Over 31,000 riders accessed the Metro report website within its first 18 hours and thousands have shared their results on social media, according to Metro data. Many WMATA executives also ranked among the top 10 percent of users. General Manager Randy Clarke was among the top one percent of riders, and Sarah Mayer, the chief customer experience and engagement officer who has only been in the region for six months of 2023, ranked among the top six percent of riders.
“Putting the data in the hands of customers lets them see how much transit means in their lives. We saw people show love to their bus route, their bus operator or their favorite train line,” according to a Metro statement. “Plus, we loved seeing a little friendly competition among transit riders when it came to where they ranked.”
Janell Pagats, who has lived in D.C. for 14 years and now lives between Cleveland Park and Woodley Park, was excited to discover that she ranked among the top 1 percent of riders, with 235 rail trips and 309 bus trips totaling 1,504 miles, according to her 2023 Metro Report.
“I feel like [an] achievement has been unlocked here,” she told The Post. Several top riders took on average seven or more trips per day, Metro data showed.
Pagats, who has not owned a car during her time in the District, says public transit is by far the superior form of transportation. “I love that my driver picks me up in a very expensive chariot that’s temperature controlled,” she said. On her daily rides on the L2 bus to and from work, she loves seeing and conversing with her neighbors. “That’s something you don’t get on a private vehicle,” she said.
Ahmad Abu-Khalaf, by contrast, was mildly underwhelmed when he saw his Metro Report. “I could do a bit better,” he thought.
Abu-Khalaf, who lives near Union Station, was among the top 40 percent of Metro riders in 2023, with 39 rail trips and zero bus trips, according to his report. He says he largely avoids buses because of his proximity to Union Station and what he says is an often-inaccurate online bus schedule system.
Just because Abu-Khalaf isn’t among the top riders doesn’t mean he isn’t doing his part to mitigate carbon emissions. The report says he saved 33 kilograms of carbon dioxide. “Last year, I was using e-bike rentals more, and that’s not captured,” he said.
Henry Bendon, who lives in Richmond, mustered 15 rail trips and four bus trips in 2023, according to his Metro report. This, he says, is largely because he lives in a region without Metro service. “I thought I should have been way lower in the ranking,” he said. But he still ended up in the top 63 percent.
The reports were released about a month after Metro projected a $750 million deficit in its operating budget next fiscal year. This could force the closure of 10 Metrorail stations and result in radical cuts to 67 of its 135 bus lines if additional funding can’t be secured, according to a Metro statement.
Pagats said, “I hope [the reports] show how important it is to fund the system so that we can have more frequent, reliable services.”
For Bendon, the report is enough incentive for him to consider riding Metro more. “I definitely…
This article was originally published by a www.washingtonpost.com . Read the Original article here. .
