Worst commuting experience

Hello everyone,

I am curious as to what your worst commuting experience (rapid transit or commuter rail) has been. I know that I definitely have some but they are probably not bad compared to someone else's (I don't venture onto trains when I know that it is not going to be an easy commute).

Thanks, TJ

Mods: If this topic seems stupid or is in the wrong place, please delete it or move it. Thanks

Mine was in February 2010, if I recall the date correctly, during "Snowmageddon," as it was dubbed here in the Washington, DC, area. At our house we lost power for about 25 hours (no big problem) but when it came back on we still didn't have Internet service. I had a lot of work to do and VRE canceled service. I put extra clothes and food into the car and drove to work in Arlington, Va., about 55 miles.

Virginia Railway Express sent emails saying not only that it wasn't running trains, but that the roads were bad so we shouldn't go to work. And a rail advocate sent me an email describing the difficulties of driving on snowy roads compared to the warm, smooth ride available on a commuter train. Except the trains were canceled for four days in a row.

When VRE finally resumed service, it wouldn't refund any tickets, even to people who had bought five-day passes.

4400Washboard wrote:Hello everyone,

I am curious as to what your worst commuting experience (rapid transit or commuter rail) has been. I know that I definitely have some but they are probably not bad compared to someone else's (I don't venture onto trains when I know that it is not going to be an easy commute).

Thanks, TJ

Mods: If this topic seems stupid or is in the wrong place, please delete it or move it. Thanks

Mod Note: I suppose it could be in Trip Reports, but this is fine by me for now.

As for me, I'm a relatively new WMATA rider so maybe I'll have a poor experience here - my experience on Metro Transit (Twin Cities) wasn't terrible enough to note.

Hands down, the 4/5 trains in Manhattan. They are packed- so much that it can be impossible to even board some trains- and the trains are so packed onto the line that they just creep along.

As much as I like railroads, after having to commute on those trains, I now live within walking distance from work and refuse to take them during the workweek except at off-peak times.

SouthernRailway wrote:Hands down, the 4/5 trains in Manhattan. They are packed- so much that it can be impossible to even board some trains- and the trains are so packed onto the line that they just creep along.

Completely agree-I use the local 6 and the trains are often horribly crowded. I hate it when they have to run 6 trains express on the local tracks but that's what they have to do...

My worst experience (I forgot to post it) was on the day I created this tread. It was a real crummy day for commuting since there was oogles of snow and uncomfortably cold temperatures. The 6 train was utra crowded and I had to let a train pass before getting on (Something I'm not fond of). I hear the announcement that 7 trains aren't running to GCT because of an iced over third rail in Queens so I get off at Lex 59 (Versus GCT) and wait for an N/Q train. Finally a Q train arrives and we proceed through the tunnel with ease. Then as soon as the first car gets out of the portal, BAM the brakes are applied and we wait at a red signal. The trains were backed up due to a malfunctioning signal @ Qns Plaza (I believe). However, there was an R68/A N train in clear view from the "RFW" so I could get pictures of that. Anyway, we stop at another red signal and proceed to Qns Plaza. Then, it turns out that 7 trains weren't not only shut down at GCT, they were shutdown altogether (IIRC) [Insert expletive here]. So I go down to the street level where the shuttle buses are waiting but the line (More of an unorganized blob) had formed and was spilling 1 lane into the street. The MTA sent the tiny old Nova buses to shuttle pax. It was fun watching them slowly accelerate into traffic-They were packed to the point where people were standing on the steps by the door. I choose to not wait for the free bus but to pay for the Q32/Q60 service (Parallels 7 train to where I need to get off). But even the regular bus' stop was crowded. 1 bus came and went (Fully packed), there was the usual arguing of a pregnant woman yelling at some asshole trying to cut the line, and slush was beginning to really pool up (I almost dropped my mobile device in it [Insert different expletive]).

I shall post Part 2 soon...

Ok Part 2:

So after 20 minutes of waiting, the next bus finally arrived. People immeditately flooded the door and ran on (They didn't pay the fare). The bus driver had to close the door on people scrambling to get in (They got off after much protesting though). I got stuck right by the door so I had to deal with all people getting off at each stop. After a while, there was a little river of muddy water running through the front of the bus because everyone was soaking and covered with snow. Anyway, I got off at my local bus stop and walked home. The end.