I still do not fully understand the machinations of the new ACTS system,
and right now I don't care. I understand this is something new and there
are bugs to work out. Fine. My aggravation stems from MUNI's lack of
communication.
I entered the Embarcadero metro station at 11:10 PM this evening. I arrived
home in the Lower Haight at 12:45 AM. During my hour wait for an N-Judah,
we all watched 4 Js and several K, L, Ms come and go. Every approaching
train on the North side was 'announced' on the marquee as an N. (There were
no vocal announcements this evening.) But there were no Ns. A couple of us
tried using the white courtesy phone to speak to the booth, but the phone
was not operational. We asked each driver to verify his destination, just
to be sure. Each one gave the same reply -- "There's an N behind me."
About this time a small construction crew has set up orange cones on the
north side and is begining some very loud and noxious repair job on the
rails. Hmm. Is the metro closing? Should we evacuate? No announcement. A
couple of us go upstairs to speak to the rep in the booth. She says there
are two N trains circulating but has no idea when one might show up. (Why
isn't there a way for this person to request and receive this information?
I know it is equally frustrating for those inside the booth.)
Back downstairs. An M arrives and I ask this driver how I might obtain some
news of an N train. He points me to the white phone. I tell him it's out of
order. He shrugs his shoulders and shuts his doors. (Again, I'm sure the
lack of information is equally frustrating to the driver).
When an N finally showed up, we spent several minutes (nearly 5 in some
cases) in each of the metro stops on the way out. No announcement was ever
made to explain why.
My frustration is not in the operational problems and resulting delays. I
just can't get any information (and sometimes receive misinformation). If I
had been told there would be up to an hour wait for an N tonight, or even
that certain lines were experiencing long delays, I would have immediately
gone upstairs for a bus or cab. But I wasted an hour getting my hopes up
based on 'announcements' and reports from drivers. I can't understand why
MUNI has not made improvements in its communication. There are a lot of
changes going on now. MUNI needs to invest some time and bodies in rider
assistance. People are confused and frustrated. This has been evident with
the POP service and the Outbound-Loading-Only restriction, both of which
are becoming known through word-of-mouth and newspaper articles, not from
the mouth of MUNI! (Could MUNI try something as simple as xeroxed weekly
[perhaps even daily for the metro] fliers in the stations and on the
vehicles?).
I know there are a couple of MUNI drivers that regularly contribute to this
discussion space. I'm hopeful that you can share your insight regarding
these communication obstacles.
beth wilson