Get There

Whether they had a tough time getting to work or never made it out of their neighborhoods in the first place, many people looked for ways to effectively vent their anger about the pace of the storm cleanup.

I heard from travelers and would-be travelers everywhere, so I offer what follows only as an example.

Residents in many Montgomery County neighborhoods said they hadn't seen a plow or considered the plowing ineffective. Montgomery County's snow line was overwhelmed with phone calls. Officials asked people to hold off on calling.

Others said the main roads, handled by the State Highway Administration, were barely passable. That's what General Assembly members representing the 16th Legislative District in Montgomery County heard about, and they wrote a letter of protest to State Highway Administrator Neil J. Pedersen.

Here's a portion of the letter signed by Sen. Brian E. Frosh, Del. William A. Bronrott, Del. C. William Frick and Del. Susan C. Lee of the 16th Legislative District, which includes Bethesda, Glen Echo and Cabin John and parts of Chevy Chase, Kensington, Potomac, and Rockville.

Dear Mr. Pedersen:
On behalf of our beleaguered constituents, we are writing to express their frustration and disappointment with the current status of snow removal operations in our district. Four days after this storm, the condition of major arteries such as Wisconsin Avenue, Bradley Boulevard and River Road are dangerous and, in some cases, nearly impassable. We understand that this was a storm of epic proportions, however, our constituents deserve better driving conditions on state-owned roads.

With another major storm forecast for our region, we are concerned that our constituents will be facing even more treacherous conditions on these state roadways. We ask that you make these and our other major state arteries a priority in the next 24 hours.

I understand their concern. It's well-placed. It has been difficult and sometimes treacherous to travel on those roads since the storm ended, and it probably will be again over the next day. But I think they're moving too quickly past the "epic proportions" part in their description of the storm. This storm would have been a knock-down blow in any urban area of this country.

[ Airports; Amtrak cancellations; Capital Weather Gang; D.C. snow emergency; Metrorail and Metrobus; Plowing plans; Snow removal; Watch traffic conditions live ]

Here are a few suggestions and advisories to help with your planning for the next round.

Transit
While all Metrorail stations are open now, the transit authority says it could cut back service on the aboveground portions of lines as the storm develops tonight and Wednesday. The policy is to cut back when snow along the tracks reaches 8 inches, but we've already got so much on the ground, it's more difficult to anticipate that point than it was Friday night.

Metrobus service, limited today, will probably scale back too as road conditions deteriorate. Metro would probably drop back to service on snow emergency routes before completely suspending service.

Alexandria's DASH buses will end service at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

[More transit updates coming.]

Roads
The District has declared a snow emergency to take effect at 4 p.m. Tuesday. That means, once again, that drivers must get their cars off those routes or risk a $250 fine and a tow charge. Free parking at the Free the DC USA garage on 14th Street NW has been extended through noon on Saturday, the District Department of Transportation says.

Snow removal operations continue. Crews are still working in the neighborhoods, but they're also trying to push the snow back as far as they can on the Interstates and other main routes so they'll have somewhere to move the newest snowfall.

The falling snow is likely to mask a lot of roadway problems that were more obvious this morning. For a while, it may be difficult to tell what's powder and what's hard-packed snow or ice. Driving among the snow piles and slush was difficult enough. A fresh coating should inspire even more caution.

Most schools will be closed Wednesday, and it's likely the federal government will, too. Their decisions to close over the past two days made the difference between difficult travel and a complete breakdown in our ability to get around.

Airports
BWI Marshall: Some airlines have canceled flights from Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday. Check with your airline to confirm flight status before heading to airport. Consider parking under cover in one of the airport's garages rather than outdoors in the big economy lots.

Dulles: The airfield is open for flight operations but many airlines have canceled their flights for Tuesday afternoon and evening. There probably will be no flights from Dulles on Wednesday. Contact your airline to be sure of your flight status.

Reagan National: The airfield is open for flights but many for Tuesday have been canceled. There probably won't be any Wednesday. Check your flight status with your airline before going to the terminal.

All Metrorail stations are open this afternoon, the transit authority says. Service resumed about 2:30 p.m. on the Blue Line between Franconia-Springfield and Largo Town Center.

Metrorail trains on the Red, Blue, Orange, Yellow and Green lines are operating every 20 minutes, and all 86 Metrorail stations are open.

Metro officials are watching the weather and may decide to reduce Metrobus or Metrorail service later this evening as more snow and below-freezing temperatures are expected.

