30 June 2011

Five Reasons Montréal Métro Is Better Than Washington Metro

  1. The wait for a train on Montréal Métro was never longer than 5 minutes ... on a holiday weekend no less! Good luck getting that kind of time from Washington Metro.
  2. Compare this, one of Montréal Métro's most cavernous stations, to this, one of Washington Metro's most cavernous stations.
  3. Montréal Métro's station names are concise while still giving even the first-time rider a sense of place. Very much unlike Washington Metro system's unfriendly and unwieldy naming convention.
  4. TV! In the friggin' stations!
  5. Because it's on rubber tires, the Montréal Métro sings a comforting tune as it arrives and departs. Nothing at all like the screeching and wailing of Washington Metro's trains.

5 comments:

Marie Bernadette said...

Never been to Montreal, but it's odd how improved it is over DC...because the Paris, FR metro is a horrific mess. They certainly learned a lesson or seven from that one.

[And 6.: It's better because it includes accent marks.]

:)

Anonymous said...

DC Metro mangement suffers from the NIH syndrome! (Not Invented Here). They keep making mistakes instead of learning from others. And I don't feel safe riding at nights. For the best metro system, go to Munich, Germany

Anonymous said...

I prefer Washington Metro's "noise". Waaa if your ears need "pleasant" tire noise.

Anonymous said...

Metro's noises are from the propulsion system, not the wheels. The 1000 series cars are the worst of the lot, noisewise.

Rubber tires are a French invention and found in a few other cities as well. They cause the tunnels to heat due to the friction. The whine of the treads makes the train sound faster than it is going.

As for station names, DC was did keep it simple at first, until special interests got into the act.

ArrBee said...

Yes, because propultion sysyems screech and scrape.