Though Metros engineers were fairly cautious when it came to new technology,
they were confident that advances in electronics would allow them to automate
much of the system, minimizing labor costs and increasing efficiency. Though
trains are operated by people, in theory they can be completely controlled from
a central control room. Fare collection, once a labor-intensive job, is handled
by automatic faregates that read magnetic cards. Most recently, WMATA has relieved
some of the pressure on its telephone operators by setting up a website with
automated directions. |