Transit on Thursday: The Tipping Point Edition
A typical weekday morning for yours truly involves catching the next train out of Van Ness-UDC to Dupont Circle. And more often than not, there's a train waiting for me at the station when I get there. No problems, right?
Well, we've noticed recently that there's been a slight issue with the pacing of trains in the morning on the Red Line - namely, (and we never thought we'd say this) that there's just too many trains running too close together. Obviously, the highly-trafficked corridor should be able to maintain a large capacity, but trains which are awkwardly scheduled creates tiny backups which eventually evolve into less frequent trains and, eventually, lowers capacity. The weekday morning schedules are constant, and follow a simple pattern:
Train A ARR
Train B 2
Train C 5
Train D 7
Three trains in seven minutes sounds good, right? But that's just one way of looking at it. Two trains in two minutes might just be too many. If they run too close together, passengers on trains riding the second of the two-minute interval trains have to hold at stations or in tunnels for between 30 to 60 seconds due to a train ahead sitting at the platform, unloading and loading passengers. Factoring in any sort of divergence in operator speed only magnifies the problem.
There should be a Gladwellian tipping point at which the trains run more smoothly, but yet still maintain the efficiency commuters need. It's a tiny issue, but one that could make things slightly better. One possible solution: rush hour Red line trains could run at a fixed three minute interval. Barring other external forces (i.e. a power outage), that Metro is still able to provide four trains every nine minutes, but every other train's journey wouldn't be so herky-jerky.
So, what say you? What's the right level of train frequency during the morning rush hour - should Metro change the fixed time, or even go to a more flexible schedule so that bunching doesn't occur?
Photo by Terecico.
Because Knowledge Is Power: On the heels of all of June's service disruptions, plans are in the hopper to create a network of communication between authorities in Maryland, Virginia, and the District, and Metro. The system - which would likely start up sometime around the turn of the year - would use a program designed by the University of Maryland in 2002 which enables authorities from different jurisdictions to access a large database of transit information simultaneously. Maryland and Virginia currently can share information using the database, but, like a PB&J without the jelly, it's of little use until D.C. and Metro get on board. Officials claim that the possibility of public use is "likely." Maybe it'll lead to an updated version of Tom Lee's picture frame timer?
Also, it could possibly give a much-needed shot in the arm to WMATA's currently dormant NextBus system. (Hey, if New Castle, Delaware can implement a similar system, so can we.)
I Mean, You Can Probably Just Bike Back: Just a reminder - as notices which have quixotically been covering up other signage (including an advertisement for Wolf Trap at the Van Ness station - go figure) show, you won't be allowed to carry a bicycle onto Metro trains on the Fourth of July. This isn't a new rule (and frankly, we're not sure as to why you'd even try to bring one onto an train obscenely filled with tourists), but, as always, we thought you'd like to know. Additionally, Metro will only run until midnight on the Fourth, even though it's a Friday night.
Engines and Cabooses: Howard County residents who need to get to work have the following options: get up at 4 a.m. to ride the bus, pay $4 a gallon for gas and sit in traffic, or park illegally at park-and-ride facilities and take their chances - under-served transit market, anyone?... There are thousands who ride Metro for free. Are you one of them? Oh yeah? Well are you also exempt from tolls?... MTA looks to increase commuter bus services... Va. officials surprised at brevity of HOT lane construction - the money quote? "We got the letter saying the HOT lanes were coming, but as one of my board members said, the government never works that fast."... Metro should probably work on its ability to communicate with hearing-impaired riders... Metro to unveil a new SmarTrip card for senior citizens... A large section of I-395 could be headed to the graveyard.