Link Light Rail

Seattle's new Link light rail system opened over the weekend, and I made my first commute with it this morning.

I don't live quite close enough to a station to make it simple. Instead, I have to take a bus for about .75 of a mile to connect with a train. I discovered that I can take a normal, non-express bus to the station, get on the Link, transfer in the bus tunnel (no walking required) and arrive in about the same amount of time it would have taken on an express bus.

This isn't all that helpful for the daily, normal commute. I do think this will be very helpful on weekends and times when express buses either don't run or when I've missed the window for them. In a sense, but transferring the the Link, I can convert any normal bus into an express trip, with some relatively minor adjustments.

I'm particularly interested in seeing how the Link will help me get home after sporting events and during snowy weather.

An unexpected benefit is that I feel like I'm in the Warriors movie when I ride the train. I suppose that's a benefit, since it's a good movie. It's not a world I'd like to live in though...

Metro Website Updates

King County has updated their mass transit website and added a real time blog.

This pleases me.

Ron Sims Has a Plan

King Co. Metro bus fares could go up 50 cents by 2010

It's a good start toward addressing the challenges faced by the increased bus ridership matched with increased diesel prices.

It isn't a long term funding plan, but it does mitigate fare increases and addresses the urgent needs of the now.

Ride the Bus

There's a great article in the 6/10/08 Seattle Post Intelligencer which both describes how more folks are riding the bus now that gas prices have floated into the $4.25 / gallon range, and gives tips on how to ride the bus for newbies.

I've mentioned before that I am a big believer in buses. More should be done to provide transit (or at least high occupancy) only lanes, and more should be invested to keep our buses running frequently and on time. Buses don't require expensive tracks and can be easily flexed as demands change, unlike light rail.

Bus fares only cover a minority of the costs for bus related mass transit, so as ridership increases, outside funding will also need to increase. Those buses are getting full, and that's great, but before long, we'll need bigger buses and more frequent service to balance the increase in ridership. That will cost tax dollars, in addition to the additional fare revenue.

Also check out one of my favorite blogs for all things bus-a-licious in and around Seattle: http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/buschick/

Moving People

I've become a person who believes that dedicating our energy into expanding and improving the bus system is the proper answer. We've seen that rail based construction projects are extremely expensive, usually wind up destroying some businesses, can disrupt communities, and rarely are any faster at getting from point A to point B than the car it often competes with. This is particularly true of street level light rail.

Instead of throwing money at building rail lines that can't be moved to adapt to changing demographics, I much prefer increasing service, increasing 'bus only' and/or high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes, and increasing express bus lines.

We learned in Seattle that a thousand little adjustments to traffic flow can make a huge difference in reducing congestions. We already have streets, we already have buses (though not enough).

Here is an article from 2003, written on behalf of the Independence Institute. I don't endorse this group, and am not a member. I offer the article only because it provides a clear summary of my 'pro-bus' perspective. They seem a little nutty, but I have great sympathy for their libertarian perspective.

'Manners police' hit Japan metros

This article is about a week old. Yes please, I would like the etiquette police to begin patrolling my mass transit system, please.

Badly behaved commuters riding on Yokohama's public transport will soon be risking a dressing-down.

Spotbus

For people who use the bus in King County, I highly recommend spotbus.com for trip planning. The url is easy to remember, and the interface is awesomely simple. It uses the King County Trip Planner for its brains, but it's easier to find and use than the Trip Planner itself (which is a great tool too).

Riding Metro

Nora and I were on the 48 this evening, coming home after spending the better part of the afternoon watching David Lynch's Inland Empire. We stopped at Mcclelan st and Rainier when the driver announced that we had to pause for a minute. With both doors open, we sat. And sat. We were only two stops from our own, and very much in walking distance, but I kept thinking we'd start any moment. We were probably there for five full minutes, which is a long time to stop a bus for no apparent reason.

Then, the number 7 passed us, and stopped. A police car parked in the turn lane in ahead and to our left (naturally).

A young black man in the back began making somewhat crazy sounds, "oh mamma, oh mamma...." and no fewer than three police officers boarded our bus. And they took the young black man into custody. He didn't resist, and they didn't use excessive force. They seemed to know him by name. They mentioned that he'd dropped 'dice' during the minor scuffle; Nora and I assumed that was a rock form of drug. Crack or Meth, or possibly heroin.

A few moments later, we continued on our way. As we thanked the driver, she mentioned how happy she was that her evening was almost over. I thought it was a fascinating adventure, but it's probably the sort of thing a driver can do without.