I’m a Bus Person
I’ve never used public transportation as any part of my regular commute. I’ve always worked in situations where my personal automobile offered benefits that outweighed the costs. Until now. I recently accepted a job in inner southeast Portland and when considering my options for commuting from Vancouver it seemed to make sense to give transit a try. It’s now been a week, and here are my random notes as a first-time TriMet commuter:
- Day 1: I attempted to use transit; I arrived at the Parkrose Transit Center at 7am. TriMet’s website indicates this location usually fills by 8am. I found it completely full at 7. I drove in rather than attempting alternate transit arrangements.
- Day 2: I started an earlier schedule which put me at the park and ride by 6, and I found it about half empty. I got parked and had a perfect experience coming in with both MAX and my connecting bus being entirely on schedule. A smooth transit day other than Murphy working hard and the weather being rainy any time I was getting on/off transit. But hey, this is Portland…
- Day 3: TriMet must have understood my frustration with the rain, for I found a brand new bus shelter at the location where I catch the bus in the afternoon. Thanks TriMet!
- Day 4: I came to work super-early and encountered light crowds on the train/bus. Had my first people-watching amusement in observing a neat-looking man around 40 years old, wearing blue scrubs, reading “Psychology for Dummies” on the train.
- Day 5: Another smooth transit day. Had my first “Wish I had a car about now” moment at lunchtime. I survived without it.
- It makes sense that I have the same driver on #6 every day at the same time, yet I’m confused why #4 has a different person each morning.
- I wonder why I haven’t seen a single fare inspector anywhere on MAX yet.
It really isn’t bad. Yes, it takes longer than it would to drive. But I’m getting a lot of podcast-listening done as well as some reading. The people-watching is amusing. Honestly, there are a lost less “strange” people than I thought I’d see… my previous perceptions were wrong. And in theory I’m helping the planet and stuff.
One of the greatest benefits of riding the bus is getting to watch all the people.
Thanks for the honest report. Always admirable when a blogger can keep an open mind and admit to changing it now and then, as all of us do but not all of us are willing to admit.
As more of us hard working people ride the bus, Max, and streetcar, it should help change the poor image public transit has among some people who regard it as full of “strange”people. There may indeed be a few “strange” or worse types occasionally, but they’re a lot less scary or offensive when heavily outnumbered by regular commuters. It’s worked that way with parts of downtown that formerly would have made, say, my mom uncomfortable, as more and more people feel comfortable walking those areas at night. Kind of a dilution effect that should build on itself.
It is frustrating to hear that the bus was full at 7 am. I have a friend who really wants to bus it from the Belmont area to downtown each morning– and did so for 15 years before he moved there from a different part of SE — but he says the bus is almost always full when he wants to leave, so he winds up driving, and hates himself for doing so. But he has no choice: he can’t afford to take a chance on missing morning meetings and understandably doesn’t want to have to leave for work at 630 instead of 730.
I wonder how common this is, and if anything can be done to square supply with demand at these peak commute times. Is it poor planning or lack of resources that’s keeping people who want to commute off the (full up) buses and in their cars?
Thanks again for your willingness to test your preconceptions and for reporting your experience.
Yeah, as someone who’s been a regular bus rider since I was 13 (fifteen years ago), it’s interesting to hear perceptions of a new patron.
I used to ride Max in when I worked near Lloyd Center. I tried taking C-Tran from the Park and Ride on 164th in The Couve but for some reason C-Tran couldn’t coordinate the bus schedule with the Max. Just as Max pulled up to the Parkrose stop you could look over and see the bus pull away. The next one wasn’t for a half hour. When I moved to West Vancouver I looked into the express bus from Hazel Dell to Lloyd Center but C-Tran wanted $110 for the monthly pass so I went back to driving. Where I work now I’ve got to drive but I do miss the convienence and not driving in the traffic each day.
I used to ride Max in from Parkrose when I worked near Lloyd Center. I tried taking C-Tran from the Park and Ride on 164th in The Couve but for some reason C-Tran couldn’t coordinate the bus schedule with the Max. Just as Max pulled up to the Parkrose stop you could look over and see the bus pull away and the next one wasn’t for a half hour. So I’d drive to Parkrose and take Max in from there. When I moved to West Vancouver I looked into the express bus from Hazel Dell to Lloyd Center but C-Tran wanted $110 for the monthly pass so I went back to driving. Where I work now I’ve got to drive but I do miss the convienence and not driving in the traffic each day.
When Tri-Met works for you it’s fantastic, I agree. I wish my commute was better served by the train so I could take it instead of the bus the whole way, I just prefer Max and being out this far I know I am pretty much always guaranteed a seat. I’m glad it’s working out for you.
As for the person with the full 15s, couldn’t they just leave like 10 minutes earlier for a bus and get in just fine? It seems like they come in waves, so if you don’t get the first one which is stopping for everyone the one right behind it is usually ok.
Thanks, BLF, I’ll ask my friend if he’s tried waiting for more buses. Maybe he didn’t realize that the next one might not be full. Getting up earlier might be a problem for him.
I lived in Portland for 30 years before
moving to the San Jose, CA area. I visit
Portland about once every 2 months and
always ride MAX to and from the airport.
I used MAX frequently when I lived in
Portland.
I have seen a fare inspector *once* in
Portland. When I ride the light rail here,
I see a fare inspector about 20 persent
of the time.
I start work at 9:00 am. I’m not about to leave the house at 6:30 am just to use public transportation. If they want me to use it they’ll make it convenient and timely. Until then I will happily drive my car. (And, yes, that means I can avoid the significant number of strange people who ride the bus. There are too many of them.)