amymichellea's Blog
-
Public Transit. Love it or hate it?
- Posted on 07.31.09
Today was the first time I set foot onto the LA transit system.
(Un)fortunately, it won't be the last.
I would like to consider myself to be just as environmentally friendly as the next person. So taking the bus shouldn't be that big of a deal, right?
Except on those days where everything that could go wrong, does. Or so it feels.
This morning I got up, figured out the buses I needed to take, and collected enough money for the rides. First thing when I got on the bus, I needed to buy a day pass. Unfortunately, they don't sell day passes on the bus anymore, they haven't for about a year. Mistake one. But never fear, I still had enough money for a round trip.
The bus that I rode in was awesome. It would announce the stops for you. This saved me from the worry of not knowing where I was or when I should get off. Also, just in case your bus driver likes to mumble when he/she speaks, you don't have to worry about missing your stop because you couldn't understand them. Score one for the transit system.
When it finally came time for me to switch buses, I had written down that I needed to take the Metro Local Line 4 into Santa Monica. I got to the bus stop and saw that there were options! I could take the 4, the 2, or the Metro Rapid 704. The technicality for the 4 that I didn't catch onto was that it only went to Santa Monica in the 'early AM' or 'late PM.' And so, I boarded onto the 4, confident that I was going the right way. Only as I continued on, did I realize that I was not going to get all the way into Santa Monica on the bus and that's where my dilemma hit. I could either stay on the bus to the farthest stop and walk the rest of the way; or I could get off and get on the bus that would take me directly into Santa Monica. The problem with option two, suddenly I'd be down on bus fare for the return trip.
I ended up getting off and switching buses, knowing that I could go to a store and get more bus money out of my rapidly depleting bank account.
I realized the reason for why the trip planner had told me the wrong bus though. When planning your trip, you have to state the time that you want to leave. Unlike google maps, where you can put in the route you need and it gives you the next available time for a bus ride. Partially I would blame this on the site, I would like to assume that I am not the only one to have made this mistake since its creation.
While on the bus, I was reading the GOOD magazine spring issue. Surprisingly, it was all about transportation. I would have to agree with an article that discussed creating bus lanes. This would make the bus schedule more reliable because they wouldn't deal with regular car traffic. As an added bonus, this could make more people want to use the bus as a mode of transportation rather than sitting in their cars.
The number one pro to riding the bus are the people you meet. One man that sat next to me I didn't end up talking to at all, but we both had that 'I want to talk to you but don't know how to start' deal going on.
The next man that sat next to me was reading lyrics to different old songs like "Cheek to Cheek" by Frank Sinatra. He started the conversation by saying he liked my hair. I ended up asking him about the songs and he explained that it was for his night job, he sings at a club. But his day job is as a masseur and I got a free hand massage out of talking with him. Score two for the bus system.
If you've got other transit stories to share, I'd be glad to hear them. Good, bad, or just plain normal, post them in the comment section.
Related causes: Environment
Comments
You must be logged in to do that.
Sign In
