Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Honey Manager Don't Care


From anonymous:
Metro has annoying issues, hot cars, delays, malfunctions, off-boarding, buses not showing up, etc., but in general, I am grateful to have public transit since I do not own a car. Metro is how I get to and from work, as well as participate in other activities.

As of late, there has been a serious uptick in crime in the Mount Vernon Triangle/Chinatown neighborhood and at the Chinatown Metro.

I have felt very unsafe and have contacted the general police - who never show when I call.

The other night, I witnessed a particularly disturbing incident at the Chinatown Metro after the Nationals game.

It was around 10:30 p.m. There were a lot of people (since this is a major transfer point), and as I came off the train, I saw an altercation taking place on one of the escalators.

People were screaming for Metro police, and a few gentleman were trying to hold two juveniles who appeared to have attempted to rob somebody. The two juveniles were throwing punches, but the good citizens were not standing down.

People continued to scream for police, but none showed up.

So I ran to the other side - also screaming for help and prompting others to try and get help - and went to the vestibule at the 7th and H St. exit.

There were two gentleman there, and what happened next cannot be expressed through a message.

I conveyed what happened (other people were there, too) and asked why these things keep happening. I asked what they were doing about it?

One of the gentleman began to chastise me, tried to intimidate me, and belittled me. The other followed suit.

I was upset and conveyed how I felt unsafe.

To say they were unkind would be an understatement.

I exited through the gates and went to the front of the vestibule. A name plate said "Station Manager on Duty" with the name "A. Harris" listed.

I asked one of the gentleman who A. Harris was, and he asked why I needed to know.

I told him it was because that was who was listed as the station manager on duty, and I wanted to know who was responsible.

He told me I didn't need to know that information and then proceeded to call transit police on me - to scare me off.

The transit police did not show up, and I left realizing how futile this all was.

I submitted a formal complaint through Metro and called Transit Police myself the next morning to relay the incident and ask why there weren't several transit police visibly present when they knew there was a large sporting event. Chinatown is a problem station and a busy transfer point, particularly after games.

The response I got was "Just like you can't be all places at all time neither can our people."

That is unacceptable.
Other items:
Arlington approves Columbia Pike streetcar plan (Examiner)
Mayor Gray blasts Metro (Foreign Policy)