An apology
I’m So Sorry…
Dear Seattle Metro,
I am sorry I dogged on you last week. I know you try your best and it was unfair of me to accuse you of incompetence and ineptitude when obviously the work you do is so very difficult and tiring.
I’m glad you got a chance to sleep in today. The thousands of people trying to get to work this morning will probably look back at this one day and laugh. I would have already started laughing after cramming myself onto the hour late, non-reticulated (read: small) bus that finally showed up if I wasn’t afraid of using up too much oxygen. But the looks on people’s faces as we sped by them, sure they had also been waiting a very long time for a bus that usually comes every 5 to 10 minutes in the morning, was priceless. Especially the elderly, disabled, and the people with babies in their arms!
But thank you for picking me up and allowing me to crowd into the stairwell between that girl with a giant backpack and the door. That door didn’t pop open and dump me out onto the street while the bus was moving a single time!
So, now that that’s behind us I’m hoping we can move on. You can go back to offering me a reliable morning commute where I’m only late if I don’t plan at least half an hour for the 15 minute ride, and I’ll go back to not stabbing people in the face.
Love,
Tony
P.S. I overheard a coworker talking about the same problem with his bus, but for him it was the 5 which comes to downtown from the northend. Is it possible that our city is so completely inept that the light dusting we got this morning caused this much trouble? I’d have a hard time believing that.
So I sent the following letter to city council member, Jan Drago, and later copied (a slightly reworded version) to The Seattle PI, KIRO TV, KOMO TV, and King County Metro customer service. I’ll update if I get any kind of response…
Dear Ms Drago,
Is there any way you can find out what happened to my bus this morning? It comes up Rainier Ave and is scheduled to come every 5 to 10 minutes. I arrived at my stop at around 8:15 to find several people who are normally not there at that time. So they had been waiting who knows how long when I arrived.
The 7 didn’t come for another 45 minutes. And then when it did, it was a non-articulated bus (read: small). It was so crammed full of people several at the stop didn’t get on. We then zoomed by every stop that was not requested, leaving dozens and dozens of people without a ride. I have no idea when the bus came for them.
I got to work downtown at 9:30, half an hour late and 45 minutes later than I usually arrive. And I was one of the lucky ones this morning.
The people of Seattle desperately want a reliable, eco-friendly alternative to driving their cars to work. But when King County officials will waste millions of dollars trying to find the best solution for decades from now, we’re all left standing in the cold. A fraction of that money could go toward GPS, information kiosks, and a networked system that would allow all riders to check the current location and estimated arrival of their bus.
You simply can’t be a full-fledged, reliable contributor to society if you ride the bus in this city. I’d love to see someone hold the system accountable to the people who actually use it. Get them to provide the service they promise now before they start planning the service of the future.
If you want more information or a much more detailed rant about the state of mass transit in Seattle, please contact me at 206-234-xxxx. I live in the Rainier Valley and commute to downtown daily.
Thanks and Regards,
Tony Johnston