3 ms·

> If people are screaming at you or smoking meth on the bus, that’s indicative of broader social problems which aren’t really solved by changing the transportat

by chroma 8y ago

> If people are screaming at you or smoking meth on the bus, that’s indicative of broader social problems which aren’t really solved by changing the transportation system. Knowing the proximate cause doesn't help me avoid crazy people on public transportation. The problem of crazy people in the bay area won't be fixed any time soon, so it's still in my best interests to avoid public transportation. Also, it's not clear to me that many of these people can be fixed. The bay area spends enormous amounts of money on mental health and homelessness, but the problem is far worse here than it is in Boston. > For what it’s worth, I ride buses, trams, the subway, etc. all around San Francisco on a daily basis with my 2-year-old, and haven’t ever felt threatened. There's no nice way to say this but... I don't believe you. Every single one of my coworkers has a horror story about public transportation in the bay area. Robbery, theft, stalking, threats, harassment, catcalling, etcetera. There is only one woman at my work who commutes via BART, and she's only been doing it for 3 weeks. The rest drive or take Uber/Lyft because they've been robbed or threatened in the past. I think it's much more likely that my friends & coworkers are telling the truth than that you are. Either that or your threshold for feeling unsafe is incredibly high. If you regularly take public transportation in the bay area, you will encounter mentally ill people, and some of them will engage in violent behavior without provocation.

jacobolus 8y ago
> I don't believe you You don’t believe that I travel by bus/subway/etc. and don’t feel unsafe? There are people of all ages, ethnic groups, social classes, occupations, etc. riding transit throughout the Bay Area every day: foreign tourists; nannies with strollers; pensioners buying groceries; businesspeople commuting; high school students; sports fans; families taking luggage to the airport; ..... There are certainly occasional violent incidents on transit. Out of the 400k BART trips every day, I wouldn’t be surprised if there were a dozen pick-pocketed wallets/phones every day, and the occasional mugging. If I were a small 12 year old girl, there are some BART stations I probably wouldn’t want to be alone in at midnight. But crime on transit is not common (in general mugging and other violent crime in cities are down dramatically from the peak a few decades ago), and I have never personally felt threatened. My wife commutes to work in SF by bike, and that is unfortunately far more dangerous (especially with all of the crazy Uber/Lyft drivers these days) than riding the bus. > Every single one of my coworkers has a horror story How many of your co-workers grew up in a not-rich family in a city?
- masonic 8y ago
  and the occasional mugging There were three BART homicides in five days last July.
  - jacobolus 8y ago
    Yes there are very rare rapes and even stabbings in transit stations, and that is terrible. Just like the same crimes are terrible on the street, at stores, in public parks, at offices, or at homes. There are also 400 traffic deaths and 2000 traffic injuries per year in the Bay Area. Statistically, the BART is a very safe way to travel.

by chroma 8y ago

jacobolus 8y ago

> I don't believe you You don’t believe that I travel by bus/subway/etc. and don’t feel unsafe? There are people of all ages, ethnic groups, social classes, occupations, etc. riding transit throughout the Bay Area every day: foreign tourists; nannies with strollers; pensioners buying groceries; businesspeople commuting; high school students; sports fans; families taking luggage to the airport; ..... There are certainly occasional violent incidents on transit. Out of the 400k BART trips every day, I wouldn’t be surprised if there were a dozen pick-pocketed wallets/phones every day, and the occasional mugging. If I were a small 12 year old girl, there are some BART stations I probably wouldn’t want to be alone in at midnight. But crime on transit is not common (in general mugging and other violent crime in cities are down dramatically from the peak a few decades ago), and I have never personally felt threatened. My wife commutes to work in SF by bike, and that is unfortunately far more dangerous (especially with all of the crazy Uber/Lyft drivers these days) than riding the bus. > Every single one of my coworkers has a horror story How many of your co-workers grew up in a not-rich family in a city?

masonic 8y ago
and the occasional mugging There were three BART homicides in five days last July.
- jacobolus 8y ago
  Yes there are very rare rapes and even stabbings in transit stations, and that is terrible. Just like the same crimes are terrible on the street, at stores, in public parks, at offices, or at homes. There are also 400 traffic deaths and 2000 traffic injuries per year in the Bay Area. Statistically, the BART is a very safe way to travel.