As usual NYC MTA wont talk to Metro North,--MBTA subway/light rail dont give out "Purple Line Commuter Rail Info" --DC METRO token clerks wont carry MARC/VRE Timetables or even point out where the platform is, SEPTA Subway clerks wont give out "Regional Rail Info" all because of Unions line and Cross Crafting...Even in California Amtrak Agents wont give me info on San Jose Commuter Rail because it is run by Herzog which is non-union
https://chi.streetsblog.org/2020/02/14/at-west-pullman-event-residents-say-pilot-would-make-metra-accessible-to-more-south-siders/
The talk of turning the IC suburban lines into rapid transit runs afoul of several issues which may be intractable. I don't think that anybody has realized that major labor issues are involved here and I doubt that those making the proposals are familiar with the Railway Labor Act, Railroad Retirement, etc. and what would be involved in a jurisdictional change.
CSSHEGEWISCHThe talk of turning the IC suburban lines into rapid transit runs afoul of several issues which may be intractable.
I think, perhaps reading a bit between the lines, that what he's complaining about is not conversion of Metra Electric to 'transit', but that Metra Electric employees won't give him any advice on details or scheduling of any connecting transit services.
While I do think, in a perfect world, that any passenger-railroad employee in Chicago ought to be able to advise passengers where and how to connect to other rail modes (and perhaps buses or UberGroup or whatever it's called for paratransit) I also think that it isn't their responsibility to do so unless someone's paying for it. And perhaps that some kind of kiosk or dial-up help service is a better approach than bothering people with a different job to do.
I am also vaguely reminded of the old story, perhaps not fully apocryphal, about the person who angrily walked up on the veranda of the Main Line house of the president of the Reading, where the president was comfortably sitting, and demanded to know when the next connecting train would be. The startled executive ... perhaps understandably! -- said he didn't know, and the insulted person left with the parting shot 'what kind of railroad president doesn't know the times of his own trains?' Is it the job of Metra Electric people to know all the connecting services and times? Of even where to find them for reference if asked?
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The president of the Reading was a softy. Let me quote from Don Ball's "The Pennsylvania Railroad, 1940s-1950s."
Concerning President A.J. Cassatt, in the early 1900's...
"In another story Cassatt is alleged to have responded to an irate passenger on the Main Line whose party was passed up by a commuter train late one night, 'That will never happen again, sir.' It never did, Cassatt had the station demolished."
Apocryphal? I don't know, this WAS the mighty Pennsylvania Railroad after all!
Nowadays, I suspect a growing majority of Metra riders use the apps which give the info desired.
I think that you have to discover the right transit agency.
I had this problem 16 years ago when searching the internet for transit info was difficult. Moreover, what details were available in the arrival airport (Chicago Midway) was inadequate (just Orange Line info) and very hidden.
Upon arrival at my motel the Pace bus system map was available and showed all Metra and CTA rail stations. Problem finally solved!
Links to my Google Maps ---> Sunset Route overview, SoCal metro, Yuma sub, Gila sub, SR east of Tucson, BNSF Northern Transcon and Southern Transcon *** Why you should support Ukraine! ***
Overmod Yes!!! but then again there are labor issues as SEPTA Gordon Gunn found out the hard way with the Fox Chase line and the Unions monkywrenching his plans to turn communter rail into RDC light rail CSSHEGEWISCH The talk of turning the IC suburban lines into rapid transit runs afoul of several issues which may be intractable. I think, perhaps reading a bit between the lines, that what he's complaining about is not conversion of Metra Electric to 'transit', but that Metra Electric employees won't give him any advice on details or scheduling of any connecting transit services. While I do think, in a perfect world, that any passenger-railroad employee in Chicago ought to be able to advise passengers where and how to connect to other rail modes (and perhaps buses or UberGroup or whatever it's called for paratransit) I also think that it isn't their responsibility to do so unless someone's paying for it. And perhaps that some kind of kiosk or dial-up help service is a better approach than bothering people with a different job to do. I am also vaguely reminded of the old story, perhaps not fully apocryphal, about the person who angrily walked up on the veranda of the Main Line house of the president of the Reading, where the president was comfortably sitting, and demanded to know when the next connecting train would be. The startled executive ... perhaps understandably! -- said he didn't know, and the insulted person left with the parting shot 'what kind of railroad president doesn't know the times of his own trains?' Is it the job of Metra Electric people to know all the connecting services and times? Of even where to find them for reference if asked?
CSSHEGEWISCH The talk of turning the IC suburban lines into rapid transit runs afoul of several issues which may be intractable.
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