My commute was very mundane. The trains were slow in the above-ground portions but it was quite nice. The train was much less crowded than usual. Hardly anyone got on at Union Station or Silver Spring.

by Cavan on Feb 12, 2010 10:44 am • link • report

Farragut to Courthouse was busier than usual, but otherwise fine. Same speed as a normal day.

by BeyondDC on Feb 12, 2010 10:50 am • link • report

Mine was horrendous. Entered the station on Orange/Blue on the hill, platform was packed. After a 10 minute wait, the train finally arrives, already packed to the gills. We slowly stop and start until we get to Federal Center SW, where we switch to the other track (explaining the delays) - but no one had announced that to us either on the platform or on the train.

Pulling into L'Enfant, the lower platform was crammed, with the disabled train on the other track. I was lucky enough to be right by the door (thanks to the train single tracking and switching sides) so I could make a quick exit and get upstairs to the Green/Yellow platform, where I had to wait 12 minutes for a Green line train to get to U St. Every train that passed through the station in the interim was crammed as well, all SRO.

For trains breaking down, that happens - I get that. But no one said a damn thing to the passengers. The long headways made it all worse, and the crowds appeared to be your standard rush-hour size. That's a bad combination.

And, as I type, I'm just seeing that a Red Line train apparently derailed at Farragut North:

http://www.wmata.com/about_metro/news/PressReleaseDetail.cfm?ReleaseID=4316

Yikes. A bad day for Metro gets worse.

by Alex B. on Feb 12, 2010 10:52 am • link • report

Took me an hour and 9 minutes to get from Clarendon to McPherson Square. was crowded and not real fun, but otherwise uneventful.

by Sara Lang on Feb 12, 2010 10:59 am • link • report

Not too bad. I waited for about 20 minutes at Dupont to get a train going to Union Station. I usually am waiting 2-3 minutes.

Very, VERY crowded though as many more were going to work than I had thought

by Trev on Feb 12, 2010 11:00 am • link • report

I biked in from MacArthur to Georgetown. Normally a 10 minute ride (mixed riding on Macarthur then on the CC trail), it took about 45 minutes because I had to get off the bike several times on the CCT to walk. I took a picture on Monday: http://goo.gl/8b0u
and that's still how it looks.
For drivers, MacArthur and Foxhall were backed up because its down to 1 lane in either direction.

by Bilsko on Feb 12, 2010 11:01 am • link • report

Orange line in Virginia was very bad this morning. I got to Ballston around 8:20 and police were preventing a crowd of people from even entering the station. After a few minutes of waiting they let everybody in, but there was only service on one platform, which quickly filled up. I assumed because one platform was closed, the above ground stations were still closed, but when a train pulled in around 8:40 from the above ground direction, it was packed to the gills already.

After that, the train moved fairly quickly, but I've never seen a train so crowded - every time I thought it was full, a few more people squeezed on at the next station.

Red line from Metro Center to Union Station was a breeze, though.

by Eric on Feb 12, 2010 11:03 am • link • report

Green Line from U St to Archives was fine (10am); 7-minute wait, train full but not crowded. Platforms are slippery. Sidewalks are a mess. I heard the Red Line at Union Station was hopelessly crowded.

by M.V. Jantzen on Feb 12, 2010 11:03 am • link • report

Derailment on the red line, near Farragut North. If you're riding along the Red line, consider using the L series buses to get to the K street corridor (Foggy Bottom, Farragut, or McPherson)

by Michael Perkins on Feb 12, 2010 11:04 am • link • report

At Ballston at 8:15 they were not allowing passengers to enter the station via the main escalators because of crowding on the platform. The line for the 38B was easily two bus loads of people long. I just walked to work in Georgetown - it took an hour and 15 minutes.

Also, for what its worth, the Key Bridge was completely unshoveled.

by Patrick on Feb 12, 2010 11:04 am • link • report

I expected the trains to be a nightmare, so I bused it in to work, and it was easier than normal because the buses that are usually packed had few riders. The bus drivers had a hard time navigating the narrower-than-normal streets because of piled-up snow, as well as navigating around pedestrians in the road because of unshoveled sidewalks, but they managed. I'm definitely taking the buses home and avoiding the trains tonight.

by Tanya on Feb 12, 2010 11:08 am • link • report

Took Marc Penn Line with no trouble. When I got to Union Station around 9 am it was there were 6 car trains every 8 minutes and it seemed like only 5 people were getting off per door. They were already completely stuffed so after two trains I gave up and walked to my work near Farragut North.

by GregSanders on Feb 12, 2010 11:08 am • link • report

green line was packed from Waterfront to L'Enfant but cleared out after that. 10-minute headways. All things considered, I really can't complain. I'm just happy to be back at work (and seeing people! in person!) again.

by stacy on Feb 12, 2010 11:09 am • link • report

I'm in the metro right now, and they just made the announcement that power is about to be restored at Farragut north. Don't know if that means it's cleaned up already or not.