Rush hour never ended on main roads like East-West Highway in Montgomery. (Thomson)

[ Airports; Amtrak cancellations; Capital Weather Gang; D.C. snow emergency; Metrorail and Metrobus; Plowing plans; Snow removal; Watch traffic conditions live ]

We are in the midst of a natural disaster, and no part of the D.C. area's transportation system is functioning very well. Residents say many neighborhood streets haven't been cleared. Drivers are crawling along main roads, which is good, because if they got up any speed, it would be dangerous. Bus riders often don't have a stop at which to wait. Train riders are complaining about long waits on crowded platforms.

Roads
On neighborhood streets that have not been made passable, the snow has hardened, making it difficult for plows to gain the upper hand. Different equipment is needed. Some residential areas will see small front-end loaders working to break up snow piles.

Main roads are much more crowded today. It's as though the morning rush never ended. The condition of these roads is somewhat better than on Monday, but more people came out of their neighborhoods to reach work or do errands in the brief window before the next storm later today.

A driver breaking free of traffic is tempted to step on the gas. Resist that temptation. Some road obstacle is in your immediate future. These are the key problems I encountered:
Lanes disappear. On East-West Highway and Brookville Road in Montgomery County, there is no eastbound lane. As drivers come down the hill and enter a curve, the lane vanishes into the snow and their only move is into oncoming traffic.

There's no place to put the snow. At points where the roads narrow or bend, there's likely to be frozen slush in the roadway and piles of hardened snow on the sides of the road. Medians are piled high with snow that occasionally spills into the left lane and creates bumps and slippery spots.

Visibility is limited. Interchanges and intersections are particular problems. At many intersections, the snow piles are so big, they could hide a basketball team. At these points, drivers will not see pedestrians stepping out into the roadways. Be particularly careful making a right turn.

Pedestrians in roads. What else can they do? People are walking out of neighborhoods to get supplies. In many cases, the sidewalks are under more than a foot of snow, even along main roads.

Bus stops
They don't exist. At least, not in the normal sense. Stops identified only by poles and bus shields are surrounded by hardened snow in many areas. A prospective passenger would have to stand in the travel lane or stand atop the snow pile and hope for the best.

Shelters don't shelter. Benches inside shelters are partly buried in snow. But who would want to wait inside the shelter, anyway? The bus, if it comes, is going to stop out in a travel lane, yards away across a snow bank. At some stops, though, people have cut a hole in the wall, allowing one passenger at a time to move between the travel lane and the shelter.

It will get worse. Metro said more than 300 buses were operating on 98 routes as of 11 a.m. but that is likely to change later today as road conditions deteriorate. The snowfall won't help the condition of the stops and shelters, either.

Trains
Why so few trains? That's one of the two most frequently asked questions I'm hearing about Metrorail service, which has been restored to all but five Blue Line stations. Metro spokesman Steven Taubenkibel told me it was a question of supply and demand. As of 11 a.m., he said, Metrorail had carried 83,333 passengers. About 45 trains were operating, serving platforms every 20 minutes.

With the federal government closed, he said, it was not necessary to mount a regular rush-hour service. Also, he said, Metro was playing it safe as it resumed above-ground operations. Because snow and ice continue to be problems, the speed limit for the trains today is 35 mph.

Why so long to restore service? That's the other FAQ. It took less time to restore above-ground service after the December storm, riders say.

Taubenkibel said that clearing the snow and ice took longer because there was a lot more of it this time. And it was constantly refreezing. Plus, the snowdrifts would form three- to six-foot mounds. In fact, along the Blue Line from Stadium-Armory to Largo, the drifts has been as high as eight feet.

Remember, the Metro policy is to stop above-ground operations when the snow levels along the tracks reach eight inches, the point at which trains often begin to lose power. It's a little more difficult to predict when we'll reach that point in this storm, since we already have so much snow on the ground.

Airports | Amtrak | Buses | Capital Weather Gang | D.C. snow emergency | Plowing plans | Rails | Snow removal | Live traffic

From what I've seen and from the reports I've received from you, the road clearing operations have achieved mixed results. It's not just a question of highways vs. neighborhoods. Conditions vary along one stretch of highway, or from neighborhood to neighborhood. Here's a sample.

Dear Dr. Gridlock:
I have been impressed with Montgomery County's efforts to get roads clear after the Snowmageddon. The county-maintained roads that have been plowed have been clear to the pavement with generally space for two vehicles to pass.

I know they were still clearing neighborhoods Monday and I know that people on small roads and, especially, cul-de-sacs have felt generally ignored. But really my comment is about the shockingly poor performance by the Maryland Department of Transportation on the state-maintained roads, which are the busiest and most highly traveled.

