4 ms·

That already exists in MetroTransit in Minnesota. The only company that was seriously interested for several years was Planned Parenthood. https://www.startrib

That already exists in MetroTransit in Minnesota. The only company that was seriously interested for several years was Planned Parenthood. https://www.startribune.com/the-drive-birth-control-bus-ad-stops-some-people-short/483158471 https://www.startribune.com/the-drive-birth-control-bus-ad-s... This did not improve public sympathies for bus service broadly speaking.

PaulHoule 1y ago
It's a pet peeve of mine that buses in my city have wrap-around ads for a car dealer an hour's drive away. (Turns out all the car dealers in this area are owned by the same people) Then there was that bus which had a supergraphic that made the whole bus look like an MRI machine advertising the medical center.
- gjsman-1000 1y ago
  Personally, I'm not opposed to bus service; quite the opposite. Especially if I could bring an eBike. However, buses can and should feel safe for everyone, whether you're 5 years old or 95 years old, a US citizen or a visitor from Japan, whether it's 2 PM or 2 AM. In the United States, they absolutely don't. This can be fixed, but nobody has the political will to be perceived as a little mean.
  - PaulHoule 1y ago
    In my town all the buses have a bus rack in the front that fits up to two bikes or e-bikes. I perceive buses in my town be very safe. I definitely see emotionally disturbed people downtown and near the homeless colony behind Wal-Mart, but I don't see them on the bus.
    - gjsman-1000 1y ago
      In Minnesota, we built light rail... with an honor system for boarding. It got so bad, especially on the middle cars (the "party cars") after COVID, that the middle car was retired and they are now in Year 3 of a security improvement plan. https://www.metrotransit.org/public-safety https://www.metrotransit.org/public-safety They are also retro-fitting screens into the buses, showing the buses' own live camera feeds, to further reinforce the perception of being watched. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SBd3wno61k https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SBd3wno61k It's still not working in some areas. https://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-46th-st-light-rail-crime/601374022 https://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-46th-st-light-rail-c... https://www.instagram.com/karenthecamera/?hl=en https://www.instagram.com/karenthecamera/?hl=en
      - bluGill 1y ago
        Honor system with regular fare inspection is a good best practice. However it only works when the fines for not having a fare are high enough that everyone knows it isn't worth the risk. If you are checked once a month the fine should be the costs of 3 months pass, though you can work the math in many different ways, just make sure paying for a ticket (preferably a monthly pass!) is cheapest and everyone believe that.
        gjsman-1000 1y ago
        The problem with fining the homeless is that they don't pay, followed by being onboard the next day. This can't be solved without being a little mean. In 2023, Democratic lawmakers changed it from being a misdemeanor to being an administrative citation, with... get this... $35 for first offense, scaling up to $100 + 120 day ban by 4th offense. More merciful than going through a court system inconsistently, at least in theory. Huge surprise it's not working out.
        bluGill 1y ago
        Homeless should be on a different program that gives them a free pass anyway. The pass should be paid for by the service that deals with the homeless not the transit agency (note that I just forced a lot of budget changes!). The service wants to hand out those passes because it is a chance for them to see what else they can do for those people (who often don't want help and so they need to be careful what they offer vs force) There should be passes for disabled vets, children, and other poor people as well.
        gjsman-1000 1y ago
        Believe me, visit Reddit for Minneapolis, the most transit-optimist place you can find, and see what they think about their light rail. Full grown adult women won't ride it. Children? That's almost child endangerment by itself. I have no problem with homeless people getting free transit if they need it. However, the subset of homeless that are consistently riding for free and making nuisances, they may need to be forcibly kept off the train. It doesn't even need to be police action - install physical barriers, requiring cash or pass, and hand out passes to the homeless like candy with revocation for repeated misbehavior.
    - bluGill 1y ago
      I hate those racks. 2 bikes capacity means the transit agency needs to ensure they are not well used since they will fill up fast if people actually use them. Also the time it takes to put a bike on/off them is time robbed from everyone else on the bus who is now 30 seconds latter to where they want to be. They just are not worth it, and cannot be. Either take the bike on the bus (good luck even getting it to fit, much less doing this in a reasonable amount of time for reasonable effort), or lock them up at your stop. I find buses are safe too. I don't understand the worry myself. However buses in the US normally run terrible routes that make them useless for getting around and so people who want to seem "green" need to find some excuse and not understanding the real problem blame safety and not that the route is useless.
      - PaulHoule 1y ago
        In Ithaca we have crazy hills so it is a good plan to take the bus up and then ride down although E-bikes change that equation. In Ithaca we have great bus service between the Ithaca Commons, Cornell and the Pyramid Mall. Before the pandemic we had a bus every 15 minutes at the mall which was great -- it's still pretty good. There are 5 buses a day during weekdays to the rural area where I live. These are well timed for the 9-5 worker at Cornell and I'm going to be taking the late one back today because I'm going to go photograph a Field Hockey game over in Barton Hall and the timing is right -- it's OK but we did have more buses during the pandemic. Bus service is not so good to Ithaca College. When I've tried to make the connection with my bus I've concluded that I might as well walk up the hill the IC rather than wait for the bus.