Anyone know how far the orange is going into Virginia right now?

by Jcm on Feb 12, 2010 11:09 am • link • report

The G2 bus did not seem to be running this morning, so we walked from Shaw to Dupont down Rhode Island Ave. The walk took about 40 minutes (twice as long as usual)because half of the sidewalks were not cleared and the plows had mounded up snow in front of the curb cuts.

by Dave on Feb 12, 2010 11:10 am • link • report

My usual bus wasn't running today, so i caught the Circulator at 12th and K streets down to 21st and K. Was a breeze except for the expected non-shoveling of the bus stops.

by Sharon on Feb 12, 2010 11:10 am • link • report

Aside from St. Barnabas and Silver Hill Rd being poorly plowed, getting to Suitland wasn't out of the ordinary today.

by Froggie on Feb 12, 2010 11:12 am • link • report

I rode the Circulator from the Convention Center to 7th and G SW. 2 blocks walk to the stop, one block from the drop off. 15 minutes total.

Not trying to rub it in or anything! Just adding to the survey...

by EB on Feb 12, 2010 11:15 am • link • report

David, you left an ital tag unclosed when you updated the post about the Farragut derailment.

by Alex B. on Feb 12, 2010 11:16 am • link • report

Kudos for Metro to sending an empty city-bound orange line train into Courthouse at 9:05 AM. The platform was packed with disgruntled riders at that point, but everyone was able to squeeze onto the empty train. Not everyone at Rosslyn was able to board, but it looked like a few more were able to squeeze on.

by Tim on Feb 12, 2010 11:16 am • link • report

*just saw the other person posting about the Circulator/bus stops - that was also my experience. Had to wait at 9th and Massachusetts on the edge of the crosswalk because the actual bus stop 15 feet up 9th was covered by a 4 foot pile of snow. Stop at 7th and G SW was the same, except a slightly smaller pile of snow.

by EB on Feb 12, 2010 11:18 am • link • report

Considered biking, then reconsidered when I realized my parking lot and street are still icy messes. Didn't even attempt
to walk to the Metro since I'd read stories about Ballston's entrance being closed. Finally got into my car and drove, only to find traffic on 50 moving at a snail's pace, so I made an illegal U-turn thinking I'd just go down one of the side streets, but (surprise!) it was unplowed and impassable. The next passable street led me back in the direction of my house, so I went back in, called my boss amd told him I'm taking unscheduled leave. I'm staying put!

by Jeanne on Feb 12, 2010 11:21 am • link • report

The decision to drive into work today appears to have been a wise one. Save for the narrowed lanes, the roads were in very good shape. Metro is a disaster, but that was predictable.

by Ron on Feb 12, 2010 11:21 am • link • report

Biked from Dupont to Judiciary. Took about 5 minutes longer than usual. Less traffic than a usual day on the streets (as expected, very few bikes out). Most main streets are decent with clear pavement, but some the of the lessor ones (and other not-so-lessor, surprisingly, like New York Ave and H street NW, east of the White House) were slushier than expected. Few slippery moments, but not as bad as expected. Bright sun is, as yesterday, helping burn off the decently paved streets to make them pure pavement, but will be a black ice issue once the sun goes down and stuff starts refreezing.

by Mase on Feb 12, 2010 11:22 am • link • report

Tried to bus to work, Nextbus showed a bus in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 minute, then is disappeared off the screen, with the next one showing 26 minutes out. I ended up walking in instead.

by Moose on Feb 12, 2010 11:24 am • link • report

Got stuck behind the derailed train.

by Neil Flanagan on Feb 12, 2010 11:26 am • link • report

I walked from Southwest Waterfront to downtown. It normally takes about 30 minutes; today took about 45. Some of the delay was because of rerouting -- the Maine Avenue sidewalks are a terrible mess, so I took the long route via 7th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue instead -- and some of it was due to the snow (frequent snowplow berms at street crossings, lack of shoveling on the National Mall).

by cminus on Feb 12, 2010 11:26 am • link • report

My commute was decent. Got on the Green Line at College Park at 9:50. Crowds were a little thinner than usual.

