An editorial in today’s Washington Post correclty pushes back on the idea of one its readers that Metro should lower fares so long as the delays stemming from the June 22nd accident on the Red Line Continue. The Post also misses an opportunity to make an important point.
To accommodate passengers, Metro has put more eight-car trains into service on the Red Line (most are still six cars) and should add even more if electric power supplies allow for it. It should continue to warn passengers to factor in delays of 30 minutes or more on the line. Until Metro gets out the kinks, passengers will either have to wait or find alternative means of transport. That, unfortunately, is the price of prudence.
Well, yes, it is the price of prudence, but it’s also the price of not having a Purple Line to carry Beltway commuters and reduce strain on the Red Line. More broadly though, it underscores the point that redundancy within a transit system is actually a good thing. We are not resigned to this fate.
