Metro Boss Randy Clarke Has a Message for Trump

<p>WMATA General Manager Randy Clarke joined Dream City for a wide-ranging conversation about how he helped turn D.C.'s Metro system around, what America gets wrong about transit, and why the future of Washington depends on getting transportation right.</p><p></p><p>Randy talked with Cuneyt and Tom about everything from fare evasion, permitting, and union tensions to the politics of building faster, the challenge of funding transit in a fragmented region, and what D.C. can learn from other cities around the world.</p><p></p><p>They also get into RFK Stadium, the Gold Line, federal layoffs, and whether Clarke has any interest in a future Secretary of Transportation job.</p><p></p><p>00:00 Introduction</p><p>01:00 Randy Clarke's LA Visit</p><p>04:39 The Man Behind the Local Celebrity</p><p>12:56 Fixing Metro</p><p>16:27 What America Gets Wrong About Transit</p><p>20:30 Why Big Transit Projects Take So Long in America</p><p>22:13 Automation, Unions, and the Fight Over Metro Staffing</p><p>28:18 Randy Clarke vs. the Washington Post Editorial Board</p><p>30:52 Fare Evasion, Free Buses, and Who Should Pay for Transit</p><p>33:19 Why Metro Funding Is So Fragmented</p><p>36:08 The Bus Network Redesign and the Push for Dedicated Bus Lanes</p><p>41:19 RFK Stadium, the Gold Line, and Metro’s Future in D.C.</p><p>47:53 “You Either Hate the Way Things Are, or You Hate Change”</p><p>48:14 Does He Want To Be Secretary of Transportation?</p><p>53:40 Trump, Federal Layoffs, and Metro’s Future Under the New Administration</p><p>56:08 Randy Clarke’s Message to Trump</p><p></p><p>The Dream City Podcast is supported by launch partner <a rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://spotlightdc.org/" target="_blank"><b>https://spotlightdc.org/</b></a>.<br /><br />The Dream City Podcast will hold the powerful accountable and take you inside D.C.’s business and political worlds. Along the way: Revelatory conversations with city officials, business leaders, and the best-sourced journalists in town.<br /><br />The Dream City Podcast is a product of COSMOS Media LLC.</p>