What Snow?: Reports filtered in this morning of commuters taking as long as 13 hours to get home from work yesterday, thanks to the snow that smacked the region just as evening rush hour got going. Which, adding insult to injury, probably meant those commuters were already late for work today by the time they [...]

The transit board launches its hearing
'Bout negligence and engineering
If that doesn't chasten
And cause change to hasten
There's talk of the feds interfering
Dodd, Shelby, Menendez, and Vitter
Say fix it or get off the shitter
Would oversight fetter
Or make it all better
And who is replacing the quitter?

For Haiti, this week was the worst
But D.C. need not be coerced
We know a good cause
Like doctors and gauze
And helping to quench growing thirst
On Wednesday, John Catoe took action
To stop his "unhealthy distraction"
The Red Line derailed
And critics prevailed
By force of their dissatisfaction
The consequence for his aggression:
A felony charge for possession
His stardom may sink
But not [...]

Or so said the Post's Robert McCartney on WAMU this morning, discussing who might replace the departing John Catoe: "This is a very prestigious position, general manager of Washington's Metro system. It's the second largest transit system in the country, it's in the nation's capital. So I think a lot of ambitious, you know, 40-something [...]

Good morning, and welcome back to Freedom Friday! That is, if you're John Catoe.
Metro's general manager told the WMATA board he's out, as of April 2. This unexpected news prompted quite a diverse reaction. Said Christopher Zimmerman, who sits on the board and wanted Catoe to stay: "I do think we had the very best [...]

John Catoe had to go.
Right?
Over the past year, and certainly after the June 22 Red Line tragedy, an undeniable chasm developed on the subject of Catoe's performance as Metro's general manager.
The people who use Metro and comment on it from arms' length—those not engaged in day-to-day reporting on the system—have been scathingly critical of Catoe, [...]

The Metro board would have asked John Catoe to stay—but he didn't give them the chance.
"One thing about John is he's very frank. And he is fair," said Catherine Hudgins, a Fairfax supervisor who is second vice chair of the Metro board. There was no question, she says, about persuading him to stay:
"He submitted his [...]

This morning, General Manager John Catoe made his announcement at the WMATA board's executive session at its headquarters. According to At-Large Councilmember and WMATA Board Alternate Michael Brown, everyone in the room was floored by Catoe's annoucement. "Everyone to a person was surprised and shocked," Brown tells LL. "And frankly, just disappointed."
Brown says that usually [...]

Yesterday John Catoe, the suddenly retiring general manager of Metro, sat down with 11 local bloggers, including folks from Greater Greater Washington, We Love DC, and Prince of Petworth. Some of these people have already written up their meetings.
"I'm a little dumbfounded," says We Love DC's Tom Bridge of Catoe's resignation. "We had no indication [...]

Metro has released the following statement about General Manager John Catoe, who will step down effective April 2:
Catoe stepping down after three years at the helm
Metro General Manager John Catoe has decided to retire and leave the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority after three years as its top manager. Catoe informed Metro’s Board of Directors [...]

The Washington Post is reporting Metro General Manager John Catoe is out.
From the blog "Get There": "Events of the last six months have created an unhealthy distraction, he says."
WTOP says the resignation will be effective in April. They report that Catoe had made his decision last week. He admitted to the WMATA board that the [...]

"I truly believe Metro is a safe system."
—John Catoe, Metro general manager, June 22

For walkers, this week was bad luck
While crossing the street, two were struck
Sure, fate is capricious
But why not delicious?
Heck yes, I'd get hit by this truck
It sure seems that Metro's bemoaning
The change that had riders all groaning
With kiosks outmoded
Make fares auto-loaded
Not yet, though, 'cause Catoe's postponing
I'm sad to see Cephas depart
For with him, that man [...]

The general manager of the D.C. Metro, John Catoe, says riders on the Red Line should expect delays for at least a year because of the ongoing investigation into last month's deadly crash and repairs connected to it, the Washington Times reports.
"If this is an issue dealing with the safety of the system, I'm not [...]

Good morning, City Desk readers!  Remember those lovely events and people we tried to forget about in the past few years, among them press secretaries, judicial nominations, and transit accidents?  They're all back to rear their ugly heads this morning, so let's commence with the news rundown.

Yesterday afternoon, City Desk posted the latest WaPo article [...]