Metro's Hottest Cars

Rush hour is never pleasant—particularly when stuck on an un-air-conditioned Metro car.

But, what can one do about it? Something, apparently—avoid the 5000 series cars, The Washington Post reported.

"The 5000 series cars are Metro’s problem children. Of the 371 instances during June in which cars were reported hot, 146 involved cars in the 5000 series. The next closest was the 1000 series, the oldest cars in the fleet, with 93 reports," reported The Post's Robert Thomson, who spent some time last week riding the Metro and taking temperature readings from inside many of Metro's cars.

The highest temperature reading Thomson took last week was 95 degrees (aboard the Orange Line’s car no. 5160), although the highest reading he's taken—ever—was 100 degrees—on the Orange Line's car No. 5121 last year.

"Riders waiting on platforms should be especially wary when they see one of those cars in the 5000 series roll up," he added.

Metro will seal off cars if their air conditioners aren't working. To report a hot car, Thomson suggested using a car's intercom to report the car's number—printed near the intercoms—to a Metro operator. That way, the car "can be closed off so others won’t suffer, and a Metro mechanic may be able to fix the problem and get the car back in service while it’s still on the line," Thomson added.

After reporting a hot car, quickly switch to another car at the next station stop, Thomson added.

Read Thomson's full report—including temperature readings from different cars, lines and stations—on The Post.