‘Metro Spirits’
courtesy of ‘pnzr242’
The pre-dawn derailment of a WMATA construction unit, called a Petibone, has snarled the Red Line for the moment. The unit, which derailed in the direction of Glenmont, near Union Station, necessitated the single-tracking of Red Line trains between Judiciary Square and New York Avenue. Delays are currently reported at approximately one hour on the Red Line. While the unit was re-railed by 6am, the damage to the track near Union Station has just been repaired, and dual-tracking has just recommenced.
Metro says that service has “returned to normal,” but that seems like an odd farce in the recognition that nothing about Metro has been remotely normal since last June’s crash. Trains remain at slower speeds with no return to ATO in sight, minor derailments continue on a semi-regular basis, and Metro’s not talking about the improvements they’re trying to make. Some of that, sure, is their desire to keep quiet until NTSB completes their review, but the silence isn’t reassuring. Hope your commute wasn’t awful.
I live and work in the District of Columbia. I write at We Love DC, a blog I helped start, I work at Technolutionary, a company I helped start, and I’m happy doing both. I enjoy watching baseball, cooking, and gardening. I grow a mean pepper, keep a clean scorebook, and wash the dishes when I’m done. Read Why I Love DC.