I was on the Beltway on Monday and it was in good shape. But Wisconsin Avenue/Rockville Pike, Connecticut, East-West Highway, Bradley Boulevard, and so on, are all in awful condition. These are major routes and heavily used and some of the intersections -- particularly East-West at Wisconsin and East-West at Connecticut -- were almost impassible.
Whitney Baird
Chevy Chase

On Monday afternoon, I heard from a Montgomery County resident resident who said neighborhood streets in Silver Spring that were passable had become so only so because neighbors banded together to work on them or drove heavy vehicles along them to pack the snow down.

Also Monday, Steve Yaffee wrote in with this complaint: Please ask VDOT, MDOT and DDOT how they define "passable." Do they think that a highway lane with 4" of packed snow except for the sudden drops for bare pavement is "passable"? Is the "passable" standard 10 mph in a 4-wheel drive vehicle?

This morning, Post staff writer Ceci Connolly reported that Massachusetts Avenue in the District was one lane in each direction. She described Wisconsin Avenue as a "slushy mess."

Staff writer Nikita Stewart reports that D.C. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty will reinstate the snow emergency at 4 p.m. to clear major roadways in anticipation of Tuesday's storm. The weekend emergency rule had been lifted on Monday morning.

In many traffic camera views, the road conditions vary greatly. Whether in city or suburb, some stretches have multiple lanes cleared completely, while others show huge snow piles blocking side lanes or turn lanes, and certainly hampering drivers' vision.

Morning commuters had to evacuate a Blue Line train after it apparently got entangled in a loose cable as it approached the Smithsonian Metrorail station about 8:30 Tuesday, causing a small fire.

There were no reported injuries, according to Metro spokeswoman Angela Gates.

The cable likely became wrapped around a portion of the first rail car of the train, which was heading toward Franconia-Springfield. The fire was extinguished and the customers were transferred to an Orange Line train to return to L'Enfant Plaza, according to a statement from Metro.

Passengers aboard the train involved in the incident were startled when their train stopped in the tunnel, a door suddenly opened and people ran in from the next car. Everyone jumped up, according to an eyewitness account, as a faint smell of smoke entered the train.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we hit a wire on the tracks and we are going to be recovered," the operator announced over the intercom.

Disruptions are continuing at Smithsonian because trains have to share the same track as workers recover the disabled train.

--Ann Scott Tyson

Airports | Amtrak | Buses | Capital Weather Gang | D.C. snow emergency | Plowing plans | Rails | Snow removal | Live traffic

A train malfunction at the Smithsonian Metro station has caused delays in both directions on the Blue and Orange lines. Trains are sharing the same track between the Smithsonian and Federal Center stations.

Airports | Amtrak | Buses | Capital Weather Gang | D.C. snow emergency | Plowing plans | Rails | Snow removal | Live traffic

8:50 A.M. UPDATE: All trains on the Camden and Brunswick lines are running an hour or more late in both directions due to weather and switch problems, according to the Maryland Transit Administration. The Penn line trains are operating on time.

7:45 A.M. UPDATE: All MARC trains are running between 10 and 60 minutes late due to weather, switches and other train-related issues, the Maryland Transit Administration reported.

ORIGINAL POST: MARC is running a limited "S" schedule today. But trains are seeing further delays and issues this morning. Owing to weather conditions and other train congestion, delays of 10 to 30 minutes should be expected on all three train lines, according to the Maryland Transit Administration.

Other hiccups: Camden train 841 is running 30 to 35 minutes behind due to signal problems at St. Denis... Penn train 400 stopped just south of New Carrollton due to mechanical problems earlier this morning... Brunswick line train from Frederick this morning was delayed at least 35 minutes due to a switch issue outside of Frederick (that's on top of being 15 minutes late for the original pickup before the 35 minute delay).

And a note for passengers traveling from Perryville, Aberdeen and Edgewood -- Amtrak train 151 has been canceled for today. Amtrak train 111 will make those three MARC stops about 20 minutes later than train 151 would have. (If you want to check the status of the train, use Wilmington as the departure station since these stops aren't regularly scheduled for this train.)

Airports | Amtrak | Buses | Capital Weather Gang | D.C. snow emergency | Plowing plans | Rails | Snow removal | Live traffic

Another day, another blizzard. With looming snow and sleet, not to mention the piles of ice and snow remaining from this weekend, the roads are among the last places you want to be right now. That being said, here's a roundup of conditions on some selected roads and commuter routes out there -- this is by no means comprehensive, but just trying to give you an idea what it's like out there (cold, icy and slow).

