A priest, a preacher, a rabbi and an Imam get onto a bus ...

..and the bus driver says, “What is this, some kind of joke?”  True story (ok, not really).

 

I’ve been an avid bus rider for several years, taking Sound Transit between my home in Seattle and work at the university.  I used to connect with the 594 via bike but that became a little too sketchy (close calls as I flew down city streets when I was running late--which was most of the time) and I began driving to an informal park and ride below the West Seattle bridge where I could catch the 594 at its last Seattle stop.  When my van’s engine gave up the ghost about a month ago, I was forced to consider new options and started taking Metro’s #2 to the 594.  The 2’s my favorite bus, largely because there’s a stop a half a bock from my house, but, unfortunately, the connection with the 594 is tight, the 2’s often late and I spent some of the coldest mornings of this winter sitting at the 2^nd and University stop, waiting for the next 594 to arrive.

 

A few weeks further along (and several thousand dollars poorer) I had a new engine in my van and resumed the park and ride routine.  Surprisingly, I soon felt that, despite the hassles I’d encountered with the 2 connection, just leaving the van at home and riding the three systems—Metro, Sound Transit and Pierce Transit—had become a lot more appealing option.  I’ve had one super in-the-know student bus rider educate me on the clear superiority of the 12 (with a stop two blocks from here) for movers and shakers in the bus riding world, and I’m embarking tomorrow on a slightly revised daily odyssey.  Wish me luck.

 

By the way, has anyone else noted Phyllis Fletcher’s (KUOW) remarkable knowledge of Seattle’s buses?  I think deep Seattle bus knowledge separates the real Seattleites from the carpet baggers (or, even worse, the East Siders).

Matt, Faculty

P.S.  Thanks for the pass!