Wednesday, August 05, 2015

Bethesda Metro station closed due to power outage (Photos)

A power outage has shut down the Bethesda Metro station. Shuttle buses are running to Friendship Heights and Medical Center stations on the Red Line. Once again, Metro was ill-prepared, as there is not yet enough room to pick up the number of stranded passengers at the station.
After a long wait, here comes
the shuttle bus to Friendship Heights
Has Metro provided enough
shuttle bus capacity to
handle the number of
stranded riders?
No! All full!
For those left behind,
the wait goes on...

58 comments:

Anonymous said...

Has Dyer ever managed a transit system?

Has he ever managed anything?

Robert Dyer said...

6:56: In fact, I have managed projects and personnel as a professional musician and producer, and always delivered on-time and within budget.

Anonymous said...

One of the most embarrassing days for Metro. The new escalator is shut down for much of the morning and then they close the entire station for most of the evening.

The heart of downtown Bethesda's public transit system goes dark for the evening...unbelievable.

Do not rely on Metro if you need to get somewhere on time and have to use the Bethesda station. It's been shut down way too many times this Summer.

Is there any oversight over this mess? It's become a daily problem.

Robert Dyer said...

7:46: That's what's so embarrassing about the handling of the situation. Metro knows the station closes all the time. They know the approximate number of commuters using it at any given part of rush hour. And yet they still can't summon enough buses to handle the crowd. Ridiculous.

Anonymous said...

Well, it's not like they have a dozen unused buses and drivers just sitting around doing nothing. You're acting as if Metro is purposefully not sending enough buses. Let's be realistic here.

Anonymous said...

Sending one bus really is poor planning. With these crowds, send a couple.
You don't need dozens standing by. Metro needs to plan ahead for more closures.

We also need more oversight into what exactly is going on at the Bethesda station specifically. Seems to be ineffective management.

Robert Dyer said...

8:22: It just happened a few weeks ago during another rush hour station closure. They're asking for more money, and can't even adjust their response plan when they've been embarrassed by a failed crisis response just recently? If your station has difficulty staying open, you better darn well get some buses and drivers on standby, particularly when you know you didn't have an adequate response for the same problem a few weeks ago.

Anonymous said...

"can't even adjust their response plan when they've been embarrassed by a failed crisis response just recently?"

You're acting like they're choosing to not respond, which is obviously not the case. Of course Metro doesn't have the funds to just have dozens of buses and drivers sitting around on standby in case Bethesda metro has a temporary power outage. You're being completely unrealistic; it's akin to listening to a 5 year old throw a tantrum and it's not at all a productive exercise.

Anonymous said...

"With these crowds, send a couple."

Far more than "a couple" of buses were sent, obviously. Are you being serious?

Robert Dyer said...

9:24/9:26: The pictures here prove there was only was one bus. Why else would the others have had to have waited for the next one. Will you follow up your salute to WMATA with a hearty endorsement of Barwood Cab and the cable company?

Anonymous said...

"Sending one bus really is poor planning."

In other words, "Dyer posted a picture of one bus. Therefore only one bus came the entire afternoon."

"Trawick", is that you>

Anonymous said...

@ 9:49 PM -

In other words, "I posted a picture of one bus. Therefore only one bus came the afternoon."

Anonymous said...

I love that the Dyer hate is so strong that people choose to side with Metro just to spite him.

Yes, fools, ONE bus. Just like the last time when I got shunted to Medical Center, waited 45 minutes for a shuttle, gave up and walked home and never saw a bus during that entire walk.

How anyone can defend the appalling state of our Metro system is beyond me. And for folks saying Dyer is acting like Metro is choosing not to respond... Have we so soon forgotten the FTA Safety Report?

Anonymous said...

Because a mass transit system and a music project are equivalent for certain.

This is a good post though. Crazy how metro keeps failing and failing. Isn't this supposed to be a premier spot too?

Anonymous said...

So what's the proposed solution to fix metro?

Anonymous said...

Exactly. We need better oversight. Bethesda is our station and we deserve answers and better service.

We can't keep shutting the station down and not have contingency plans set. It's called planning!

Anonymous said...

We've found the first pro Metro blogger, and he's commenting here in Dyer's site. Lol.
He obviously doesn't use Metro if he thinks everything is great with the Bethesda station.

Anonymous said...

5:32am: Hey! At least they've had air conditioning this week. (That's actually my benchmark for "Bethesda Station is doing well.") Though it was perplexing when the shiny new 7000 series train pulled up and did not have air conditioning...and the computer announced that it was actually at Cleveland Park over and over until the driver came out and slammed his fist against something above the display screen in the first car.

Trawick said...

I think folks just don't like Dyer's perspectives and are trying to open his mind. Not necessarily arguing the points but his logic behind his beliefs.

Anonymous said...

Dyer: "The pictures here prove there was only was one bus. Why else would the others have had to have waited for the next one. Will you follow up your salute to WMATA with a hearty endorsement of Barwood Cab and the cable company?"

Uh, Dyer, your post itself even says "Shuttle buses are running to Friendship Heights and Medical Center stations on the Red Line." Failing, Dyer, failing.

Anonymous said...

8:05 AM You're right, it defies logic to expect better from Metro than to constantly close the station and not have proper contingencies in place.

