Cool, so that was you then? I was on that train when that happened,
standing at the very back. I must commend you for coming out to check
on people and trying to explain something for which there was apparently
no explanation. I saw one woman fall to the ground immediately and
another stumble pretty hard. I was not holding on to anything but
leaning against the back wall so when it stopped I went straight
vertical and almost tipped over.
There's this horrible noise that I have only heard on MUNI. It only
happens when someone is hurt or when something scary happens. It's sort
of a cacophony of moans and "oh!"s. Never any screams or anything, just
a collection of audible shock. It happened once when I was on an L out
near 19th street and a man got off, and a car didn't stop for him and
nailed him. Luckily my girlfriend was with me and she used to be an EMT
so she helped him while I called for an ambulance. Turns out he
shattered his elbow and probably some other bones too. I remember the
audible shock of the passengers. I heard that same noise when that
train braked for no reason last week.
I'm getting a little scared to ride the new Bredas. Once, I was on a J
Breda car. I looked down to read after Van Ness, and I look up to see
I'm at *Church* station. Turns out the train got the wrong signal,
according to the driver. While he is standing there and explaining this
to me the train takes off. This was *Before* the rollout of the
automatic system. So the trains get the wrong signal to change tracks,
they move automatically without the driver being prepared for it, and
now they brake for no reason. I sense a possible disaster in the
making!
I think the fact that these bizarre things are happening in automatic
mode is more frustrating to riders. Had it *not* been in automatic and
some moron driver braked for no reason, we would have words. But then
again, a driver wouldn't brake like that unless there was a good reason,
or at least I would hope so. But who am I supposed to get mad at when
the train brakes for no reason and throws people to the floor?