The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men…
Posted by Rick - 27/06/03 at 10:06:57 amLike people who plan escape routes in case of fire, or other emergencies, I like having alternate commuting routes in case of… well… Metro problems. So, as you might imagine, I was pretty proud of myself for having a back-up plan when I arrived at Dupont Circle Metro and heard announcements about the closing of my destination station.
Confident that I could get home by traveling in the opposite direction and catching a bus at another station, I walked to the platform on the other side, and hopped aboard with a shit-eating grin.
Apparently my smug confidence angered the commuter gods.
No sooner had we left Dupont Circle when the conductor announced a faulty train in front of us. However, we were still inching along the red line, so I continued to read my book, assuming the delays would be short. A few stations later and there is another announcement. This time there was a disabled train in front of us, and our train would have to push it out of our way. Um, okay. So, we push this train to the next stop, only to be rewarded with its entire cargo of sweaty tourists and frazzled commuters being squeezed onto our already crowded train. “No big deal,” I think to myself. After all, it’s only two more stops to Friendship Heights.
And the commuter gods laughed.
At the stop just before Friendship Heights our train—including the entire other train of red, white and blue-clad monument gawkers, which had been crammed into ours—is off-loaded! Another set-back, but nothing my superior commuting self can’t handle, I think to myself as I bound up the escalators to the street level to catch a 30 bus to take me the last few miles.
After squeezing onto a bus, and finally getting to Friendship Heights, I grab a cold water from a vendor and locate the RideOn bus that will take me to Silver Spring. I settle into a seat in the last row and sigh, believing that the worst is now behind me. I sit back and enjoy the laughing Spanish voices of ladies near me who are handing out free condoms (condones) to me and the other men. Everyone seems in a good mood despite the high temperatures and the ozone alert, and I allow myself to smile again.
Again, the commuter gods were quick to remind me who is boss.
As we stopped to let some passengers off, I feel a sudden thud, that moves me forward in my seat, and people on the bus start screaming. A car has slammed into the back of the bus, and judging on the lack of screeching, it has done so at full speed. People hurry off the bus, still chattering nervously. As I exit I see the car that hit us, and it is obvious that it—and its driver—have suffered significantly more damage than the bus. It isn’t pretty. A woman who believes the liquid coming from under the bus is gasoline starts yelling about getting away from the scene, while many of the passengers begin to walk down Connecticut Avenue—hoping to catch the next bus a little further down the road. Until emergency crews arrive and block the road so that no one, let alone the next bus, can get through. “Time to hoof it, I guess,” I mumble to myself.
The walk to East-West highway is a little less than 2 miles or so, but with the temperature in the mid-90s and a Code Red smog alert, it seems much further. Eventually I arrive at a bus stop where I am informed that I can catch a J-bus to Silver Spring. I smile, nod, and say thank you to the person relaying this news; but I avoid even thinking that I am home free.
For the most part the rest of the journey goes smoothly. The bus somehow avoids being stuck by lightening or careening over some cliff, and we arrive in Silver Spring. However, the accident has made it necessary for Metro to use buses to get people around the closed station, and traffic slows our arrival at the station.
Eventually we get off the bus, and I stagger home in the heat and heavy air. And I swear I hear laughter.
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Ironically enough, I was *driving* yesterday and stuck in traffic in the 103°F weather. Still in all, it sounds like you had it much worse. No wonder you decided to drive last night
Comment by Yuriko — June 27, 2003 #
Holy crap!! I thought I had a bad time getting up to Tae Kwon Do in Teneley last night. I apparently had it pretty easy. *whew*
Comment by Lori — June 27, 2003 #
and here i was bitching about the 15 minutes of rush hour i had to endure at 5pm tonight…
i came home and swore we were never moving back to DC
Comment by Jocelyn — June 28, 2003 #
Poor Husband. The trick is to be oblivious, apparently. I had no idea that METRO was fubar that day, and got a train from Friendship Heights and rode it all the way to Takoma Park, with only a slight delay after Rhode Island Ave.
Comment by Sarah — June 30, 2003 #
ouch! i also got stuck that day on the red line - NOT because of the train on the tracks, nooo. our train broke down at farragut north. i’ll bet this was the train you had to push! (it was around 6 p.m.) i had to walk 12 blocks to work, but i think your story beats mine!
Comment by rachel — June 30, 2003 #
ack - i meant to say “car on the tracks”
Comment by rachel — June 30, 2003 #
And people say the commutes are bad in California…
Comment by Stephany — June 30, 2003 #
Ah, Rick…you’re making me all nostalgic for D.C.!
Comment by Jayme — July 1, 2003 #
What a bloody nightmare! I hope no-one was hurt when the car smashed into your bus. Who knew the 1/11 route could be so eventful!
To Lori, do you do tae kwon do at Wong’s Studios? I used to go there. Is Mr Soraj (sp?) still there?
Comment by roz — July 1, 2003 #
Last week just wasn’t a good commuting week. My bus driver decided to hop off the bus (engine running) to go into a convenience store and buy a drink. I’ve never seen that before.
Comment by avg — July 2, 2003 #
avg, this is a regular practice for bus drivers in ATL. One (of many) reasons DC buses seem to me as though they’re running on time…
Comment by Yuriko — July 2, 2003 #
I got stuck when that person drove onto the tracks by Silver Spring. I wonder what happened there - Seizure? Drugs? Alcohol? Insanity? Weird game of chicken where the metro rail train backed down from the challenge of a mid sized sedan?
Comment by Bobby — July 12, 2003 #