Local
Metro riders pleased despite problems
By: Taryn Luntz
Examiner Staff Writer
September 29, 2008
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| Metro riders in the District of Columbia are generally pleased with their commuting experience. — Examiner File Photo |
Of the 1,455 Metrorail riders surveyed over the past year, 85 percent reported being satisfied overall with Metro.
That’s a two-point drop from last year, a three-point dip from 2006 and on par with results from 2005.
Of the 947 Metrobus riders surveyed, 78 percent said they were satisfied with the service, a three-point dip from last year and the same percentage as reported being happy in 2006.
The survey, conducted by an outside contractor, was commissioned in a year when the transit agency implemented the largest fare increase in its history and experienced record-breaking ridership spikes and frequent overcrowding as gas prices soared.
But it also includes a year in which Metro began to improve its on-time rail performance, with an average of 90 percent or more trains reaching stations on schedule every month since December.
“On the whole, it really is a pretty good system, and most people know that,” Metro Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman said. “They have particular concerns and things they want to see improvement in, but even when they complain to me, most people say, ‘I love Metro.’ ”
Though some riders still complain about unintelligible station announcements and about receiving incomplete information when there are service disruptions, 76 percent of passengers reported being satisfied with Metro’s communication with them.
About 85 percent of bus riders and 89 percent of rail riders said they feel safe while riding Metro, according to the survey.
Metro Transit Police have reported a double-digit percentage increase in robberies on the system this year, although officials stressed that riders are still 15 times less likely to be a victim of crime on Metro than they are in the surrounding jurisdictions.
As for Metro’s reliability, 79 percent of rail riders reported being satisfied. Metro’s famously inconsistent bus service received a 63 percent mark.
Metro officials this year have begun an unprecedented effort to improve the quality and reliability of bus service, and say riders should begin to notice an improvement next summer.
