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As commuters struggle back to work, storm’s aftermath still chokes rail lines As commuters struggle back to work, storm’s aftermath still chokes rail lines, streets
(about 2 hours later)
Returning to normal after being buried by two feet of snow proved daunting Tuesday, as plows struggled into neighborhoods, and snow and ice clogged Metro rail lines and snarled traffic made it tough for Washington area residents returning to work. Returning to normal after being buried by two feet of snow proved daunting Tuesday, as plows struggled into neighborhoods, and snow- and ice-clogged Metro rail lines and streets made it tough for Washington area residents returning to work.
Meanwhile, rain showers threatened to turn roads and sidewalks treacherously slick when temperatures drop overnight, eroding Tuesday’s progress. Metro was unsure whether Silver Line service would be restored by Wednesday, but said its five other lines would be running and that about half of its 320 bus lines would resume service. Testing would continue on the Silver Line through the night, and if it is found unable to provide reliable service by morning, free shuttle bus service would be available from the five outer Silver Line stations to West Falls Church.
Metro aimed to resume full service on all but the Silver Line at 5 a.m. Tuesday, but those plans changed when overnight tests on the western portion of the Orange Line ran into snow and ice on the electrified third rail, which powers the system. Driven by temperatures in the 40s and light rain Tuesday, the thaw threatened to flood some low-lying areas in the next few days and cause slick spots on roads and sidewalks Wednesday in areas where overnight temperatures dipped to freezing.
Metro said it decided to keep four Orange Line stations closed, a move that combined with the closing of the Silver Line, limited rail options for many residents of the Virginia suburbs. Compounding problems, many riders weren’t aware of the shutdown until after their arrival at the stations, where they encountered long, cold waits for shuttle buses. Public schools in the District planned to reopen Wednesday, but virtually all the region’s suburban school systems remain closed.
The agency said Tuesday afternoon that it was unsure if Silver Line service would be restored by Wednesday morning. Trains will run every eight minutes on the other five lines with buses operating on a moderate service schedule, Metro said. The storm that began at mid-day Friday, continued until almost midnight Saturday and shut down virtually everything through Tuesday, cost the region an estimated $570 million in lost economic activity, according to the investment firm Moody’s.
[Live updates on Metro service and more this morning] There were many small signs Tuesday that the region was regaining its balance. The District said its snow emergency would end at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, as would the extra $15 surcharge that city cabbies collected while it lasted. The Ride On bus system in Montgomery County said it would restore operations on most bus routes Wednesday.
On the roads, most major highways reopened and snowplows turned to secondary roads, but officials warned that it may be days before they reach into the warren of residential streets to excavate homeowners snowbound since Friday. On the roads, most major highways reopened and snowplows turned to secondary residential streets, but officials warned that it might be days before they fully excavated some homeowners who have been snowbound since Friday.
They also feared the continued thawing Wednesday could cause flooding in low-lying areas. Metro on Tuesday had aimed to resume full service on all but the Silver Line, but those plans changed when overnight tests on the western portion of the Orange Line ran into snow and ice on the electrified third rail that powers the system.
D.C. public schools will reopen Wednesday, while Fairfax, Prince George’s and several of the region’s major systems will remain closed. The transit agency decided to keep four Orange Line stations closed. That move, combined with the closing of the Silver Line, limited rail options for many people in the Virginia suburbs. The problem was compounded because many riders were unaware of the shutdown until after they arrived at the stations, where they faced cold, long waits for shuttle buses.
Most U.S. post offices in the region reopened, but delivery service was expected to remain spotty because mail carriers often could not reach homes and businesses.
[Today’s forecast: Showers could help melt some snow]
Grace Lin, a lawyer in the District who lives in McLean, said she went to bed Monday night after hearing that Metro was going to be running, but she always had her doubts.Grace Lin, a lawyer in the District who lives in McLean, said she went to bed Monday night after hearing that Metro was going to be running, but she always had her doubts.
At 6 a.m. Tuesday, she said, she checked Metro’s website “just to see, because their accuracy is not always good.” She saw there were no trains on part of the Orange Line.At 6 a.m. Tuesday, she said, she checked Metro’s website “just to see, because their accuracy is not always good.” She saw there were no trains on part of the Orange Line.
