trainman8119 Posted June 5, 2015 Report Share Posted June 5, 2015 This is good to know for my upcoming visit this July. I will make sure not to use the ME at night. When the day gets close, drop me a line. Maybe we can get together and I can give you some insight on things. Starbucks is always a good meeting point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MTRSP1900-CTA3200 Posted June 5, 2015 Report Share Posted June 5, 2015 This is good to know for my upcoming visit this July. I will make sure not to use the ME at night...Anything can happen. While apparently not as bad as the ME, I have seen some interesting people on the UP-NW line, including a drunk person with a milk jug of red liquid who almost got kicked off the train. Another time my friends and I shared a train car with a good amount of rowdy pub crawlers who rode from Woodstock to Edison Park and annoyed the heck out of my friend (we got off at Norwood Park, so we had to be around them a lot). This was on a night train....But these days, even when a person tries to do the right thing, they could find themselves on the receiving end of harsh criticism or unjustified disciplinary action.That does seem the be the case nowadays. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strictures Posted June 5, 2015 Report Share Posted June 5, 2015 Anything can happen. While apparently not as bad as the ME, I have seen some interesting people on the UP-NW line, including a drunk person with a milk jug of red liquid who almost got kicked off the train. Another time my friends and I shared a train car with a good amount of rowdy pub crawlers who rode from Woodstock to Edison Park and annoyed the heck out of my friend (we got off at Norwood Park, so we had to be around them a lot). This was on a night train.That does seem the be the case nowadays.I used to catch the 7:30 AM train from Park Ridge to Crystal Lake. Every day there was the same drunk who would sleep it off on the sideways seats upstairs. He'd come down in the middle of the ride to take a quick trip to the toilet, then go back up. As long as no one bothered him, he was OK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 5, 2015 Report Share Posted June 5, 2015 I used to catch the 7:30 AM train from Park Ridge to Crystal Lake. Every day there was the same drunk who would sleep it off on the sideways seats upstairs. He'd come down in the middle of the ride to take a quick trip to the toilet, then go back up. As long as no one bothered him, he was OK.Which also raises the question why Metra had bar cars until a couple of years ago. I once made a crack about "drunken lawyers" on the UP-N and my mother said not to say that in front of her grandchildren, or they'll repeat it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrethebusman Posted June 5, 2015 Report Share Posted June 5, 2015 I've never understood why the UP & Metra haven't switched the former C&NW to right hand running. Every once in a while I find someone confused as to which platform to go to. All of the trackage in the city & close in is signaled for bidirectional operation & the entire West Line is signaled that way. It would be a simple changeover that could be done over a weekend.Sweden managed to do that with their roads a few decades ago, so I just don't know why the railroad won't do it. It has to confuse new UP engineers that haven't operated on the C&NW tracks.The way the railroads work, any engineer who works out of Chicago is not likely to ever go West of Clinton IA, much less west of Omaha, and vice versa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 18, 2015 Report Share Posted June 18, 2015 Shame on Metra for making its regular local trains run express, bypassing stations and leaving riders stranded on platforms. Thats not a good way to provide service! Theyre suppose to provide "extra" service. I understand we have a busy day ahead with the crowds heading to downtown for the Blackhawks rally. But making riders wait on platforms knowing the following trains will also be crowded is a slap in the face to riders waiting to get to work. Shame on you Metra!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 18, 2015 Report Share Posted June 18, 2015 Shame on Metra for making its regular local trains run express, bypassing stations and leaving riders stranded on platforms. Thats not a good way to provide service! Theyre suppose to provide "extra" service. I understand we have a busy day ahead with the crowds heading to downtown for the Blackhawks rally. But making riders wait on platforms knowing the following trains will also be crowded is a slap in the face to riders waiting to get to work. Shame on you Metra!!! There isn't that much spare equipment. Maybe the mistake was not charging $20/ride. It also looks like nobody is going to get a bus north of Roosevelt or south of Randolph, but I haven't seen anyone complaining about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
busfan2847 Posted June 18, 2015 Report Share Posted June 18, 2015 (edited) Shame on Metra for making its regular local trains run express, bypassing stations and leaving riders stranded on platforms. Thats not a good way to provide service! Theyre suppose to provide "extra" service. I understand we have a busy day ahead with the crowds heading to downtown for the Blackhawks rally. But making riders wait on platforms knowing the following trains will also be crowded is a slap in the face to riders waiting to get to work. Shame on you Metra!!! If there is no more room on the train they cannot stop! Most trains I saw this morning had standing passengers the whole length of the train. UP-NW did make one stopping train express from Crystal Lake to Des Plaines to allow people at closer in stations a chance to catch a train and there was one local shadowed by an extra trainMetra