At 10:05 at Fort Totten, I transferred to the Red Line. Crowds were thicker than usual. Had to wait a little over 5 minutes for a Glenmont train. It was more crowded than usual, but there were open seats. The downtown-bound train that went through while I was waiting was packed.

Silver Spring's north mezzanine had only one-working exit faregate so there was a huge mob of people waiting to go out.

Sidewalks and streets in Silver Spring are rough. In many cases, the sidewalks have been shoveled, but have no access to the crosswalk or corner. At Fenwick and Second (SE corner), a 7-foot high snow pile makes peds walk a block east on Fenwick in order to cross.

by Matt Johnson on Feb 12, 2010 11:28 am • link • report

I-66 was the worst I've ever seen it. From Route 50 in Fair Lakes all the way to Constitution Avenue was backed up. Took me about an hour from Vienna to Falls Church. The reason has got to have to with the fact that western Orange Line stations were closed and all the feeder buses were weren't operating on account of the rail closure, and the government was open for business. Talk about an overloaded road.

by JM on Feb 12, 2010 11:29 am • link • report

Green line from College Park was packed, but OK, even with the infrequent headway. L'Enfant plaza was terrible. Went downstairs, saw disabled train on the westbound track. A westbound orange line train eventually came to the eastbound track, but it was short (6), and totally full, I couldn't get on it. So I said, F it, and walked from L'Enfant to Foggy Bottom.

by Terry on Feb 12, 2010 11:32 am • link • report

Over an hour longer than normal. ART 52 bus was half-an-hour late, and the arrival time on my phone remained stuck at "8 minutes" for about 20+ minutes, so obviously the bus was stuck/going very slow wherever it was, but that made it impossible to wait in the house. Then it took 20+ minutes longer to get to Ballston due to traffic on the roads. At Ballston trains were single-tracked, so the wait was another 20+ minutes. Worth it, though, just for the change of scenery.

by JPK on Feb 12, 2010 11:33 am • link • report

Metro not working from WFC so I drove. Reston to downtown Bethesda in 45 minutes. About 5 mins slower than a normal drive. Fewer cars on the road.

by Tom on Feb 12, 2010 11:34 am • link • report

I tried to catch the 16Y, my usual, at 6:05 this morning, but WMATA's press release was misleading. They claimed that the "16 line" was running, but while the 16 A, B, D, J, etc were running, the 16Y was not. I gave up at about 6:25 and took the 16A to the Pentagon. The bus was very full, but everyone got on (at least those that could get around the giant piles of snow). At Pentagon station is was about a 5 minute wait for an 8-car Blue line train. Plenty of room in the 1st car. Lot of folks got on at Rosslyn, but still plenty of standing room. Exited at Foggy Bottom. The walk was a bit dicey, with an 8-10' pile of snow at the corner of New Hampshire and 22nd. The whole commute only took about an 25 extra minutes.

Mostly I'm irritate that WMATA did not specify that the 16Y was not running, while implying that all 16 buses were functioning. A few extra words in the press release, and I would have been at work at my normal time. Now I'm wondering if the 16Y will be running this afternoon - as WMATA appears to be claiming.

by irate_reader on Feb 12, 2010 11:44 am • link • report

My commute was actually better than on a non-post-blizzard morning. Hopped on a relatively empty 52 bus at 14th and Chapin. Little traffic. Even made it to work early. My co-workers who took advantage of the Federal delayed schedule had a harder time at it, though.

by Mango on Feb 12, 2010 11:48 am • link • report

I was on the train that derailed. Made it out just about 15 minutes ago. I think they handled it okay. Everybody in my compartment was in relatively good spirits.

I wouldve posted from down there if I had a signal. How meta would that be!

by HM on Feb 12, 2010 11:59 am • link • report

Walked down 13th St into downtown. All the big apartment houses have thier walks nicely cleared and a lot of them even opened up pathways at the corners for crossing the street.

Just below K St Franklin School is completely unshoveled and very icy but otherwise everything is fine except for the traffic islands where I and NY Ave cross 13th.

by andy on Feb 12, 2010 12:07 pm • link • report

I took red line from Woodley Park at 8.20 a.m. The trains going downtown were absolutely packed-probably the worst I have ever seen, and the trains going towards Medical Center were very, very busy. It was pretty unpleasant, and there were additional delays due to single tracking around van Ness. However, it was quicker getting to work than every other morning this week, when the trains have been running at 30 minute intervals.