There's nothing wrong with the station, move along, nothing to see here...except for our shiny new escalator (that doesn't work properly)

Anonymous said...

Why would you want a BRT when you have the Red Line?

Anonymous said...

8:08 AM The station closed last night. One bus appeared, quicky filled and crowds were waiting 20+ minutes for another bus. That's fact. Same thing happened a few weeks ago.

Dyer's reporting has actually facts from the incident, not just opinion.

Anonymous said...

You'll notice the pro-Metro bloggers are folks who don't use the system.

Anonymous said...

8:11 AM The BRT makes sense! Now that the Bethesda station will regularly close for hours, at least folks can catch BRT to Friendship Heights.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

Not sayings the metro is great. But what's the proposed alternative?

Anonymous said...

Building an elevated freeway down Wisconsin Avenue, at a cost of $2 billion per mile.

But WMATA seriously needs to reform its management structure, to provide even a hint of accountability.

Anonymous said...

8:22 AM My proposal is a WORKING Metro system

Anonymous said...

Downtown Bethesda has quite a number of new condos/apts. either just opening (Darcy, Bethesda Flats) or being built (the Lauren, Hampden Row, 7771, et al) -- so tell me how the Bethesda station be able to handle all these new riders? I moved here from NYC and thought the subways there were messed up. The system here is appalling!! I've experienced more delays, shut-downs of both trains & escalators in my 3 months here than 10 years in NYC!!

Anonymous said...

@ 8:39 AM - We would all like to see a working Metro system. We would also like to see Dyer actually working.

Anonymous said...

BRT, Purple Line, etc. I think building local alternatives to the Metro system makes sense at this point. No reason for MoCo to shut down due to these regular problems. Let VA continue to invest in a transit system that lacks accountability.

Steve D. said...

How could they allow a Metro station to have a power outage? That is extremely irresponsible. Their backup generator needs a serious overhaul.

Anonymous said...

How would you fix it?

Anonymous said...

Metro sucks but what alternative do I have other than to get a job by where I live or live by my job. Not so easy to find.

Anonymous said...

I don't think anyone is defending the state of the metro system here.

Anonymous said...

Why are all the people standing so far apart from one another? Are they afraid of getting cooties?

Anonymous said...

Good point...why no backup generator?

Anonymous said...

$$$$$$$$

Anonymous said...

Actually as much as dyer touts he answers his reader questions, he has never answered the question of what he does for a living. Any insight?

Robert Dyer said...

7:55: What do you know about reporters at other local media outlets? (Hint: Way less than you know about me. In fact, virtually nothing.)

Anonymous said...

Where's the outrage about the Bethesda Metro shutdowns from our elected representatives? If my constituents couldn't access our transit hub, that would kind of be a big deal to me.

Anonymous said...

There is quite a bit of outrage from local elected officials. Not a lot they can do about it, but they are trying. WMATA is notoriously difficult to work with. Talk to your district 16 representative Mark Korman - he's a huge proponent of a working transit system.

Anonymous said...

That's a good point. As someone who runs for political office all the time, we would love to hear more about you beyond just your position on matters. Politics is more than issues unfortunately.

Anonymous said...

4:15AM if you want to get to know Robert personally, you might want to just contact him directly.
You sound kind of creepy though.

Anonymous said...

@ 6:34 AM - Maybe @ 4:15 AM is afraid that Dyer will touch him in a bad place.

Anonymous said...

6:51 AM is creepier than 4:15AM. If it's not the same guy, it should be.

Anonymous said...

Actually I agree with 4:15. I would rather vote for someone I know more about and trust. The issues are only part of the big picture.

Anonymous said...

10:08 AM anyone have an idea of what 10:08AM is babbling about?

Robert Dyer said...

How can you trust other local reporters if you don't know anything about them? Who's compensating them? Who they're working for? Reporting the news requires trust, and that involves "more than issues". It sounds like you've created a local news crisis. Seems you'll have to start investigating all local reporters to solve it. Good luck to you.

Anonymous said...

I'm surprised that @ 6:58 AM was able to wait 7 minutes before he posted his comment.

Anonymous said...

Readers are surprised 5:23pm is spending a Summer Friday night trolling the editor of a local news site. :\

Anonymous said...

That must have been the most stressful 16 minutes of your life. LOL

Trawick said...

Seems to be the same questions you ask of others.

Anonymous said...

Over 48 hours later, and none of our elected officials have said anything about our city's Metro station being closed for an entire evening. (One of several such closures this Summer at Bethesda station.)

I wish we had representatives, or someone in MoCo government, who would focus on these basic transportation issues in Bethesda. You know, being able to get to work and back home.

Dr. Gridlock today said we should expect more of this nonsense from Metro for the rest of the Summer. Can we get some oversight please?

Anonymous said...

Conspiracy theory:

Sabotage or cyber attack. Putin or China trying to lower the productivity levels of the US capital?

Anonymous said...

Lol. Gotta love it. Comments opposing dyer or his positions that come close to each other are "obviously" the same troll. Comments pro Dyer and for his psi idioms that come close to each other and this is the reaction to the same type of comments. Typical close minded hypocrisy.

Anonymous said...

You're giving WMATA too much credit to say it was an international conspiracy.. Lol.

Just stupidity and lack of planning at Metro.