I checked out the minutes of those meetings, and the reader is right on the money.

Of the 20 members of the council in April, four missed that meeting and have attended none since. Three others left the council after being consistent no shows and have not been replaced. Another three have attended fewer than half the seven meetings in that span.

Increasingly, it appears the work of the council is being done by a handful of active members. Chairman Rafi Guroian hasn't missed a meeting. Vice Chairman Steve Chan and member Marla Smith, both representing Penn Line riders, have  made  all seven meetings between April and October (the last meeting with posted minutes). Miriam  Schoenbaum (Brunswick Line), Vince Zagorski (Camden) and Christopher Field (Penn) have been near-perfect attendees.

But members Andrea Richardson (Brunswick), Mark Dysart (Brunswick), Makeda Scott (Penn) and Scott Minos (Brunswick) haven't attended a single meeting since March. Paul Matino (Penn), who hadn't shown up since April, recently resigned. I'm sure all of these members sought the position with good intentions, but it's time for them to resign and make way for others who might take a more active role.

Guroian, an active and energetic chairman, acknowledged that the council does have a problem with attendance, though he said some of the no-shows remain in active contact with other council members and participate in other ways.

"We do have a core  contingent that comes quite repeatedly," he said. Guroian said he has been working with the MTA to  explore ways to improve attendance.

If there's some good news about the council's proceedings,  it's  that high-level MTA representatives have been showing up  and taking part. MARC Director John Hovattter is usually  there, and MTA Administrator Ralign T. Wells has put in several appearances since June's 'hell train" incident. CSX and Amtrak, the companies that operate the MARC lines, are represented more often than not.

But the MARC Riders Advisory Council will have a hard time retaining its relevance if it dwindles down to a half-dozen active members. The council went out of  business once  before, only to  be revived after a controversy about closing stations.

One obvious response to the reader who reported the problem would be to challenge him to step up and take a role. But that's kind of a cheap shot. He's performed a service just by speaking up, and he has to be the judge of his own availability for such participation.

But it's clear that the council could use a few more members with the time to show up at meetings. Guroian said the council is always looking for MARC riders who  would like to serve. (If you're interested, you can contact Guroian at marccouncil@mtamaryland.com.) 

The quorum issue isn't a big deal for most meetings, Guroian said, because as an advisory council the group doesn't have to regularly make binding votes. The chairman said there was a quorum (half the membership plus one) at the December meeting for presentation of the investigation report on the "hell train" incident.  He added that a quorum will be important in January, when the council must hold an election.