does not have any spare stock, locos of staff in the rush hour to supply more than one extra train per line. Any "Extra" service is my adjusting the rest of the service and maybe annulling lesser used trains or turning trains downtown that are supposed to go to the coach yard. However even this is limited by hours of service regulations.Yes Busjack I was annoyed that cta scrapped the rush hour by introducing detours at 7am a full hour before Monroe was closed. On my walk from Ogilvie to Union to catch a 60 or 157 I was passed by several contract buses that were still running down Clinton. Edited June 18, 2015 by busfan2847 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman8119 Posted June 18, 2015 Report Share Posted June 18, 2015 If Metra fulfilled its contract with the unions, there would not be an issue running extra trains for something like this morning.Extra boards are constantly short, especially in the summer, because they refuse to keep the boards staffed to the levels agreedto in the contract. In many cases, they choose to bend the hours of service rules so much, it kills me to hear the crap about howthey are so pledged to safety (BS !). There are so many in charge who have no clue on what goes on in the field, it is amazing thatanything ever gets done...its all done on paper and reality is non-existent. Yes, there is not much extra equipment, but proper planningwould allow sufficient service...I don't accept that as a legitimate excuse. If that isn't bad enough, there are trains annulled this afternoon toallow for early extras...again the regulars get screwed. There were a couple of regulars that boarded our train downtown to get to Hyde Parkthis morning who normally transfer off the Rock Island at Blue Island for the trip to Hyde Park. The Rock Island train did not stop, expressed downtown with nowarning and as a result were going to be over an hour late for work. Combine that with the silly $5 ticket and if I were a regular I'd be livid. Theseextra people who rode this morning would have rode whether it was free or $20 a ride...they didn't care. These people were added revenue inneon !!!! But instead, the brass continues to choose to cater to the grand minority, forgetting those who keep the bank vaults stocked every monthand week. Simply another shameful, discusting embarrassing display by a (lack of) leadership who continue to make decisions without any regard tothe consequences that result. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chgofan78 Posted June 22, 2015 Report Share Posted June 22, 2015 Spotted 2 more VRE coaches back on Metra property at the Metra Electric facility- one of which was 7907. I wonder how many cars will Metra bring back and is there really a need to bring back so many cars? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MetroShadow Posted June 22, 2015 Report Share Posted June 22, 2015 Spotted 2 more VRE coaches back on Metra property at the Metra Electric facility- one of which was 7907. I wonder how many cars will Metra bring back and is there really a need to bring back so many cars?Trainman may have a better explanation, but as VRE are getting newer trains, they will probably take those cars back here (which means "extra" equipment for us). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman8119 Posted June 22, 2015 Report Share Posted June 22, 2015 My guess would be no, there is no need to bring back older cars. Each and every car that comes back is another case ofmismanagement in getting rid of them in the first place, then paying to get them back and spending more to get them intoMetra service. I am guessing they figure they need extra cars do to rehabs....stuff that is taking longer than it should becauseof all the unnecessary things they are doing to these cars to cater to the select few (as is always the case with Metra) as opposedto the majority. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRChiCity Posted June 25, 2015 Report Share Posted June 25, 2015 Check this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTAfYAep4UE poor little kids next time listen to what the nice cop says Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briman94 Posted June 25, 2015 Report Share Posted June 25, 2015 (edited) Check this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTAfYAep4UE poor little kids next time listen to what the nice cop says But what was he being arrested for? There's no context here. Also, they didn't read him his rights...that was technically an unlawful arrest if the video showed everything. Edited June 25, 2015 by briman94 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 25, 2015 Report Share Posted June 25, 2015 But what was he being arrested for? There's no context here. Also, they didn't read him his rights...that was technically an unlawful arrest if the video showed everything.Bottom line! If you decide to challenge a police officer be ready for what comes afterwards! The individual was repeatedly asked and ordered, he refused to listen! All he had to do was COMPLY!!! Very simple and the incident wouldnt have escalated the way it did!!! Pure Stupidity on the part of the passenger!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 25, 2015 Report Share Posted June 25, 2015 But what was he being arrested for? There's no context here. Also, they didn't read him his rights...that was technically an unlawful arrest if the video showed everything.I assume that the video didn't show everything. They usually don't.Maybe the question is whether Metra should get its own video, as CTA has. However, I would guess that video was not invented in1899. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MRChiCity Posted June 25, 2015 Report Share Posted June 25, 2015 But what was he being arrested for? There's no context here. Also, they didn't read him his rights...that was technically an unlawful arrest if the video showed everything.FYI Police do not have to read you your rights as part of performing the arrest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 25, 2015 Report Share Posted June 25, 2015 FYI Police do not have to read you your rights as part of performing the arrest. They do only if they intend to question you and use your answers in court. You are correct that they don't have to read you your rights just to enforce compliance with a lawful command.All I can figure out from these recent Random Metra videos is apparently the clientele on the ME is on the level of CTA clientele, even without the need for a Gray Line. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ibebobo Posted June 25, 2015 Report Share Posted June 25, 2015 My guess would be no, there is no need to bring back older cars. Each and every car that comes back is another case ofmismanagement in getting rid of them in the first place, then paying to get them back and spending more to get them intoMetra service. I am guessing they figure they need extra cars do to rehabs....stuff that is taking longer than it should becauseof all the unnecessary things they are doing to these cars to cater to the select few (as is always the case with Metra) as opposedto the majority.I for one, am happy to see the old cars coming back. I grew up riding them on the C&NW numbers 1-3?? I remember when they started to paint them in the Metra colors around 1975ish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 25, 2015 Report Share Posted June 25, 2015 Check this out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTAfYAep4UE poor little kids next time listen to what the nice cop says Channel 7 said at 6 that Metra says the passenger wouldn't obey the conductor's request to stop saying obscenities on the train, and had a statement from Metra that it wants a pleasant experience for all its passengers.Anyway, this passenger gets his 37 seconds of fame on the ABC7 News at 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 26, 2015 Report Share Posted June 26, 2015 Channel 7 said at 6 that Metra says the passenger wouldn't obey the conductor's request to stop saying obscenities on the train, and had a statement from Metra that it wants a pleasant experience for all its passengers.Anyway, this passenger gets his 37 seconds of fame on the ABC7 News at 10.10 PM news says it was someone on the Milw-W heading to Bloomingdale. So, I have to retract my prior assumption. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strictures Posted June 26, 2015 Report Share Posted June 26, 2015 My guess would be no, there is no need to bring back older cars. Each and every car that comes back is another case ofmismanagement in getting rid of them in the first place, then paying to get them back and spending more to get them intoMetra service. I am guessing they figure they need extra cars do to rehabs....stuff that is taking longer than it should becauseof all the unnecessary things they are doing to these cars to cater to the select few (as is always the case with Metra) as opposedto the majority.As far as I can tell, the only extra Metra is doing when rehabbing a coach is adding 120 volt outlets on the lower lever for people to charge their phones & tablets. They still haven't gotten to Wi-Fi onboard or even in the downtown stations, although the McDonald's has it, but it's always overloaded & unusable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 26, 2015 Report Share Posted June 26, 2015 As far as I can tell, the only extra Metra is doing when rehabbing a coach is adding 120 volt outlets on the lower lever for people to charge their phones & tablets. They still haven't gotten to Wi-Fi onboard or even in the downtown stations, although the McDonald's has it, but it's always overloaded & unusable.At least they claim they are totally stripping the cars. They have also said that even though the legislature has mandated WiFi, it was only if it was free, and since nobody offered them free Wifi, basically forget it. Tribune.BTW, if YouTube can be believed, people aren't having problems using their smartphones on Metra. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briman94 Posted June 26, 2015 Report Share Posted June 26, 2015 Today on UP-W the conductor had to call two cops on the train because a girl forgot her ID and was trying to use her reduced fare card. She was with a number of deaf people, so I'm assuming they all had reduced fares because of disability. The conductor wouldn't budge. The cop was genuinely a nice guy, but we were made 15 minutes late because of a couple bucks. It really seems like the Metra has their priorities screwed up if you ask me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busjack Posted June 26, 2015 Report Share Posted June 26, 2015 Today on UP-W the conductor had to call two cops on the train because a girl forgot her ID and was trying to use her reduced fare card. She was with a number of deaf people, so I'm assuming they all had reduced fares because of disability. The conductor wouldn't budge. The cop was genuinely a nice guy, but we were made 15 minutes late because of a couple bucks. It really seems like the Metra has their priorities screwed up if you ask me.I've known occasions when (stations being closed) the conductors would give half fares to seniors from out of town who technically didn't qualify, because they didn't have RTA cards.Maybe times are now rougher.However, I am not quite following your post. If she had a reduced fare card as being disabled, that should have been sufficient identification. Maybe you are referring to having a half fare ticket but not the RTA card. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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