely. They have to spend $$$$ on Metro.
MD needs Metro because the rail lines provide much needed proximity to business/commercial centers in Bethesda and Silver Spring.
Virginia is the problem. This state still has a rural, conservative (I Hate DC) bias with its state legislature in Richmond. Many Virginians outside of the NoVA region could care less about funding a public transportation system that does not benefit them.
Even the existence regional rail network, the Virginia Railway Express is in serious danger. The commonwealth threatens to slash more funding for VRE operations. Virginia loves roads, cars, gridlock and CO2 emissions.
I know VA is the problem. And now they want us to help out with their proposed silver line. Balderdash, I say! Balderdash!
ReplyDeleteI love paying more for less. Why would anyone have a problem with that?
ReplyDeleteRusty, can you also address the retard who was selected to read the "If you see anything suspicious..." announcement over the Metro loudspeakers? My ears bleed whenever I hear it. I love how he stutters and stumbles his way through the entire thing, like a nervous sixth grader at an assembly. I HATE METRO.
I'd comment but this post put me into a boredom coma.
ReplyDeleteI imagine there are some service workers who need to get somewhere at 6 a.m. on a Saturday morning who are going to be sh*t out of luck if that happens.
ReplyDeleteMy trip to work costs more already than a ride on the NYC subway. Why are they going to charge subway riders more while we continue to subsidize drivers?
I'm already paying for roads (though slightly less b/c I buy slightly less gas as a weekend driver, though I still pay state and federal taxes).
Why shouldn't drivers and others subsidize subway riders, too?
Those ideas seem to be a step backward. And this guy make a $300k salary and then, on top of that, gets MY salary as "living expenses."
That sounds about right. MY salary is living expenses. I do in fact break even.
The fare increase will include a salary increase for some of the top brass Metro personnel. Lower level employees like me are pissed.
ReplyDeletewhile i think i *may be a reverse commuter myself (getting on at judiciary towards silver spring and having the car clear out at union is actually kinda nice), i agree that the discount is crap. how can you favor someone for something that is completely beyond any means of their own control? does metro think this is going to encourage people to change their jobs for an employer outside of the city? metro sucks.
ReplyDeleteand 2. by "discount" do they mean that the reverse commuter rates will stay the same while everything else just goes up? BOO.
Woo-hoo, I get to wear 2 hats today!
ReplyDelete(1) I'm a reverse commuter. Problem is, no such friggin thing exists anymore. I used to take Orange from Rosslyn to Vienna in the morning. Know what? The trains run roughly every 987 minutes. If I want to get to work before the 5pm commute starts, I have to drive. Ever take 66-west from Rosslyn in the morning? Blows dead bear. So don't get all huffy about how good reverse commuters have it.
(2) WMATA. Used to have them as a client. They are worse than the worst Federal government agency. Worse than $2000 toilet seats. Know why? Because they don't have any accountability to GAO or OMB like the rest of the government does. They are not subject to the same type of congressional scrutiny. So they waste. And their waste is not all public record like Federal agencies' are. Do a quick search to find out how Metro's technology works, then search on how old it is. And how much $$$ they spend to on operations and maintenance of it every year. MMmmm. That's the smell of contractors getting rich!
Want to fund the stadium? Go audit WMATA. Start with the executive salaries. Enron ain't got nothing on them.
metro's so fucked it's ridiculous. Fuck, they run over their own employees every other month. Fucknits.
ReplyDeleteRiding to Rockville in the morning is like riding on a cloud of luxury.
ReplyDeleteI'm a reverse commuter, and this is true. I've actually had quite a few days when I'm the only person in the car when it gets to the end of the line.
Now, I'm all for making my commute cheaper, but I'm not sure this will have the effect they're looking for. It's not like people can all of a sudden decide to become reverse commuters--in order to have any impact, unlike the choice between driving and taking the metro this actually requires that people either move or change jobs. There certainly should be incentives for people to move out of the suburbs and into the city, but knocking a dollar off the metro fare won't do it.
Really, the solution is to subsidize the hell out of it. Seriously, if anything should be massively supported by the government, it's public transit.
I always thought reverse commuters were those passengers who were sitting in the seats facing the opposite direction that the train was traveling in.
ReplyDeleteI love how he stutters and stumbles his way through the entire thing, like a nervous sixth grader at an assembly.
ReplyDeleteAah, so true.
"I-if you s-see somebody leave something on a train or.... station.... a-grocery-bag-backpack-anything, kindly ask them, "I-is that your baaag?"
And I am also a reverse commuter to Rockville. Fuck me long and fuck me hard, Randy!
Virginia is the problem. This state still has a rural, conservative (I Hate DC) bias with its state legislature in Richmond. Many Virginians outside of the NoVA region could care less about funding a public transportation system that does not benefit them.
ReplyDeleteSolution - break NoVA off from the rest of Virginia, and merge West Virginia with the remaining dregs to create Southwest Virginia (SWVA pronounced "Swivva"). Let them enact their own laws such as tax breaks for owners of American branded SUVs, and carry on their own culture of reenacting the Civil War every other month. NoVA can then its progressive agenda, unburdened by the mass of yay-hoos who have no problems collecting the massive income tax revenues from NoVA, yet do not want to support its means of doing so.
At least Maryland rednecks know where their bread is buttered.
why does metro charge you if you never even left the station? i was charged $1.65 and all i did was go into the station, realize something, and had to turn around and leave and it fucking charged me.
ReplyDeleteI DIDN'T GO ANYWHERE!!
It does take some chutzpah for Metro to raise fares, or even consider doing so, when they are already, by far, the most expensive subway system in the country. Part of it is there insistence on having a retarded fare card system. Have they not heard of tokens? Used everywhere for years. No need for expensive, often malfuncitioning, farecard machines.
ReplyDeleteSo much for the new Metro director--I guess he desperately wants more money for his salary so stick it to the riders.
Boston is switching from tokens to cards. NY did the same. I assume there's a problem with tokens. Customers probably complained about losing them.
ReplyDeletei hate the woman who says "see it. say it." it always starts really abruptly and sounds like an automated computer voice.
ReplyDeleteThe day I hear one of them pronounce Judiciary without a "shew" in the middle of it, I may fall off the son of a bitch.
ReplyDeleteAnd nobody even mentioned the broken escalators! Who built those things and why did they keep buying and installing them? I lived in Moscow two years and the Metro there is far superior and cost about 12 cents a ride with trains every 50 seconds, like clockwork.
ReplyDelete