The Metro system, once a reliable point of pride for D.C.’s boosters, has had a rough few years: Safety problems, escalator outages, and rising prices have made the subway a regular subject of local griping. At times, it can be hard to keep up with the torrent of unflattering Metro-related scoops. As a public service, Washington City Paper is offering beleaguered riders this irregular round-up of recent media lowlights:

• Train door got you separated from your mom? Too bad, kid.
• Metro has no plans to file charges against the woman involuntarily detained after Monday’s Red Line bomb scare, given her mental state.
• “Savvy Metro riders always have a Plan B.”
• Union officials are accusing the MetroAccess contractor of removing seats from its vans to skirt driver fatigue laws.
• “Metro Forward” is here, but it got off to a bit of a bumpy start.
• Guns! Guns! Guns!

In not-so-bad news this week, Metro is pipe dreaming about a new Brown Line and extensions of the current lines. And GM Richard Sarles offered testimony on safety improvements, which impressed Sen. Barbara Mikulski, who thinks Metro’s “culture of cover-up of the problems and denial of the problems” is finally changing. We’ll see about that.