Farewell, Melissa. MARC will miss you
Melissa Schober, a friend of Getting There who helped point out the lapses in the MTA's handing of MARC riders' complaints, write to say she's getting off the Penn Line train she's been riiding since 2007.
Got a new gig, closer to my home in Baltimore. I have a two-year-old and I just can't take any more delays and excuses and hand-waving. I have missed too many evenings with her. Last day on the Penn Line will be 7/29.
I'll have to drive -- buying a used Prius -- which really stinks. I am a HUGE believer in transit; I'm 31 and my husband is 33 and this will be our first car. What does it say about MARC service that it is driving me to, well, drive?
It says the MTA has a huge problem with riders who aren't captive customers because of their economic straits.
Comments
When my wife was pregnant I refused to commute on MARC because I knew that I could not depend on it in an emergency. Even now, if I absolutely need to be somewhere on time, I will drive to the Greenbelt station and take the Metro. If there is a problem with Metro then MARC could be my backup. If there is a problem with both, then a taxi ride to the Greenbelt station would not be as bad as one to Dorsey or BWI.
Any time I call my wife in the late afternoon or early evening before I get home from work, the first words out of her mouth are "Did something happen with the MARC, do I need to pick up the kids?".
Posted by: Frank | July 22, 2010 12:30 PM
Before you buy that car maybe you could try biking to work. Get the support you need to get started or try it at http://www.bike2workcentralmd.com
Posted by: Stephanie Yanovitz | July 22, 2010 3:40 PM
Stephanie,
I had a very bad bike accident 5 years ago and just got back on recently. I'm biking to/from Penn Station and around to get groceries. But it isn't a viable commute to my new office in the 'burbs just outside 695. At 10ish miles one-way, it is beyond my athletic and confidence ability (multi-lane roads at high speed).
Posted by: Melissa | July 27, 2010 12:44 PM