Petition asks Pope Francis to bless Metro system

Pope Francis directly addressed the concerns of Metro riders in an encyclical letter from May in which he derided the quality of life issues brought about by a poor public transportation system.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, please make the Metro not so absolutely awful anymore.

A new online petition is requesting that Pope Francis visit and bless the Metro during his stay in Washington D.C. this week.

The commemorative SmarTrip sleeve Metro is handing out the mark the pope’s visit (courtesy WMATA).

“Maybe a Papal Blessing is just what it needs”, says Rosenheck. But some people are not too confident in the transit agency after a series of recent problems, including a transformer fire that shut down the Stadium-Armory station on Monday and disrupted service on three lines.

Even Metro officials agree that divine intervention from the pontiff couldn’t hurt.

“I would love it Pope Francis actually blessed the Metro”, Rosenheck told The Washington Post.

“It can only help”, Stessel said.

Petition supporter Hayley Margules added: “Please sign this, even if you don’t live in DC”.