Inquiry on Unexpected LRT Service Disruptions
[Update, May 10, 2011: the thorough and reassuring report responding to the Inquiry was discussed at Transportation committee. It can be downloaded here.]
As was widely reported earlier this week, I bore witness firsthand to a breakdown on the LRT that left hundreds stranded during rush hour, some for up to 50 minutes, on one of the coldest mornings of the year.
To be clear, I don’t expect the LRT or any other complex system to work perfectly. As a regular user of the system, I’ve waited patiently through occasional disruptions and been made late because of them, but no more than when I used to drive and get caught in an unexpected disruptions of the road system.
So my first concern was the absence of information about what the disruption was and how long it was expected to last. This was the main issue I overheard among the people I was waiting with.
Once it became clear that it was going to be a long disruption, my next thought was for what could be done to provide shelter for people who were growing colder amidst the uncertainty, even the majority who were dressed for the conditions. (I was also worried for those who weren’t dressed for it but heartened to see the kindness of people making room for them in the shelter on the platform.)
One mechanism Edmonton City Councillors have to follow up on issues like this is a ‘Councillor Inquiry’ which is essentially a formal request for information (these are not common among municipalities, I’m told). We cannot direct new work be undertaken (that would require a proper motion to be made and voted on by Council or one of its committees) but if direction is needed when the report comes back Council can direct so at that time.
I made the inquiry at Council yesterday as follows:
Please describe our practices when there is an unexpected service disruptions on LRT, specifically:
1) What type of announcements are supposed to be made over the PA, and are there other methods currently available to provide information to passengers on expected timelines to restore service or advice for alternate travel options?
2) Is the corporation considering any other options for providing information to passengers in these situations?
3) In the case of mechanical failure of one train which congests one direction of travel, would it be possible to short-turn some trains moving in the opposite direction to keep service moving?
4) Are there any special contingencies for unexpected disruptions during severe weather?
5) Have there been an unusually large number of unexpected service disruptions in the last six months? If so please shed light as to why.
I received dozens of emails from citizens on this matter; most were pleased it was being looked into, but many also raised the matter of the unpredictability of bus service. Of course they are connected because reliability is a necessary part of the whole system, including bus and LRT, but the solutions are different. In my view ‘Smart Bus’ technology (consisting of GPS, digital communication with dispatch, and a variety of location-based systems) is needed so we can track the actual location and performance of our buses and re-route buses when service is disrupted. Knowing how the system is actually performing will increase accountability as well. Council finally approved moving ahead with a pilot last month (story here and council reports here) which lags behind many other cities, but represents progress.
I am very happy that a city councilor is taking the initiative to look into this issue. I remember many mornings that I had waited for long and unpredictable amounts of time for buses that were delayed without notice. This inquiry will be extremely helpful for those who rely on this essential service.
At the January TRUE meeting, this same issue was brought up. On January 14 (or maybe 13), a power disruption at the South Campus station stopped LRT service during rush hour. There were again no announcements over the PA at any of the stations–not South Campus, nor the other stations along the line where everyone else was piling up.
I was told by transit riders that initial phone calls to 311 were met with uncertainty. 311 responded by calling ETS directly, who informed 311 that the trains weren’t running. Then 311 was able to respond to stranded LRT riders wondering what was going on.
I knew more about what was going on than most transit users because I was listening to traffic reports on the radio.
One of my major issues with ETS is the lack of timely information. I’m okay with the occasional delay. I can deal with long bus rides, infrequent buses, and bus service that ends too early and leaves me stranded. I can plan for that, if I’m given the information to do so.
Smart buses will make a huge difference. No more anxiety over “Did I just miss the last bus? Was it early? Is it late? If I keep standing here, will I have expired before the next bus arrives?”
But the first step, and it’s surely exasperatingly trivial, would be for the LRT to announce over the PA, “We’re sorry, LRT service is currently experiencing an unplanned disruption. Contingency buses are being sent and should begin arriving in 45 minutes.”
I experienced a delay early this week, and it was announced over the PA system of the train that there was a problem with the switch south of Health Sciences Station.
I admit that I am puzzled by the problems this past week in the system. It has worked flawlessly in far colder weather for many years, which is one of the many reasons Edmontonians trust the LRT to get us where we’re going.
