A hold-your-nose commute from Takoma

By Carole P. Jennings
Silver Spring

Metro’s fare increases [front page, May 28] are a good idea only if riders can expect clean, debris-free stations.

As a frequent Red Line user, I am appalled by the squalid conditions of the Takoma station. The entrance from the commuter parking lot on the Eastern Avenue side is a public health hazard and a nuisance. It is a challenge to walk through the urine-soaked Metro entrance to the elevator (where the smell is even more intense) to the train platform. Then riders must navigate broken or missing floor tiles before boarding trains.

Returning to my car one recent afternoon, I could smell feces in an open dumpster that seems to rest in the same spot day after day. That was the last straw for me.

Metro administration and staff can do better for Red Line patrons. Suggestions: Post signs noting that urinating in this Metro entrance is prohibited and that doing so can result in a misdemeanor charge or a fine. Scrub and disinfect the station entrance.

Close the entrance after Metro has stopped running and reopen it in the morning after inspection by Metro staff.