“What plagues #wmata is a culture-all too often-of mediocrity.” - @GerryConnolly. House subcommittee hearing on Metro & its recent & long term problems has begun.
Besides Northern Virginia’s Connolly, @StenyHoyer of Maryland is here & @EleanorNorton of DC is appearing virtually.
Rep. Gerry Connolly recalled how admired Metro was in its early days - “We’ve got to return to that.”
I remember personally as a kid how everyone used to be so proud of it, so different from now. #wmata
.@7NewsDC is the only local TV station at this House subcommittee hearing on Metro. Keep checking my Tweets for updates, plus we’ll have coverage at WJLA.com & on our newscasts. #wmata
.@CongressmanHice asking Wiedefeld how Metro will deal with a likely permanent drop in ridership due to telecommuting.
Wiedefeld admitted it’s unlikely to ever get back where it was, says it’s time to rethink things, he expects shorter average trips will be the new normal. #wmata
With federal Covid relief funding expected to run out in a little over a year, Metro board chair Paul Smedberg says Metro’s financial model has to change. But sees reverse commutes, young people without cars as potential growth areas. #wmata
Since money to keep Metro operating comes from state governments, Wiedefeld says once the federal Covid relief money runs out state governments will have to decide questions on funding & rethinking what type of system they want Metro to be. #wmata
Kind of bizarre, the House members who were here had to step out so now the witnesses are testifying about Metro to empty seats, with the remaining members of Congress on Zoom. #wmata
Because Metro’s ridership problems are likely permanent, their money issues will be also. Paul Smedberg: “#wmata is not going to look the same today as it will 5, 10 years from now…there is no doubt we are going to have to make very tough financial decisions.”
The US House subcommittee hearing on Metro is now over. Full coverage on @7NewsDC starting at 4pm. #wmata
Looks like I’m the last one here! About to leave and start putting the stories together. #wmata
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As big a deal as was made about the Potomac Yard Metro being a huge reason the Wizards/Capitals want to move to Virginia, apparently no one actually contacted Metro before yesterday's announcement. GM Randy Clarke said today no one called him... (1/2) #wmata
...and the station would need work done to handle crowds: “Clearly it would need some type of modification I think to handle [events] of that nature...if it’s a $2 billion investment, I would like to think that there will be some type of interaction with us to do that.” #wmata
Metro GM: “I wasn’t involved in the process. I wasn’t involved in any discussions related to the process.” #wmata
Planes landed at Reagan National Airport in wind gusts of up to 48 mph today - travelers tell me they experienced the wildest landings of their lives. #aviation
Photographer @news_photog also captured this plane that did not land on this attempt, the pilot instead heading back up to try again in the heavy winds. #holidaytravel
Meanwhile inside the airport many of the folks in this long line are trying to figure out how and when they can finally get to their destinations. Many have experienced at least one cancellation, for some it has been multiple. #aviation
Starting to see a few significant delays on the arrivals board at Reagan National Airport. However you will notice some of these are actually planes landing a little early. #aviation
It is definitely busy at Reagan National, which is a hub for American Airlines. Some people are dealing with canceled flights but most seem to be getting out okay. #aviation
A portion of the current departures board @Reagan_Airport. A few delays, but most of the flights are listed as on time, at least for now.
Since a 2009 Red Line crash that killed 9 people, Metro train operators have manually stopped & started trains instead of it being automated. New documents released today show #wmata wants to bring automation back, saying it would prevent red light overruns.
Metro says changes since 2009 mean it would be safer to use automation and #wmata feels there would be an increase in safety and not a decrease if they returned to using it.
A faulty track circuit caused a train to "disappear" from the system in 2009, leading one automated train to slam into another. Metro says every track circuit of the type that failed has now been removed. #wmata
NEW: DC Health says July inspection found several health & safety violations including "mice droppings under the shelving unit at the coffee station area" & "mold build up on the baileys Irish cream container." Says Georgetown Cupcake has now fixed all issues but license renewal
In all a DC Health inspection report from July 13 found 13 issues at Georgetown Cupcake. A reinspection yesterday found all were fixed except its license expiring on Nov 30 last year. Examples of other violations include improper temps & employee not wearing a hair restraint.
No surprise since there is usually a line out the door, but a lot of folks are showing up at Georgetown Cupcake and then realizing it is closed. I talked to one woman who had pre-ordered cupcakes for her birthday and was disappointed to find she won’t be getting them.
JUST IN: Metro is proposing manually inspecting 7000 series train wheels once a week instead of every day. Says the small number of 7000 series railcars that have returned after a derailment last year have gone 540,000 total miles without any of them failing inspection. #wmata
It would have to be approved by overseer @MetrorailSafety, which right now is only allowing Metro to run 8 total 7000 series trains a day, but yesterday revealed that Metro wants to run more than that. This appears to be the method Metro would use to be able to run more. #wmata
Metro statement: “Metro is confident that our request to extend the inspectional interval to seven days provides an ample safety margin to detect any wheel movement before it becomes a safety concern.” #wmata