“Immediately I’m thinking, ‘Can I just stay home?’ ”“Immediately I’m thinking, ‘Can I just stay home?’ ”
According to the transit agency, here’s why: Metro General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld explained Tuesday’s problems.
Metro work crews spent the weekend and Monday plowing — and replowing– the system’s 60-plus route-miles of above-ground rails during and immediately after the blizzard, General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld said. Metro work crews spent the weekend and Monday plowing the system’s 60-plus route-miles of above-ground rails during and after the blizzard, Wiedefeld said.
Hulking, diesel-fueled rail cars called “prime movers,” with plow blades in front, pushed snow to the sides of the tracks, Wiedefeld said. After more snow accumulated, it, too, was plowed. Behind the plow blades, large scrapers attached to the rail cars ripped ice off the third rails, which carry electricity that powers subway trains. Then a liquid de-icer was sprayed on the third rails. Hulking, diesel-fueled rail cars with plow blades in front pushed snow to the sides of the tracks, Wiedefeld said. After more snow accumulated, it, too, was plowed. Behind the plow blades, large scrapers attached to the rail cars ripped ice off the third rails, which carry electricity that powers subway trains. Then a liquid de-icer was sprayed on the third rails.
Unlike snow-removal crews on roads, Metro does not have an efficient way of moving plowed snow farther from its tracks, Wiedefeld said. He said this is because the rails are mostly in confined spaces, flanked by chain-link fences or retaining walls. Unlike snow-removal crews on roads, Metro does not have an efficient way of moving plowed snow farther from its tracks, Wiedefeld said. He said that is because most rails are in confined spaces, flanked by chain-link fences or retaining walls.
So the snow often drifts back onto the third rails, causing more ice. The snow often drifts back onto the third rails, causing more ice.
“The trains are losing [contact] with the third rail and becoming disabled,” Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said Tuesday. “Part of it is ongoing ice and snow buildup. The snow banks are higher than the third rail, and the snow continues to get onto the third rail,” causing them to “ice over.”“The trains are losing [contact] with the third rail and becoming disabled,” Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said Tuesday. “Part of it is ongoing ice and snow buildup. The snow banks are higher than the third rail, and the snow continues to get onto the third rail,” causing them to “ice over.”
He said: “The last thing we want to do is put passengers out on the railroad where [trains] become disabled.”He said: “The last thing we want to do is put passengers out on the railroad where [trains] become disabled.”
Across the region, the work of cleanup crews on roads was complicated by the fact that the massive amount snow could not be shoved aside easily in many places. Much of the snow had to be hauled to open spaces, creating mountains that will take weeks or months to melt. Across the region, the work of cleanup crews on roads also was complicated by the fact that the massive amount snow could not be shoved aside easily in many places. Much of the snow had to be hauled to open spaces, creating mountains that will take weeks or months to melt.
The mountains of snow, combined with icy and unshoveled sidewalks, also made travel difficult for bus riders and pedestrians, who often were forced into the street.
In Loudoun County, where 36 inches of snow fell in some areas, two Virginia Department of Transportation snow plows damaged their blades while carving through the stubborn mounds of snow and ice.In Loudoun County, where 36 inches of snow fell in some areas, two Virginia Department of Transportation snow plows damaged their blades while carving through the stubborn mounds of snow and ice.
“This equipment being worked that hard, it’s not uncommon to have some breakdowns and some issues with machinery,” said VDOT spokeswoman Jennifer McCord.“This equipment being worked that hard, it’s not uncommon to have some breakdowns and some issues with machinery,” said VDOT spokeswoman Jennifer McCord.
Facing an increasingly impatient public, Virginia, the District and Montgomery County have all said they plan to have neighborhood roads “passable” by early Wednesday morning. Facing an increasingly impatient public, Virginia, the District and Montgomery County all said they plan to have neighborhood roads “passable” by early Wednesday morning.
Officials acknowledged they might miss some stretches, and said residents should report those instances Wednesday morning. VDOT promised to have one lane open in all subdivisions by 6 a.m. Wednesday. They defined passable as sufficiently cleared so that a rear-wheel-drive vehicle could get through.