It makes me wonder who is using the red line in the morning? With [most of] the outdoor stations closed, there must have been relatively few MoCo commuters in the network, but the trains were still absolutely packed.

by renegade09 on Feb 12, 2010 12:09 pm • link • report

DC Circulator Buses weren't servicing the Union Station garage when my MARC train got there at 8:15 today - a crowd was still waiting up there (unlike Tuesday when it was just me checking on circulators up there.) I popped into the Metro Station for a minute and saw a jammed platform (on both sides) that were all going in the same direction.

I went outside and noticed a Circulator picking up at a Metrobus stop (D6, D8, and some other bus.) I got on it and could heard on their radio that they were going to have to stop picking up there and they were trying to get them allowed back into the garage. Circulator was very crowded all along Mass. and even K.

I had been prepared to start out walking like I did Tuesday. I ended up going up Mass. and catching an X2 bus that day.

by Q on Feb 12, 2010 12:14 pm • link • report

Sidewalks on 16th north of U are in terrible shape. To get on or off the bus, one has to manage to avoid stepping in a fast moving and deep river of dirty meltwater as well as a snowbank anywhere from two to four feet in height. Why has the City not even tried to clear a narrow path between the bus stop and street? Bus drivers are doing their best to help passengers avoid having to step in deep water and/or climb over a snowbank, but usually that's just not possible. I saw a number of older folks struggling to get on and off the bus, and a large number of people getting on and off the bus in the middle of the street. No one should have to walk with vehicular traffic down a major thoroughfare to an intersection in order to get on the sidewalk after getting off the bus.

The crowd and commute time was only slightly slower than usual.

by Nemo on Feb 12, 2010 12:16 pm • link • report

@ Terry:

"Green line from College Park was packed, but OK, even with the infrequent headway. L'Enfant plaza was terrible. Went downstairs, saw disabled train on the westbound track. A westbound orange line train eventually came to the eastbound track, but it was short (6), and totally full, I couldn't get on it. So I said, F it, and walked from L'Enfant to Foggy Bottom."

That was me, except I got on the Green line at Columbia Heights, and I made it on the 6-car Orange line train that you couldn't get on. If I hadn't, I'd have probably tried walking. How long did it take you to walk from L'Enfant to Foggy Bottom?

by dcd on Feb 12, 2010 12:26 pm • link • report

@Nemo

I've seen crews out there trying to deal with the snowbanks at intersections, but that's a slow and laborious process that will take quite a bit of time to accomplish.

by Alex B. on Feb 12, 2010 12:28 pm • link • report

NextBus for the 38B was very off. I'm assuming it might be due to the farragut north thing which may have disrupted traffic. I took metro instead, and then saw 3 38Bs run by on Wilson.

As usual, the Blue Bus in Georgetown has been going like clockwork.

by charlie on Feb 12, 2010 12:30 pm • link • report

I drove. Took me about 60 minutes than the usual 30-40. But, given the mess with Metro, I'm quite happy I drove instead.

by Fritz on Feb 12, 2010 12:42 pm • link • report

I drove... normally about a 20 minute drive; took about 15 minutes -- slowed only by a USDA front end loader along Powder Mill Road. Even yesterday my drive was fantastic... unfortunate since I arrived at work only to learn it was closed. And for a bit of DC perspective: my Monday drive out of the U Street area was a breeze, too. Windshield perspective for the win! :P

by Bossi on Feb 12, 2010 12:42 pm • link • report

Up in Tenleytown, we were able to cut through a number of snowbanks, but one too four people 30 minutes to complete.

