Taking Time to Tell a Bus Story
Photo: Snob on a BusThis weekend the Times profiled one of Los Angeles' many bus riders, focusing on a young woman who chooses the bus over the car to commute from the Westside to Beverly Hills. The rider, Jacquelyn Carr, authors her own blog about her riding experiences at Snob on a Bus, and both the blog and the Times article tell a charming story of a woman who first takes the bus because she feels she has to and ends up integrating herself into the culture on the Westside part of the Metro 720.
While the Times piece is hardly groundbreaking stuff for someone that reads transit blogs or rides the bus; it is great to see Los Angeles' paper of record delve in to transportation culture beyond the culture of the car. As someone who has been critical of much of the Times' coverage in recent months, especially Ari Bloomekatz who wrote this piece, it's great to read a piece that reads as though it were part of SF Streetsblog's "Muni Rider Profile," or a Fred Camino piece at The Source than a Times story.
Consider these couple of paragraphs, that describe riding the bus as a fun place to be:
They agreed to leave for home at 1:30 a.m. Carr had never taken the busthat late and was not sure what to expect. Stumbling but rushing, thegroup got to the bus stop just before the coach pulled away.
They piled into the front seats and started talking with the driver.Before long, the bus was echoing with alcohol-fueled hoots andlaughter. The driver seemed to take great pleasure in playfullyneedling the group, at one point calling them "idiots" for being soboisterous. The group called her Patty, even though Carr can't rememberwhether that was her real name.
The group told "Patty" she deserved an award for best late-night busdriver. And the ride home ended up being the most memorable part of theevening.
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