Mount Pleasant DC Forum

[jack]

This complaint came our way. Have others been disturbed by these loud "bus turning" warnings? -- Jack

Dear Representative,

I live on the corner of Mount Pleasant and Park Road. It has a high level of bus volume including the H3, H4, and H8. Due to this high volume of buses I now hear a high volume of the following announcement: "Caution Pedestrians Bus Is Turning!" Every time a bus turns this announcement erupts over the bullhorn. The announcement is loud and extremely vexing, agitating, and frustrating. It can be clearly heard in all of the rooms in my condominium. It is noise pollution plain and simple.

First, there are signals and crosswalks for the pedestrians and drivers to follow. Pedestrians know when to walk and drivers know when to turn. This is the first reason why this booming announcement is superfluous and unnecessary. Second, this morning at 8:15 I heard the excessive bullhorn cautioning pedestrians, but when I looked out my window there were NO pedestrians. Why ruin an otherwise peaceful morning with this ear-piercing announcement? Third, who can not see or hear this bus turning? A bus is loud enough and big enough that even blind or deaf pedestrians are very well aware that there is a bus present. Pedestrians all over the city know when I bus is approaching. Trucks, FedEx vans, and other large vehicles are constantly driving around the city without such boisterous devices. Why can't our city buses? Finally, good drivers are the real prevention of pedestrian related accidents. Any smart driver taking a left or right turn should know when to turn and when not to. The driver also has a wheel horn that they may use in emergency situations. For all of these reasons and more I am asking you to help stop DC Metro from using this polluting device.

Once again, the loud, and it is really loud, bullhorn announcing a bus is turning is NOISE POLLUTION. I have written DC Metro several times and have received no response. I do not see this as an accident prevention policy. It is superfluous, obnoxious, unnecessary, and extremely frustrating to hear. I hope as our neighborhood representative that you will be able to communicate with DC Metro and end this bus initiative.

Let me leave you with one passing thought. Imagine you are eating breakfast. The sun is rising over Mount Pleasant. Your three month old son sleeps in the room next to you. You are enjoying the Washington Post and your wife is putting on her makeup. All is nice and peaceful. Then, " Caution, Pedestrians, Bus is Turning!"

I greatly appreciate your time and attention. Please let me know if there is anything I can do.

[denisew]

We are frequently awakened at 2 am from these pedestrians the bus in turning, when there is no background noise it is really loud. Additionally, the volume of the H bus when it turns on to Park road is just as loud at the first stop on park road, it is somehow considered commercial where they can leave the volume up. I should not be able to hear it from the middle room of a house with all the windows closed hundreds of feet away. As I wrote this I hear the one that turns from park going west onto mt pleasant st (H8?)
This bus stop used to be in front of what is now the yoga place. we have been asking for years it go back there and the flex cars park on the 1700 block of park because between the curve and the historic sign vision is often blocked by additional cars. Add to this that cars use the non- main road part of park road at the park as a cut through, often going very fast and I worry that the kids who sit on the curb or skateboard in the street are going to get hit one day. We had proposed at the transportation meetings that the direction of this spur be changed for the school kids and pedestrian safety to no avail.

[Cory]

Unfortunately, our bedroom is directly over the bus stop on Park Rd. We hear this announcement late at night and as early as 5 am. It is truly a nuisance and totally unnecessary, at least at this volume. I've sent comments to WMATA but I haven't received any response.

[PRN]

We are across the Triangle Park and hear both the pedestrian warning and the name and route of the bus clearly in every room of our house at all hours. Perhaps the turning warnings and bus/route # announcements could be limited to 7 - 7 and left off in the evening and early morning?

[jack]

OK, that's what I needed to know. I've sent this e-mail to CM Graham this morning. -- Jack


Jim -- lately I've been advised of a problem caused by Metrobuses here -- that the audio warnings to pedestrians, that the bus is turning, are excessively loud, and disturbing to nearby residents in their homes.

This is, as you no doubt know, a trial program, intended to prevent the fatal accidents due to left-turning Metrobuses, such as the one at 16th Street and Park Road in December, 2009. Inaugurated last November, this is supposed to be a one-year trial, so its evaluation should come soon.

It's said that "The system's volume is designed to automatically adjust to outdoor noise, which means that it will operate at a lower volume at night and in quiet neighborhoods." If that's so, that's not working adequately. Some reports from residents near the intersection of Park Road and Mount Pleasant Street, where buses westbound on Park make left turns onto Mount Pleasant:

Resident 1: "The announcement is loud and extremely vexing, agitating, and frustrating. It can be clearly heard in all of the rooms in my condominium. It is noise pollution plain and simple."

Resident 2: "We are frequently awakened at 2 am from these pedestrians the bus in turning, when there is no background noise it is really loud. Additionally, the volume of the H bus when it turns on to Park road is just as loud at the first stop on park road, it is somehow considered commercial where they can leave the volume up. I should not be able to hear it from the middle room of a house with all the windows closed hundreds of feet away."

Resident 3: "Unfortunately, our bedroom is directly over the bus stop on Park Rd. We hear this announcement late at night and as early as 5 am. It is truly a nuisance and totally unnecessary, at least at this volume. I've sent comments to WMATA but I haven't received any response."

Resident 4: "We are across the Triangle Park and hear both the pedestrian warning and the name and route of the bus clearly in every room of our house at all hours. Perhaps the turning warnings and bus/route # announcements could be limited to 7 - 7 and left off in the evening and early morning?"

I can understand the need for the audio warning, given the two pedestrian deaths in recent years, but evidently the volume is unreasonable, and the "lower volume at night and in quiet neighborhoods" isn't successful.

With the review of the system imminent, this would be a good time to address this problem.

-- Jack

[jack]

[MPHS]

The bus announcements are audible a block away. You don't need to be right next to the corner to be disturbed at that volume.

[Jennrgolden]

[Karelio]

I used to work near Union station and heard the message all the time over the cacophony there, an extremely busy terminal. If it is as loud here as it is there I can imagine the pain. I think the stressful tone is as irritating as the volume.