The biggest I saw was a 12-foot snowbank at Connecticut and Albemarle.

by Neil Flanagan on Feb 12, 2010 12:45 pm • link • report

Yep, it takes a lot of time to clear those snowbanks. The guys I saw were chopping up the snowbanks with steel crowbars. It's not like just shoveling powder.

by Alex B. on Feb 12, 2010 12:53 pm • link • report

I walked in this morning, later than usual due to the 2 hours delayed arrival for the federal government, along my usual route down Pennsylvania Ave SE and Independence Ave SE/SW. Residential and business sidewalks were well-cleared except for the blocks along Pennsylvania Ave SE maintained by the National Park Service (4th - 6th / 7th - 9th) which were completely unshoveled or plowed. Boo NPS.

by Kelly on Feb 12, 2010 12:58 pm • link • report

We used an edger for most of the work, but sometimes we just picked up the ice boulders.

by Neil Flanagan on Feb 12, 2010 1:01 pm • link • report

Switched my bike's road wheels to cross wheels, and biked the Met Branch Trail from Rhode Island to Silver Spring. Beautiful. Not a soul, and perfectly silent, except the occasional southbound Red Line train that sped by, like a can of meat on wheels.

by BSSB on Feb 12, 2010 1:02 pm • link • report

Aldon Mgmt cleared all the sidewalks in front of their buildings, and that part of my walk to work was fine. The Bethesda Trolley Trail on the section that I walk it (between Battery Ln and the Storm-water entrance to the NIH) was a catastrophe. The sidewalk inside NIH was a mess between that entrance and my building was alright, there were some patches of ice.

by Shahar Goldin on Feb 12, 2010 1:04 pm • link • report

@dave, @cminus, @andy, @nemo, @neil and others...

Tell DC gov't that we need sidewalks cleared at http://www.seeclickfix.com/issues/15997!

by Allison on Feb 12, 2010 1:04 pm • link • report

Walked down 18th St and Connecticut to Farragut West. Some sidewalks still not cleared, particularly north of P St. Getting across intersections was an adventure, but doable.

But then it took 40 mins to take the Orange Line from Farragut to Clarendon. We stopped with no explanation at Courthouse for who knows how long (wasn't timing it). It turns out they were still single-tracking at Clarendon - WHY???

All told my commute was 1 hr 15 mins. It's normally about 35-40 mins.

by Esmeralda on Feb 12, 2010 1:31 pm • link • report

It would have been nice if the driver of the S1 buse would have told me it was only running to K and 17th when I got on. Then I wouldn't have paid the money and walked 6 blocks plus the 10 I had to walk when the bus went out of service

by nathaniel on Feb 12, 2010 1:48 pm • link • report

Yes, if someone could explain all the single tracking on the Orange line that would be great...especially the single-tracking at L'Enfant. That same empty train was sitting there yesterday, too, causing the same single tracking.

Does WMATA have an answer?

by SDJ on Feb 12, 2010 2:20 pm • link • report

It took me half an hour to get on a yellow line train from a green line train... and they're *supposed* to be back-to-back... All together, my commute took about 80 minutes versus the normal 35-45 minutes... EPIC FAIL METRO!

by Matt on Feb 12, 2010 2:43 pm • link • report

The Post says the train this morning purposefully derailed itself to avoid running a red light. I had no idea such a thing could happen.

by jcm on Feb 12, 2010 3:30 pm • link • report

Well, the train doesn't derail itself - the derailers are in place to derail a train that enters a signal that it's not supposed to. The only way this could happen would be for the train to try and enter the pocket track north of the Farragut North station when it was supposed to continue straight ahead.

So, the failsafe worked - but why was the failsafe even needed? Either the operator proceeded when he wasn't signaled to, or the switch was improperly aligned to put the train onto the pocket track when it was supposed to go forward.

by Alex B. on Feb 12, 2010 3:49 pm • link • report

It took me almost 2 hours to complete my 40-minute commute from Union Station to Ballston. The platform and trains were so packed at Union Station that there was no way for me to get near the train, let alone get on. I ended up riding the Circulator to McPherson Square (which took over an hour, moving at a snail's pace) and taking the Orange line from there (which was not too crowded). We did stop outside Ballston for about 5 minutes due to "single-tracking". I wonder what the trip home has in store...

by Matthias on Feb 12, 2010 3:51 pm • link • report

Although 'parts' of the roads are cleared to pavement in PG county, the four mile stretch of University Avenue from the University of Maryland to the 495 onramp is a total mess.

Every hundred yards or so there is a seven to twelve foot snow bank disrupting a right lane, forcing quick merging. Then the lane opens up, people are tricked into thinking there will be no more disruption, and they are promptly met with another snowbank.

PG police and emergency crews should simply block off the right lane. The major inconvenience is coming from the merge-stop cycle. The same thing is happening on East West highway heading into Takoma Park--except, in that area, the plow simply decided to ignore a turn-yield lane at the New Hampshire Ave intersection.

