Life in the Bus Lane

I’m a proponent of rapid bus service. Actually any form of transportation that doesn’t guzzle gas and pollute our atmosphere. If it doesn’t make me feel guilty, I’m all for it.

Lawrence is a relatively small city that doesn’t sprawl out into suburbs and exurbs. It’s refreshing to be able to go anywhere in about 15 minutes. Traffic doesn’t clog the main arteries until rush hour…and even then, compare that to DC traffic and you’ll find it laughable. For that very reason we have a different way of thinking about public and alternative transportation. Yes, it can still be faster than taking a car. I can probably bike through downtown faster than a car in traffic…but in general, it’s more convenient to use your car rather than walk, bike, or use the city bus system. Convenience is the ultimate driver for these alternative transportation modes, but many are also compelled by environmental concerns, a want of exercise, and maybe even exploring the world outside of the vehicle.

So far I’ve tried cycling to work and taking the bus back and forth. The bus system, called the T bus, offers smaller buses that come every 30-40 minutes. I was actually kind of shocked on my first ride when I boarded and the driver asked where I was going. “Do you need a transfer?” After nodding, she radioed on the walkie talkie and noted that a passenger would transfer at X station around X time. Hilarious! The other bus actually waited for me and I ended up being its sole passenger! Very different from my DC bus rides, where I was truly one in a million as far as the drivers were concerned (and rightly so).

This T bus system got me thinking though…why not run the buses more often and generate wider ridership? Even though it’s a small city with than 100,000 residents, if it was convenient to get to downtown from home and the bus ran every 10-15 minutes, more people would leave their cars and take the bus. Of course it would be difficult to explain this to city officials when you barely have riders or even public support at the moment. And why even bother when there’s a “recesh” going on?

Of course, one could bring up the efficient rapid bus systems that have sprung up elsewhere. US cities like San Francisco and Pasadena are exploring versions, but South American countries like Brazil are the true pioneers of the “BRT.” Buses in the city of Curitiba, for example, would come by your selected stop every 1-5 minutes. The stations are well located and kept in great condition…and people like taking the bus . “Around 70 percent of Curitiba’s commuters use the BRT to travel to work.” Imagine what you could do if you planned a city around efficient bus transport like that…particularly without spending millions on an underground rail system that constantly needs expensive maintenance.

With increased gas prices and traffic, many US urbanites have shunned the automobile for public transit. Unfortunately it’s not a very rapid shift and it comes in different stages. We have to put more pressure on our city officials to choose less expensive, more efficient alternatives to automobiles.

Down with the cars! Stupid, insolent cars.