MTA touts itself as the way to the state fair
Before a major public event in the Baltimore area, it's typical of the Maryland Transit Administration to send out a news release touting its services as the way to get there.
So it is with the Maryland State Fair, which begins Aug. 27 and runs through Sept. 6. The MTA just put out the word that light rail is the way to go to the event to Timonium Fairgrounds. (It also mentions the No. 8 and No. 9 buses, though light rail will certainly move a lot more people.)
The obligatory canned quote from the release either contains news or a fairly ridiculous blunder, since it's attributed to MTA chief Ralign T. Wells.
MTA offers a cool, comfortable way to focus on the fair and your family instead of dealing with traffic and parking. For just $1.60, the MTA Day Pass will get you there relaxed and ready to enjoy good food, good times and great entertainment.
So the MTA has cut the cost of a day pass from $3.50 to the $1.60 cost of a one-way fare? Talk about burying the lead! (Lower in the release, it mentions the cost of a day pass as $3.50, so I'm betting that's the operative policy.)
Seriously, light rail is indeed a great way to get to the fair. Last year, my wife and I met her brother at the Mount Washington station and took the train to the fairgrounds stop. It couldn't have been more convenient.
On the other hand, the MTA has some atonement to do after the light rail's miserable performance during Artscape, which it has yet to fully acknowledge. Let's just hope that Wells reads the riot act to his light rail supervisors and makes sure that if there's any disruption, they spread the word to people waiting at stations down the line. It would also be wonderful thing if the MTA made contingency plans for a disruption instead of being caught like a deer in the headlights.
Make no mistake about it, if the light rail doesn't do a better job during the state fair, somebody should be out of a job.