VDOT promised to have one lane passable in all subdivisions by 6 a.m. Wednesday. They defined passable as something a rear-wheel-drive car can get through safely. District emergency management chief Christopher Geldart said that’s the city’s goal as well. McCord warned, however, that roads would be tighter and riskier than commuters are used to.
Montgomery County pointed to a 7 a.m. goal. By that time, spokesman Patrick Lacefield said, “All of our neighborhood roads should have gotten a pass from a plow...All neighborhood roads should be passable, and by passable we mean you can get out. It doesn’t mean bare pavement.” Snow mounds at intersections and in medians will cut visibility, turn lanes may still have snow in them, piles could encroach on travel lanes, pushing drivers over to one side or the other.
The neighbors in a small enclave of North Potomac decided to take their plowing problem into their own hands. Many had shoveled out their cars and driveways, but the snow in the street was about two and a half feet, making it impossible to drive. “It will be a slow going commute because everyone will be negotiating those types of things,” McCord said.
Some were running out of groceries. Others had to get back to work, with their offices reopening. One family needed to get a child to a doctor—nothing overly serious, but a concern. Many were feeling stir-crazy. District emergency management chief Christopher Geldart said that the city goal also was to have at least one lane open on all streets by Wednesday morning, though he, like officials in Virginia and Montgomery, conceded they may not get to them all.
Rachel Boxman, 47, says she and others were not convinced that Montgomery County’s cleanup crews – who were clearing so many miles of snow-packed roads - would get to their subdivision any time soon. D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser told business owners to get out and shovel their sidewalks, or face a $150 fine.
So they hired a plow. “You must get out and remove snow from your sidewalks immediately,” Bowser said.
Late Monday afternoon, the plow showed up and removed snow for 90 minutes , at a cost of $375, which many of the 40 neighbors are sharing. The same driver had plowed another area street a day earlier, which is how Boxman heard of him. She also warned that it’s illegal to park “sort of in the middle of the street.”
“People were really happy,” she said. “They were so grateful. I think we’re all feeling more normal now.” “A legal space is one that is no more than 12 inches from the curb,” Bowser said.
Boxman celebrated by going out to dinner Monday night with her family, as well a niece and a friend. At the restaurant, they talked to a number of other diners about being snowed in. Montgomery County officials said their goal was to have passable residential roads by 7 a.m. By that time, spokesman Patrick Lacefield said, “All of our neighborhood roads should have gotten a pass from a plow. All neighborhood roads should be passable.”
“We all said how lucky we were to escape,” she said. He cautioned that “by passable we mean you can get out. It doesn’t mean bare pavement.”
In Fairfax County, Sharon Bulova, chair of the county board of supervisors, said plows were making progress but that the cleanup effort could take several days more.
“They’re now saying that the clearing may not be completed until the weekend, which is frustrating for homeowners and businesses,” Bulova said.
Officials were looking toward later in this week for other possible weather dangers.
Flooding remained a “slight risk” in the District, Geldart said.
But a bigger concern is another rush-hour freeze-up like the pre-blizzard storm last Wednesday that paralyzed the region and left some commuters stuck in eight-hour ordeals.
“The precipitation I’m worried about: Thursday afternoon,” Geldart said. “We’ve got our contingency plans in place now if we need to, early on Thursday, pull our crews from what they’re doing, load up and treat so we don’t have what we had last Wednesday.”
Angela Fritz, of the Post’s Capital Weather Gang, said potential problems could shift slightly later.
“Forecasts earlier this week were pointing to snow potential on Thursday, but it now looks like that system will stay well to our south,” Fritz said. “We’re now more concerned about freezing temperatures on Thursday night. That could make the Friday morning commute icy in places where the road aren’t completely dry.”
[Full list of what’s closed on Tuesday][Full list of what’s closed on Tuesday]
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Robert McCartney, Dana Hedgepeth, Antonio Olivo, Katherine Shaver and Faiz Siddiqui contributed to this report. Robert McCartney, Arelis Hernandez, Dana Hedgpeth, Luz, Lazo, Lori Aratani, Antonio Olivo, Katherine Shaver, Faiz Siddiqui, Ovetta Wiggins, Donna St. George, John W. Cox and Moriah Balingit contributed to this report.