The other side of SkyTrain – problems and issues.

As a SkyTrain customer, using the system has been troublesome recently.  There have been problems (some of which have been unavoidable) and many concerns have arisen. The SkyTrain system is lacking in plan ‘B’s. If there is trouble at one station, the entire system sometimes shuts down. Depending on location there is no way, besides walking, to bypass the problem. After a problem has been fixed the trains are packed with the many people that have been delayed. Communication to Transit employees is also lacking; they are sometimes not informed of what the problem is and how long it will take to fix it. I have been told numerous times to exit the SkyTrain station, walk to a bus stop and wait in a long line, only to watch ‘Sorry Full’ buses pass by.

 

I also find the design of Columbia station to be a problem.  The design problem is not something that can easily be changed, but the effects from it can be rectified by slightly altering when trains arrive. Anyone traveling from VCC Clark to King George or vice versa has to change trains, but may find that the train that is needed is arriving at the station just as he/she exits from their train.  I can’t count the times when I have run down the stairs, across the floor and up more stairs in order to catch a train, knowing that I will have to wait for two more trains to pass before another is heading to my intended destination.

 

Safety is always a concern when using any form of transportation. SkyTrain has taken measures to ensure the safety and security of passengers. Vehicles and stations are monitored, there are ‘passenger silent alarms’ above every window, and ‘on-train speakerphones’ located near the doors inside each car. There are also designated waiting areas and emergency cabinets located in each station. However, each year SkyTrain has incidents involving customers entering the track area for one reason or another. It can either be the 600 volts or the trains themselves that may harm or kill the customer.  What is keeping someone from being accidentally bumped into harms way on a busy platform? Two feet of yellow flooring.  The system appears to rely on the good sense of the passengers to stay well back from the edge of the rail bed.

 

Although there are risks inherent in the design of the system, overall the safety of the system appears adequate.  However, I would like to see online real-time updates, so that you could check for problems before you left and so that in needed you could plan an alternative route.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />