That can be the only explanation to the news this week that Metro ridership is up 3% in the wake of their fare increases that went into effect on January 6. Whoever is responsible for Metro perhaps ought to think about running for President of the United States. Because somehow, this person has convinced the public that it really is a great deal to pay more for fewer parking places, pay more for the same lousy customer service, pay more for the same unreliable trains, and in some cases, get roughed up (allegedly) by Metro workers! This is the kind of marketing touch that you just can’t find anywhere on Madison Avenue.
Metro officials say it could be that ridership is up because of gas prices. Nevermind the fact that the fare increase in many cases probably outweighs the gas increase from last year to now. But it’s not as if anything has changed. People are still unruly on the trains themselves, inconsiderate, and even abusive in some cases. Then there are deals like yesterday afternoon when I was riding home, and we sat at a station for 5 minutes while the doors to the car opened, closed, opened, closed, opened, closed, opened, closed, opened, closed. This in itself wouldn’t have been all that unnerving, had the automated voice not been going along with it, announcing that the doors were opening, stand back they’re closing, opening, stand back they’re closing, opening, stand back they’re closing, you get the picture. You are probably just as annoyed by simply reading that as I was having to watch it.
And yet, we are paying more for it. And we are doing it happily.
We are a beaten consumer with no heart.
But … at least some of us know how to pay for Metro! (see next post for details)
MDR
1 comment:
Totally beaten, totally dependent, and basically tired of the Sisyphusian challenge of making Metro better. Metro will run smoothly about the same time that politicians tell the truth and look at long-term solutions.
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