<Paul> d2M / dM2
Why do metro lines curve in one direction? Like smiley face mouths, or root tendrils breaking the soil, metro lines curve either north, south, west, or east, but never in more than one direction. The Red Line is the most exaggerated -- it's like two dandelions, swaying in the wind.
But examine the Orange and Blue lines to best see the trend. Moving from West to East, the Orange line starts in the North, at Vienna/Fairfax, winds a bit through DC, and then peels off again to the north to New Carrollton. The Blue starts far to the South at Franconia-Springfield, and ends up South at Addison Road-Seat Pleasant (I'm not a fan of these hypenate metro station names, by the way.) Why were these lines designed like this? Why don't the two lines cross in DC, with Orange heading to Addison Road and Blue to New Carrollton? Is it supposed to be some mnemonic device? (Orange always is north, Blue always is south)? Is there some technical reason that I'm missing -- doubtful since the two lines share tracks in DC.
</Paul> <!--9:51 AM-->
<Paul> The Metro Center Rules
Metro Center is not a typical metro station. Thanks to the confluence of the 'big 3' metro lines -- the blue, orange, and red -- this is the meeting of the Tigris and the Euphrates, the O'Hare Airport, the El Toro 'Y', of the Washington, DC Metro system. Although I don't have hard numbers to back this up, I'm sure more people get on and more people get off at that station than at any other station on the Red Line. So, people, please follow these rules when you're at this station:
1. If you're standing by a door, get the hell out of the way when it opens. You can't just stand still, like a stick in a river, as people flow past you in both directions.
2. When you board the train, keep walking. Don't park it on the first pole that you see. See rule one if you're still confused about this point.
3. Walk up the platform escalators, if you're physically able. You can stand on the right as soon as you get to the street escalator. It's fifteen short steps and they're moving!
Thank you. </Paul> <!--9:32 AM-->
/archives