THE DISTRICT
All lanes are blocked on Wisconsin Avenue at Western Avenue in Northwest due to a disabled vehicle. The Fort Lincoln Park ramp on New York Avenue in Northeast is also blocked by a disabled vehicle.

MARYLAND
Two of four lanes on I-95 South at Allentown Road are closed due to weather (along with one of the southbound shoulders). One of the four lanes are closed on I-270 South just before MD 189 due to a disabled vehicle. The status of traffic on I-270 South just before I-370 is uncertain due to an accident; it's the same situation on MD 295 South at MD 197.

VIRGINIA
The right lane of I-95 South at US 1/Richmond Highway is closed due to a disabled vehicle. A disabled vehicle on I-495 North at Gallows Road might cause delays, and I-395 North slow from top to bottom.

Airports | Amtrak | Buses | Capital Weather Gang | D.C. snow emergency | Plowing plans | Rails | Snow removal | Live traffic

Area airports are all open, and all with the caveat that the new batch of winter weather Tuesday and Wednesday might impact that. If you're traveling Tuesday or Wednesday, check with your airline for your flight status before you leave home. If you need to reschedule your flight, all three airports ask that you contact your airline or use your airline's Web site rather than coming to the airport to change it.

BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON AIRPORT
As of 10:15 p.m. Monday, both of BWI's main runways were open for flight operations and airlines were gradually returning to near-normal schedules.

REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT
The airfield was open for flight operations as of Monday afternoon.

DULLES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
The airfield was open for flight operations as of Monday afternoon.

updated 5:40 a.m. Tuesday
The effects of the past storm and anticipation of the next will limit Metro transit services on Tuesday.

Metrorail
The train system will open at 5 a.m. with full service on all but the Blue Line, but may close early depending on how cold it becomes and how deep the new snow gets. Five Blue Line stations--Benning Road, Capitol Heights, Addison Road-Seat Pleasant, Morgan Boulevard and Largo Town Center--will remain closed because of three- to six-foot snow drifts on the tracks.

Throughout the rail system, six-car or eight-car trains will operate at 30-minute intervals. They will travel at 35 mph.

Here's the line-up:
Red Line Full Service: Shady Grove to Glenmont
Blue Line Limited Service: Franconia-Springfield to Stadium-Armory
Green Line Full Service: Greenbelt to Branch Avenue
Orange Line Full Service: Vienna to New Carrollton
Yellow Line Full Service: Huntington to Fort Totten

Closed stations: Benning Road, Capitol Heights, Addison Road, Morgan Boulevard and Largo Town Center.

Station parking: About three quarters of Metro parking spaces will be available.

Elevators/escalators: In a turnabout from the normal policy, Metro is encouraging riders to use station elevators into and out of the stations. Metro says they are safer than the exposed escalators because of the heavy snowfall.

Metrobus
Limited Metrobus service will begin at 5 a.m. All bus routes are subject to change depending on road conditions. These are the routes Metro expects to operate:

The District
31 (Friendship Heights to Foggy Bottom-GWU)
32 and 36 (Friendship Heights to Potomac Ave)
34 (Archives to Branch Ave)
52 and 54 (From 14th Street and Colorado Ave to L'Enfant Plaza)
64 (Fort Totten to Georgia Ave-Petworth)
70 (Silver Spring to Canal and P Street SW)
71 (Silver Spring to Archives) will terminate at Canal and P Street\ SW
79 (Silver Spring to Archives)
80 (Fort Totten to Gallery Pl-Chinatown)
82 (Rhode Island Ave to Gallery Pl-Chinatown)
P6 (Anacostia to Eckington)
S4 (Silver Spring to Federal Triangle)
U8 (Capitol Heights to Benning Heights)
X2 (Minnesota Ave to Union Station)
V7 line (Deanwood to Potomac Ave)

Maryland
J2 (Bethesda to Silver Spring)
P12 (Eastover to Addison Road), bypassing United Medical Center
Q2 (Silver Spring to Wheaton)
Y5, Y7 and Y8 (Wheaton to Liesure World)
Z8 and Z9 (Silver Spring to Briggs Chaney Road Park and Ride

Virginia
1C (Fair Oaks to Dunn Loring)
2C (Washington Boulevard to Vienna)
16 line (Pentagon to Baileys Crossroads)
28A (Alexandria to Tysons Corner), bypassing Seven Corners and Southern Towers

MetroAccess
The paratransit service will operate between 8 a.m. and noon for people whose trips involve life-sustaining medical needs such as chemotherapy and dialysis. After noon, MetroAccess will provide return-trips only to help those people get home.