Kudos for the Councillor Inquiry. I hope that corners weren’t cut on the specification of the new track south of University Station that are now beginning to cause problems.
Keep up the good work!
Automated announcements (generic ones about the train being delayed “momentarily”) were being played continuously on the train I was on, and the driver also periodically gave us some impromptu updates over the intercom. He was able to tell us what was going on, but couldn’t say how long it would take, and there was clearly no contingency plan. Also, I’m pretty sure no PAs were audible on the platform at Century Park either (which is where we were stuck, initially).
Don, I’m glad this is finally being looked into. I’ve been taking the LRT since South Campus opened and it seems like the service has really deteriorated in the last few months.
I don’t know whether it’s just the weather, problems due to the upgrades, a run of bad lack or a poor maintenance program, but disruptions have been frequent. There were two weeks in January when not a day went by for me without encountering delays.
I understand there are some things out of ETS’s control, such as a driver hitting a crossing arm. There will be disruptions from time to time; as riders we need to accept that. Besides, it’s not like we’d never get stuck in traffic if we drove, right?
But communicating with riders would alleviate much of the frustration we feel. In one incident, train service was knocked out south of South Campus. The driver announced it at Central, where I got on, but he didn’t reannounce it at each stop, leaving many riders puzzled when they had to get off early at South Campus.
That’s just one of many examples.
ETS could start with some simple steps – post disruption notices on their main website (I look for alternate routes on my BlackBerry and I’m sure I’m not the only one), maybe get on Twitter (watch the #yegtransit hashtag during a disruption and see the rumours swirl and anger build in the vacuum of official information). Dispatch can fan out information to drivers, who should relay that to riders.
Ultimately, GPS for buses and displays in all LRT stations would be ideal. In the meantime, I look forward to ETS’s report back on your questions.
Just wanted to tell you thank you again. We all want Edmonton to do better in it’s transit when we’re so behind other cities.
When it’s this cold, this extreme cold, there should be special measures in place to make sure people are okay when stranded like that. It just doesn’t seem right to leave them stranded like that, but I’m glad that other people waiting paid attention to those that needed the extra help to keep warm.
Timely information regarding disruptions via loudspeaker or text or something would be great. I’m surprised that the LRT hasn’t been doing well this year when it has been better than okay in colder years.
Smart busses are going to make a huge difference in extreme weather for when the bus is coming… or if it doesn’t. I remember waiting for an extremely late bus, but it might as well been slightly early!
Thank you again for bringing this up this issue to council.
Thanks for bringing this forward. When the weather was as cold as it was earlier this week these types of delays and problems really are matters of public safety. And it is definately a concern when declared communication protocols aren’t being followed. We need to think of severe snow and cold in the same vein as we think of flooding or a tornado. I beleive the mayor said something to this effect in February.
You wrote previously about the need for a paradigm shift for winter roads. But I wonder if we need a bit of a paradigm shift societally in terms of our expextations. In Alberta it is expected that rain or shine, +30 or -30 we board whatever method of transportation we use and get to work school etc, and we expect the city to facilitate that. In Ontario there are “snow days”, I realise their snow fall can be far more extreme than ours, plus it is wet, heavy, blinding snow, but they also don’t get temperatures quite as low. Perhaps for Edmonton a unique combination of heavy snow and extreme cold should indicate a similar risk factor and result in declared “extreme weather days”. Do I think that this past Monday or Tuesday qualified? probably not, but the storm in the last part of January certainly bears being considered. It truly wasn’t safe that weekend to be out and about going about normal business.
As a daily LRT rider for many years, the service disruptions became more frequent after the Century Park extension opened. Some of the most serious disruptions have nothing to do with extreme weather. They occurred because this portion of the line runs in the centre median of 111 Street leading to more incidents involving crossing traffic.
It’s all well and good to do a better job notifying passengers when service disruptions occur, but there is also a lesson here for future design of the LRT network. Keep LRT separated from other traffic as much as possible.
could the city use the money from IBM’s smart community funds to improve location based service on buses?
Don, interesting to note that since your inquiry at council I’ve heard LRT delays announced at the stations. Did ETS get caught not following protocol?