PaulHoule 1y ago

It's a pet peeve of mine that buses in my city have wrap-around ads for a car dealer an hour's drive away. (Turns out all the car dealers in this area are owned by the same people) Then there was that bus which had a supergraphic that made the whole bus look like an MRI machine advertising the medical center.

gjsman-1000 1y ago
Personally, I'm not opposed to bus service; quite the opposite. Especially if I could bring an eBike. However, buses can and should feel safe for everyone, whether you're 5 years old or 95 years old, a US citizen or a visitor from Japan, whether it's 2 PM or 2 AM. In the United States, they absolutely don't. This can be fixed, but nobody has the political will to be perceived as a little mean.
- PaulHoule 1y ago
  In my town all the buses have a bus rack in the front that fits up to two bikes or e-bikes. I perceive buses in my town be very safe. I definitely see emotionally disturbed people downtown and near the homeless colony behind Wal-Mart, but I don't see them on the bus.
  - gjsman-1000 1y ago
    In Minnesota, we built light rail... with an honor system for boarding. It got so bad, especially on the middle cars (the "party cars") after COVID, that the middle car was retired and they are now in Year 3 of a security improvement plan. https://www.metrotransit.org/public-safety https://www.metrotransit.org/public-safety They are also retro-fitting screens into the buses, showing the buses' own live camera feeds, to further reinforce the perception of being watched. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SBd3wno61k https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SBd3wno61k It's still not working in some areas. https://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-46th-st-light-rail-crime/601374022 https://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-46th-st-light-rail-c... https://www.instagram.com/karenthecamera/?hl=en https://www.instagram.com/karenthecamera/?hl=en
    - bluGill 1y ago
      Honor system with regular fare inspection is a good best practice. However it only works when the fines for not having a fare are high enough that everyone knows it isn't worth the risk. If you are checked once a month the fine should be the costs of 3 months pass, though you can work the math in many different ways, just make sure paying for a ticket (preferably a monthly pass!) is cheapest and everyone believe that.
      - gjsman-1000 1y ago
        The problem with fining the homeless is that they don't pay, followed by being onboard the next day. This can't be solved without being a little mean. In 2023, Democratic lawmakers changed it from being a misdemeanor to being an administrative citation, with... get this... $35 for first offense, scaling up to $100 + 120 day ban by 4th offense. More merciful than going through a court system inconsistently, at least in theory. Huge surprise it's not working out.
        bluGill 1y ago
        Homeless should be on a different program that gives them a free pass anyway. The pass should be paid for by the service that deals with the homeless not the transit agency (note that I just forced a lot of budget changes!). The service wants to hand out those passes because it is a chance for them to see what else they can do for those people (who often don't want help and so they need to be careful what they offer vs force) There should be passes for disabled vets, children, and other poor people as well.
        gjsman-1000 1y ago
        Believe me, visit Reddit for Minneapolis, the most transit-optimist place you can find, and see what they think about their light rail. Full grown adult women won't ride it. Children? That's almost child endangerment by itself. I have no problem with homeless people getting free transit if they need it. However, the subset of homeless that are consistently riding for free and making nuisances, they may need to be forcibly kept off the train. It doesn't even need to be police action - install physical barriers, requiring cash or pass, and hand out passes to the homeless like candy with revocation for repeated misbehavior.
  - bluGill 1y ago
    I hate those racks. 2 bikes capacity means the transit agency needs to ensure they are not well used since they will fill up fast if people actually use them. Also the time it takes to put a bike on/off them is time robbed from everyone else on the bus who is now 30 seconds latter to where they want to be. They just are not worth it, and cannot be. Either take the bike on the bus (good luck even getting it to fit, much less doing this in a reasonable amount of time for reasonable effort), or lock them up at your stop. I find buses are safe too. I don't understand the worry myself. However buses in the US normally run terrible routes that make them useless for getting around and so people who want to seem "green" need to find some excuse and not understanding the real problem blame safety and not that the route is useless.
    - PaulHoule 1y ago
      In Ithaca we have crazy hills so it is a good plan to take the bus up and then ride down although E-bikes change that equation. In Ithaca we have great bus service between the Ithaca Commons, Cornell and the Pyramid Mall. Before the pandemic we had a bus every 15 minutes at the mall which was great -- it's still pretty good. There are 5 buses a day during weekdays to the rural area where I live. These are well timed for the 9-5 worker at Cornell and I'm going to be taking the late one back today because I'm going to go photograph a Field Hockey game over in Barton Hall and the timing is right -- it's OK but we did have more buses during the pandemic. Bus service is not so good to Ithaca College. When I've tried to make the connection with my bus I've concluded that I might as well walk up the hill the IC rather than wait for the bus.