Here’s Metro’s latest innovation on their rail cars:
Yes, these are nylon straps along the center grab bar on Rohr 1127, which I had yesterday morning on the way to work. I tried them from Farragut North to Dupont Circle. And the verdict is…
NO!
No. The straps did not provide any better support for hanging on, and in fact, the straps moved a little bit too loosely to be of much use. Metro trains, with their higher speeds and such, don’t do that well with straps. You need a little more support while holding on. Metro was more on the right track when they installed the metal ceiling handles on the carpetless Alstom pair and the experimental Breda cars. The metal ceiling handles retract up out of the way when not in use, plus they provide better hang-on support than those nylon straps.
Let’s hope this “innovation” hits the wastebasket pretty quickly in favor of other things they’ve already tried.