Community Corner
Suffering on the Metro: Riders Are Burning Up in 'Hot Cars'
With a searing heat wave on the horizon and no fix yet, more misery is in store for Metro riders.
The summer heat has fully set in, and the region is preparing for a brutal heat wave in the coming days. And Metro isn't making the situation any better with its latest major problem: #hotcars.
Yes, it's actually a trending hashtag on Twitter for the area, and while it's not actually a new problem, it's getting renewed attention with the summer heat. What does it refer to? A recurring HVAC problem that is causing air conditioning to shut off in many of its rail cars, leaving riders sweltering in 90-degree-plus temperatures while crammed in with many other sweaty riders.
It's actually Metro's brand new rail cars, the 7000-series, that are at the heart of the problem. WAMU reported Monday that a WMATA official said a software patch should fix the problem by the end of the week — so sadly, even in a best-case scenario, riders will be enduring hell on Earth this work week.
Find out what's happening in Restonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
It certainly comes at a bad time for Metro, which is struggling with a year-long SafeTrack plan to fix chronic fire and smoke problems throughout the system, meaning massive wait times for commuters and jam-packed trains.
The problem isn't isolated to just a few rail cars. Dozens of cars have been reported multiple times to Metro — and that's from a report that is now weeks old.
Find out what's happening in Restonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
To date, 49 7K cars have been reported as #hotcars 78 times. #wmata pic.twitter.com/edky1IpLLh
— Overhaul Metro (@OverhaulMetro) July 7, 2016
The problem isn't limited to the 7000 series,l either. Users have reported other cars with similar problems in recent weeks, as seen below:
6044 and 6045 on OL are both #HotCars #wmata @MetroHotCars @unsuckdcmetro @FixWMATA I got off the train. It's bad.
— (((Sam Wolk))) (@TheHornGuy) July 6, 2016
.@MetroHotCars Car 3213, Orange Line #wmata #hotcars
— Brent Maxwell (@brent_maxwell) June 5, 2016
Car 1016 is an oven. #wmata #hotcars
— Jo (@spacerocket8) May 26, 2016
More on Metro's ongoing troubles:
Metro Silver Line Safety Drill Goes Poorly: Report
Scary Moment: Flames Seen Under Metro Car [VIDEO]
A Total Disaster on Day 1 of Metro's 5th 'Surge' [VIDEO]
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