TriMet adding service to 13 bus lines, blue MAX line

Oh my goodness gracious.  Bus line 15 people rejoice.

TriMet is adding service to 13 of its bus lines as well as to the MAX Blue Line.

As a line 15 rider every morning, this is awesome.  I’m so happy I could kiss a bus… or not.  But this does make me super happy.

The bus lines that are adding service are:

• 4-Division
• 8-Jackson Park
• 9-Powell
• 12-Barbur Blvd
• 15-Belmont
• 15-NW 23rd Ave
• 17-Holgate
• 31-Estacada
• 33-McLoughlin
• 35-Macadam
• 66-Marquam Hill/Hollywood Transit Center (TC)
• 72-Killingsworth/82nd Ave
• 99-McLoughlin Express

Let there be much rejoicing!  And cake.  Because I love cake.  And no, I am not lying.  And neither is the cake.

Anyone else happy about this?  20 line perhaps needs to have more buses but hey, I’m not complaining… yet…

Go out of your way to say “thanks”

For some reason, when I ride the MAX or bus I don’t really ever hear the word, “Thanks!”  I don’t know if it’s just the nature of the public transportation system that we, as riders, don’t really want to communicate much to one another when riding.  I get that sense, at least.

Whenever I step onto a bus, I’ll show my pass and say, “Thanks!”  When I get off, I’m one of those dudes that gives a shout-out to the bus driver, saying “thanks!” as well.

I get off on a stop in the mornings that is a couple of stops right before the “mass exodus” stop in downtown.  Usually, the bus is cramped and stuffed to the brim.  So when I hit the dinger, I usually hear one or two moans.  I make sure to thank people who shuffle out of the way a bit as I try to slide past them to the exit.

Sometimes I’ll get email and a first-time rider or someone who may have been riding for years has a question.  I guess some people seem to think I’m affiliated with TriMet, so they’ll ask me what lines they need to ride to get to ‘x’ location or the time schedule for holidays, that sort of thing.  I really have absolutely no problem in getting back to them, answering their question, and making sure that their ride on TriMet is a pleasant one.  More often than not, I don’t hear a “thanks” for that either.

Maybe it’s a public transportation mentality to not go out of our ways to say “thanks” to the driver or to the fellow rider who moved out of your way.  I challenge everyone, especially around this time of year with Thanksgiving and the holidays, to just  go out of your way a little and throw out a “thank you” to people.

Thanks for reading

WES Time Essay Contest

It’s getting close to WES time (that would be February 2, 2009)!  And in celebration for the upcoming Wilsonville – Beaverton commuter rail, TriMet has an essay contest!  Access it here.

While prizes aren’t specifically mentioned, the contest rules do state that there’s one prize valued at $86, which is, hmmm, how about this: just about how much a monthly all-zone pass costs!  I wonder what the first prize is…   There are also “up to 30 prizes” that are valued at $4.25 a piece… which, yes yes, are the price-point for an all-day all-zone pass.

In any case, what I’m most interested is this:

“All participants will be entered into a drawing to win an invitation to a preview ride on WES Commuter Rail and your essay might be published on trimet.org!”

TriMet!  Let me on a preview ride on WES!  And also, TriMet!  Please link to me!

The contest closes on December 9th at 5 p.m., so you have a month to write a 100 words or less essay.  What are you waiting for?  Get writing!

TriMet – who are the enforcers for riding rules on the bus?

No doubt, you’ve most likely heard of the recent dog attack on a TriMet bus.  For those who haven’t heard about, here’s a quick summary:  two dogs were on a TriMet bus, one a companion / service dog the other not.  The non-service dog bit and broke the neck of the other dog, killing it.

The rule is companion or service dogs can ride with a passenger on the MAX, bus or streetcar without having to be in a crate or holding device.  If your pet isn’t a companion or service animal, then it cannot be outside of a crate or holding device when riding TriMet public transportation.

That being said, the last three days I’ve seen a non-crated dog riding with its owner on the bus.  Now, while I can’t be 100% certain the dog on all three occassions isn’t a companion or service animal, my wife grew up training assistance dogs and I’m fairly certain certain breeds make up a large part of the service dog population.

While I don’t want to rush to a judgment, it also seems like the owner of the dog on all three occassions wasn’t using it for assistance or service purposes.

So now I want to put out there – who does TriMet think the enforcers of riding rules should be?  Obviously, on the MAX, it’s the fare inspector along with any other TriMet or Wackenhut employee riding.  Same with the streetcar.

But what about the bus?  Obviously, the bus driver takes some of that responsibility, but I’ve heard TriMet actually doesn’t want bus drivers to get involved in any altercations.

I’m a fairly quiet guy, so I didn’t want to approach the dog owner to ask if the dog was a service animal or not.  I did observe when the animal boarded with the owner holding it and didn’t see the bus driver question the owner if the dog was a service animal.

I like dogs and cats.  But what if someone riding the bus at the time the person boarded with the dog didn’t like them.  What if that person had cynophobia, a fear of dogs and rabies?  Why should that person with the dog break the rules without question?

Does the bus driver act as driver and enforcer of riding rules?

I guess part of the enforcement comes from a personal standpoint.  I hope people would have the decency to follow riding rules.  But, increasingly these days, it doesn’t seem to be the case…