MARTA managers should ride system

I’ve used big city rapid transit (in Chicago, Washington, D.C. and New York) and worked as a conductor on the Chicago Transit Authority rail system. I also have advanced degrees and experience in general management and organizational operations. I see a lot of room for improvement with MARTA’s operations and management.

My co-workers and I were waiting recently for a late westbound Blue Line train that should have been at the East Lake station at 9:47 (according to the schedule), but didn’t arrive until 9:55. What good is the schedule it you don’t stick to it and we can’t trust it? No PA announcements to explain or warn us, just waiting and silence. I could have taken an alternate ride to the next Green Line station if I’d known what to expect. Do the video displays work? Another night, on the train from Five Points to Candler Park, other passengers and I (including a father and his two daughters) were harassed by a panhandler on the train and on the platform — yet not a cop was to be found on the train or on the platforms at Candler Park.

Do MARTA managers ride every day as part of their commuting routine? Are they required to? They should be; then, they might have a faint idea of what their customers experience and some clue of what needs to be improved. We expect two very simple things from MARTA: safety and reliability. If MARTA can’t give us that, don’t be surprised or angry that people don’t ride MARTA or don’t want it expanded. As for me, I’m going to start taking GRTA Express or alternate transit. JOHN ADAMSON, How to submit an Opinion column: Submissions should be 600 words or less. Email columns to Opinion Editor Tom Sabulis at tsabulis@ajc.com. Columns submitted to the AJC may be published, republished and made available in the AJC or other databases and electronic formats. Letters to the editor should be no longer than 150 words and must include a daytime phone number for verification. They may be edited for length and clarity, and may be published in print or other formats. Email submissions are preferred. Email: letters@ajc.com.