Let's call a spade a spade: the reason the area is really a mess because of shoddy planning, and untrained snow removal. Forget the 48-hour rule to plow a street--those banks in the middle of the road will not melt for weeks in temperatures that hover slightly above freezing. I have nothing but praise for the men and women in the equipment keeping our roads open. But I am completely baffled by how they are instructed to remove it. And let's not use the "not a snow city" argument: this is utter common sense.

-Upstate NY Native

by Vanadias on Feb 12, 2010 3:56 pm • link • report

Metro hasn't been the only "epic fail" today (though this one looks more and more like operator error than an equipment malfunction). That there are so-called "Snow Emergency Routes" in Prince George's County that STILL are missing lanes/ramps/merges is completely UNSAT. SHA and the county should have focused on these routes FIRST...that's why they're snow emergency routes...before dealing with the secondaries. DC and Virginia, and even other counties in Maryland, have done a much better job at this than PGC...

by Froggie on Feb 12, 2010 4:08 pm • link • report

My commute took me only about 5 minutes longer than normal. I walk from Logan Circle to Adams Morgan via P, 16th, and U Sts. While navigating snow, slush and ice can be tricky, as a native Minnesotan, I'm able to call upon my "winter muscles" during times like these! Oh, and I'm even wearing an AirCast from a non-snow-related injury. I say it over and over: I LOVE walking to work!

by David T on Feb 12, 2010 4:19 pm • link • report

Because West Falls Church was closed I had to get a ride. Upon leaving school a few hours later I had to wait about two hours for the 5A bus to show up as all the ones headed towards L'Enfant Plaza kept disappearing into an abyss (perhaps for the Farragut North derailment bus bridge?). Eventually some passengers anxious to get to Dulles Airport got an out of service bus to head towards Dulles Airport. Props to the bus driver for calling up central and getting permission to do this. Total return commute time, 3 1/2 hours, my normal commute is 1 1/2 hours.

by Joshua Davis on Feb 12, 2010 5:06 pm • link • report

This morning, I took the Blue Line from Van Dorn AFTER Metro had opened Huntington because Metro didn't bother to inform the media in a timely way. Neither did Metro give out estimated reopening times. This was poor communication on Metro's part.

Now, for the ride itself: Unbelievably, Metro ran 6-car trains on both the Blue and Yellow Lines. It was almost impossible to get on the Blue train at Van Dorn. I got off to switch to the Yellow Line, which the board said was coming in 3 and 7 minutes. In about 5 minutes, an empty train came and didn't stop. Well, it did stop, but not for passengers. After 15 or so minutes, another packed Blue train came. Another 7 minutes later, a Yellow train came.

According to Metro, the reason for the delay in opening the Blue/Yellow line was the snow accumulation on the platform canopies. This is really a design flaw: the canopies do not extend past the tracks. So, their runoff falls right onto the tracks and trains. This isn't a problem with rain or a small amount of snow, but should have been accounted for in the station's planning.

by Chuck Coleman on Feb 12, 2010 6:30 pm • link • report

The Red Line had started going to White Flint when I got on, so I had a bonus--no need to take RideOn. The trip back to DC was crowded with Capitals fans. The snow (MoCo doesn't care about sidewalks) and slush (P St) were the only hassles.

by Rich on Feb 12, 2010 7:48 pm • link • report

My VRE train had a ten-minute delay on Friday morning and was crowded as it was only running S-schedule, but otherwise, it ran smoothly.

by Craig on Feb 13, 2010 7:34 am • link • report

Was smug at 7:30 a.m. riding my bike from Columbia Heights to I street office - little traffic, very easy. Then got call from police asking me to get to a marina on the Anacostia due my boat sinking. Using the company car, it took 20 minutes to go one block due to the emergency vehicles coping with the derailment a block away. The traffic had spiraled down to people sitting in place and impotently honking their horns.

by AngryParakeet on Feb 13, 2010 9:20 am • link • report

I had to get from Vienna to Union Station to catch an Acela train, and didn't want to risk the Orange Line even after it started running aboveground again. So 2B to Ballston, switch to the ART Ballston-to-Pentagon bus (which ran into some truly abysmal plowing jobs and obnoxious drivers near the Pentagon), and then the Yellow Line up to Archives. I walked from Archives to Union Station over semi-cleared sidewalks. Total time in transit: 3 hours from door to door, for a trip that would normally take less than half that time.

by sg on Feb 14, 2010 11:59 pm • link • report