#1250 – Upright

My favorite commutes were the ones that involved public transportation. It was nice to be able to concentrate on things like reading or writing instead of things like not dying or avoiding killing others. The trips always took longer but they were much less stressful. I guess with the fancy pocket computers we tend to have nowadays I would probably watch movies or TV shows. I tend to not have time for that stuff anymore.

Today’s Maximumble is served.

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11 thoughts on “#1250 – Upright”

  1. Hasufin says:

    You’ve got it exactly right, in my opinion. Yes, public transit sometimes takes longer – but it’s not wasted time, and it’s so much less stressful than driving.
    It’s a shame that it’s so seldom a viable option.

  2. Loraxxe says:

    It’s easy to get a lot of reading done, as long as you can ignore, for instance, the dude who just got on in winter clothes with his hood on and garbage bags under his clothes — in summertime, in Texas.

  3. reynard61 says:

    That depends on the public transit system. The bus system (a contradiction in terms, believe me!) where I live is a monopoly (and one of the lowest-funded in the Mid-West to boot), so there’s no particular incentive for them to give a crap about service or getting people where they need to go on time. (Hint: Don’t put it down as “dependable transportation” on your job application if you want to get hired.)

  4. Rhiakath says:

    This month I’m experimenting, and driving to work every day, instead of buying the bus pass. So far, It’s about the same price, which is ridiculous. Public transportation is supposed to be cheaper than driving 30km every day.

  5. Baughbe says:

    Good bus systems tend to thrive in major university towns. That’s where they get money from the university as well as fares, town, state and feds. Personally I prefer the old family robot. It’s got more space than I need but I just love the tail fins coming off it’s shoulders.

  6. MaskedMan says:

    Nicy Jaunty-Mech. Apparently steam-powered, no less. 🙂

    Local public transi systems mostly suck. Even though I *am* in a university town. Local busses serve ONLY the Uni, and the other bus service is owned by the state and is slow, covers only basic routes, and is manned by sociopaths. The light rail is an extention of Philly’s SEPTA, and has *very* limited stops (like, two) in our area. The other big choice is Amtrak, which is highly variable, depending on which service you’re using.

    I find busses and local rail services to be an uninterrupted journey of misery as short-stop after short stop jolts me away from whatever I’m focussing on, and puts me in contact with masses of cattle-like humanity. OTOH, the express communte to NYC via Amtrak is very pleasant.

    On ballance, I’d prefer to drive.

  7. Yeah, I’m glad I don’t have to deal with driving. It stresses me out, gives me a headache, and makes me all groggy, which negatively impacts my performance for the rest of the day (especially with longer drives). I feel worlds better when I take the bus and walk/run, even if it does take a little longer.

    My employer provides me with a transit pass, so it’s far cheaper to limit driving to once or twice per week on non-commute errands. I only get gas monthly!

  8. Cari says:

    I only live 2 miles from my office. Mass transit would actually be a bigger hassle and expense.

    Teleportation, however, is still the best way to travel.

  9. pbarnrob says:

    Once the Gold Line was in from Pasadena to LA, I could use it and buses to get to work, and while in one job, my bosses were dancing between half-a-dozen lines in a competition to get the absolutely shortest time up to JPL, I found it much more pleasant to find the one that made more stops but there were no transfers. A couple hours total trip time, but good reading time. Hardest part was learning to ignore the ‘street people’ riding. It works, but just barely.

  10. Karen says:

    I’ve always preferred walking, biking or driving because I absolutely HATE being late. If I’m walking or biking, I can calculate very exactly how long it will take me to get somewhere. It’s the most reliable way of showing up on time (or even better, 10 minutes early). Driving isn’t quite so predictable (can’t always depend on traffic), but it’s close. Public transit is a nightmare for those of us who enjoy being punctual, because even in a well-served city (I live in Toronto, which generally does have excellent public transit availability), you can end up standing for a half hour while three or four busses whiz right past you without stopping because they’re already full, or going out of service, or just because the driver’s a #&*(@%($* who’s pretending not to see you even though you’ve got bright pink hair and are desperately waving at him and jumping up and down. Worse is waiting, and waiting, and waiting, while half a dozen busses go past you in the OTHER direction, but none are going your way, even though the route is supposed to be served every 7 minutes or less …. and then inevitably, a little train of four or five busses will show up all at once, so you’ve suddenly got your pick (but of course you’re already late).

    A friend of mine traveled in Japan for a while and raved endlessly about how wonderful the train system there was. If the trains (and busses, and street cars) ran on time, I’d be much less infuriated by them. As it is I try to give myself an extra half-hour to get anywhere, so that I won’t be late …. but then of course I often end up arriving ridiculously early (and sometimes the fates conspire, and I’m *still* late).

  11. It typically takes me about forty minutes to get to work, and because I get out before traffic gets bad enough, I’m never late!

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