The Late Mobile

I collapsed into my seat on the train this evening and to my surprise, I get a nice note from the MTA explaining why the majority of commuters on the New Haven line were late this morning. Apparently, three thousand feet of catenary wire came down at 11:10 pm last night. Two of the three tracks were operational and the third is expected to be ok within the next few days.

Here is my question. How does three thousand feet of wire, the mother of all wires that supplies power to these ancient trains, fall down in a small ice storm? Three thousand feet is no small number, we're talking about 10 football fields here! Did some train conductor catch a sagging overhead wire and figure he would just hit the gas and try the old "yank the tablecloth" routine until it came undone? Perhaps it was the 5mph wind that was too much for the forty year old cable. I would at least expect some sort of reasonable explanation like 3,000 blackbirds decided to sit on this wire, electrocute themselves and commit mass suicide like their brethren in Arkansas that flew into a fireworks display. But no, the wire just came down.

To add insult to injury, one of the four tracks is already out of commission for a caternary wire replacement project that will last for at least a year. I guess it takes that long to remove all of the crazy glue and duct tape that have accumulated over the last forty years of top-notch service upgrades. Maybe the wires were second on the list next to new train cars. Oh.. Wait... They haven't arrived yet. They have been at least six years in the works and not one single new car has arrived. Maybe the MTA can take all of that money for the new train cars, bring it to Atlantic City, put it on red and hope to double it so that they can contribute to the "I've been riding in an antique train with shitty seats and am in need of back surgery" fund.

       Well, until that day comes, I can sleep comfortably at night knowing that deep down inside, the MTA really does care. I mean, they left us all these nice notes apologizing for what happened. I'll just make a paper hat with it to protect myself from the leaking ceilings in this circa 70's electrified, motorized, clunky late mobile.