Tonight is my first RAC meeting as a member. Here’s the agenda.

Metro staff will present two main topics. First is the FY2010 budget. I assume we’ll hear an updated version of the cuts Michael Perkins explained. Are there any questions you’d like me to ask the budget planners?

Second is “Customer Service Delivery Standards.” This is a long set of standards for everything from accessibility to vehicle air quality to how much of an above-ground station ought to be covered with a canopy. There are standards for public restrooms (they should be open while the station is staffed “unless security conditions mandate the closing of station restrooms”), clocks (the time should be visible in every entrance in 12-hour format, and comply with ADA visibility requirements), or the knowledge station personnel should have, including knowing the layout of the station, transfer opportunities to other modes, the surrounding geography, and more.

Most of the standards are very general, like “provide (wherever possible) real-time information displays at appropriate locations throughout the Metro system” or “instill a feeling of well-being by providing a safe and pleasant travel environment.” The standards don’t set many specific benchmarks, but do broadly lay out the expectations for stations, vehicles, personnel and more.

Unfortunately, I can’t share the document yet. Meanwhile, Here’s a presentation staff made to the RAC in December. Are there any areas of Metro’s service or customer service that are inconsistent or unclear, or for any other reason ought to be part of these standards?

As I talk to RAC members individually, I’d like to have some recommendations for topics the RAC should pursue. What do you think?

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Tagged: rac, transit, wmata

David Alpert created Greater Greater Washington in 2008 and was its executive director until 2020. He formerly worked in tech and has lived in the Boston, San Francisco Bay, and New York metro areas in addition to Washington, DC. He lives with his wife and two children in Dupont Circle.