I have spent many posts railing about how much I hate Muni and Bart, but today I want to say something positive. This is very rare, so pay attention closely.
I actually enjoy taking the commuter bus and the commuter ferry. I also like taking the Amtrak train. There is something about taking the commuter bus that makes me feel like I am a part of a group of hard working people.
You see, the commuter buses cost a lot to ride. It’s about $10 each way. So most who gets on one of these buses are hard working people, and not likely to be stupid thugs who jumped over the railing like on Bart or Muni.
Also, people who get up in the morning at 6am to hop on a 1 hour bus ride are probably not here for fun. We are here because we have work to do, a paycheck to make, families to take care of. Not like the bums who hop on Muni to ride from one street corner to another to sell their drugs.
On the trip home, people on these commuter buses are trying to get home to their families, to the people they love and care about. That is probably why everyone sits quietly and patiently as the buses and ferries drag their tired bodies home.
It is out of shared suffering, that a sense of community and sympathy is born. Everybody here has something to do, someone to care about, and the last thing they want to do is cause trouble for all the people around them experiencing the same thing day in day out.
I think maybe that’s how we can improve Bart and Muni. Build bigger metal bars that goes up to the ceiling, raise the price to ride the train, and do not allow standing. Being packed in a sardine can with gate jumpers would make anyone mad…