Sometimes I have a need or want to ride public transportation. My recent trip to Vienna, Austria found me traveling all over the city aboard Vienna’s fine subway system, for example.

Yesterday, I had need to use the (Washington) D. C. Metro system to go into the city to attend the annual Auto Show. Side note: I remember when the D. C. subway system was built, and when it first opened, it was the model of a modern, efficient, clean transportation system.

No longer.

Besides the delays caused by single-tracking (an effect of much-needed repairs being performed) one thing that I found both sad and humorous at the same time: The inability of train operators to clearly enunciate over the train’s P.A. system. Not only were the stop names unintelligible, but even the delay announcements. A short lesson in how to speak clearly over a public address system should be mandatory for drivers.

To be fair, some of the newer trains have automated voice-overs, which seems to be the standard in places like Vienna, Toronto and other subway systems I’ve ridden, as do the commuter buses I need to take twice a year. But my point is that if I were a tourist and didn’t know the stops, I”d be looking at signs out the window and worrying about how quickly I would need to exit the car at my station. Fortunately, I’m familiar enough with D. C.’s Metro to simply find this humorous.