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Old 08-06-2015, 06:26 PM
 
Location: Falls Church, Fairfax County
5,162 posts, read 4,482,125 times
Reputation: 6336

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Quote:
Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11 View Post
Percent of family budgets going to food has fallen from 30% in 1950 to less than 15% today.

Metro's problem is not inevitable fare hikes, but the fact that it's run by a union that cares more about how pensions are calculated than whether the trains run on time.

Thank god for Uber.
That does not mean they will go bankrupt, it means that there will be a management change if it gets bad enough.
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Old 08-06-2015, 07:44 PM
 
504 posts, read 1,211,898 times
Reputation: 306
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gaylord_Focker View Post
Car maintenance? Car payment and insurance?
There are also other factors such as the value of one's time and the inconvenience when things go sour like today... Sure the roads will be clogged up, but at least those that chose to drive will be in control of their own commute, instead of at the mercy of a broken system.
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Old 08-07-2015, 02:26 AM
 
163 posts, read 314,523 times
Reputation: 152
If you put your faith in a government entity, or someone else for that matter to get you around you have to expect inconveniences like this one. Good thing it didn't happen in the winter.
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Old 08-07-2015, 03:35 AM
 
504 posts, read 1,211,898 times
Reputation: 306
that's why my wife will drive, until they ban cars in DC.
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Old 08-07-2015, 04:55 AM
 
1,820 posts, read 1,653,520 times
Reputation: 1091
What Metro has long needed is a dedicated source of revenue, the sort of thing that would allow them the certainty needed to develop and then implement long-term plans. The system is a part of the economic backbone of the region. We ourselves are the only ones hurt by failing to keep it viable and up-to-date.

Metro is meanwhile a public agency created by Congress. It can be underfunded -- which it is -- but it cannot go bankrupt. Metro is also not run by unions. It is run by an 8-person Board of Directors, two each appointed by Maryland, Virginia, the District, and the federal government.
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Old 08-07-2015, 05:39 AM
 
Location: Falls Church, Fairfax County
5,162 posts, read 4,482,125 times
Reputation: 6336
Quote:
Originally Posted by lqda4 View Post
There are also other factors such as the value of one's time and the inconvenience when things go sour like today... Sure the roads will be clogged up, but at least those that chose to drive will be in control of their own commute, instead of at the mercy of a broken system.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lqda4 View Post
that's why my wife will drive, until they ban cars in DC.
I do not think your wife continuing to drive will effect METRO. It is a fallacy to think that those that drive are in control of their own commute. Construction, accidents and weather effect the commute for drivers.

People quickly forget things like this:

Freezing Rain Shuts Major Highways

I was caught up in that and it took me 2 hours to go 10 miles. I was part of the early wave and I watched the news all night how people were still stranded.
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Old 08-07-2015, 06:54 AM
 
1,820 posts, read 1,653,520 times
Reputation: 1091
Quote:
Originally Posted by Old Guard View Post
I was caught up in that and it took me 2 hours to go 10 miles. I was part of the early wave and I watched the news all night how people were still stranded.
Took Metro home that night. No problems at all. Except for the 20 minutes it took me to clear the windshield of enough ice to be able to drive safely. I don't know why Metro didn't build a shelter above my car once they saw what the weather forecast was. They caused me to miss out on the Barack-Hillary primary in VA that day.
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Old 08-09-2015, 03:27 PM
 
Location: Tysons Corner
2,772 posts, read 4,314,561 times
Reputation: 1504
Quote:
Originally Posted by lqda4 View Post
There are also other factors such as the value of one's time and the inconvenience when things go sour like today... Sure the roads will be clogged up, but at least those that chose to drive will be in control of their own commute, instead of at the mercy of a broken system.
Yes, being stuck on I-95 when it completely fails, or the beltway, or 66 (which happens more often than metro I might remind you) absolutely feels like freedom.

I get what you are saying, but the reality is, most of us who use transit regularly find you who drive everywhere to be the ones trapped. That being said, when metro fails it sucks and it is unnecessary because a good management system could avoid many of these problems. I support reform at WMATA, but to say that highway traffic is somehow a cathartic experience is such a 20th century concept.
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Old 08-10-2015, 05:07 AM
 
504 posts, read 1,211,898 times
Reputation: 306
Nope - I use GPS/Waze/etc. and can easily get off the highways - I don't blindly get on the highway. Even if I am stuck, I have my own means of transportation to go places. Still have more choices than being stuck on the metro with no way to get to work or return home. Some of my wife's co-workers returned home last Friday due to more problem on the Orange line. When is enough is enough.

I am all for public transits but WMATA as it is today is rotten and can't be relied on.
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Old 08-10-2015, 06:26 AM
 
Location: Falls Church, Fairfax County
5,162 posts, read 4,482,125 times
Reputation: 6336
Quote:
Originally Posted by lqda4 View Post
Nope - I use GPS/Waze/etc. and can easily get off the highways - I don't blindly get on the highway. Even if I am stuck, I have my own means of transportation to go places. Still have more choices than being stuck on the metro with no way to get to work or return home. Some of my wife's co-workers returned home last Friday due to more problem on the Orange line. When is enough is enough.

I am all for public transits but WMATA as it is today is rotten and can't be relied on.
OK, Nobody says you have to. But you sound angry about it.
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