Sand Box John wrote:"Chris Brown"Make sense.
But why is the procurement of 8000 series cars being delayed for 5 years? What is the thinking behind that decision?
I can think of few reasons:
* Declining ridership.
* reduced service and.
* less mileage.
The declining ridership is the result of reduced confidence and reduced service. Reduced service equals less mileage. Less mileage equals longer service life. Baltimore and Miami procured larger fleets for their railroads then WMATA did. Folks from WMATA when visiting those properties were amazed at how things were in such good working order. They were that way because their larger fleets allowed lower annual mileage and more time for preventive maintenance.
But with the current growth rate of the DC area (plus the possibility of Amazon moving here) I don't see the dip in ridership lasting all that long. It will probably meet or exceed peak levels by around 2022.
A consistent problem with WMATA is making decisions based too much on the reality of today. WMATA often lacks foresight. That's why they are always reacting to problems instead of avoiding them through better planning.