InsideTransit

Last week the NY Waterway announced the addition of a bus locator service to their bus fleet in NYC. The NY Waterway provides a ferry service around NYC and they have a bus fleet with over 40 buses. The company notes that their 40 buses makes them larger than many transit systems across the U.S.

The bus locator service is available via the addition of GPS transmission devices placed on their buses. Currently you need to call NY Waterway to find out when the next bus will arrive although the company says that mobile apps are coming soon. Not sure why you would launch without a way to get the information automatically via your computer or mobile device.

Earlier this year the NYC MTA launched a test of a bus locator service on several crosstown bus routes. Many other cities already have displays with a list of times until the next bus arrives. While I am not a fan of this functionality underground (there is never a long wait), I am a big fan of this technology for the bus fleet. The countdown timers can give you a quick indication if you should walk or take a cab.

If you are planning to ride the bus in Honolulu, you better make sure you put on another coat of deodorant. And forget about getting some stinky food in a to-go carton. Gordon Pang of the Honolulu Advertiser is reporting that:

The City Council is considering a bill that will make it illegal to “bring onto transit property odors that unreasonably disturb others or interfere with their use of the transit system, whether such odors arise from one’s person, clothes, articles, accompanying animal or any other source.”

Councilman Rod Tam, a co-sponsor of the bill, explained why it is needed:

“As we become more inundated with people from all over the world, their way of taking care of their health is different. Some people, quite frankly, do not take a bath every day and therefore they may be offensive in terms of their odor.”

I like that part – “some people do not take a bath everyday” – maybe Mr. Tam should come to NYC or San Francisco or any city on the mainland. Tam took the language for his bill from the Seattle transportation system.

Over 400 people have left comments on the post on the Honolulu Advertiser and I’ve seen thousands of comments on other posts about this proposed idea.

Under the bill, a person found in violation may be ordered to leave transit property and issued a summons or citation by a police officer. If convicted, a person could be fined up to $500, spend up to six months in jail, or be both fined and jailed. Could you imagine being jailed for smelling on the bus? What do you tell your celly?

The ACLU is now concerned with this smelly bill.

The bus company we love to think of as first-class all the way (note sarcasm), Greyhound, is moving across the ocean to the UK. You can see an example of the buses that Greyhound will roll with below – it’s a pretty nice looking bus from the outside.

From the announcement:

• The first UK Greyhound coaches will run between London Victoria and Portsmouth and Southampton with services scheduled to launch on September 14.
• The Greyhound UK coaches will have leather seating, free wi-fi, power sockets, air-conditioning and complimentary newspapers.
• First says the Scania Irizar coaches will have up to 20% more legroom than rivals’ vehicles while traffic light displays on the coach dashboards will inform drivers how well they are driving their vehicle. (LOL – “attention passengers, the driver of this coach is going well past the speed limit”)
• All Greyhound UK coaches will be named after women from popular American songs such as Sweet Caroline, Barbara Ann, Jolene and Peggy Sue. (will there be a britney spears – probably not since it would be prone to crashes)

I thought it was us Americans that wanted to be like the Brits not the other way around. There will be an online marketing campaign when the buses roll out targeting the young Internet audience. I sure hope the drivers remember that in the UK they drive on the left.

As a side note, why do buses in Europe all have those huge ass mirrors – I’ve never seen them state-side but on my European trips, they are everywhere. They remind me of the sticks used in cricket.

Just a couple of weeks after the monorail crash at Disney World, today we have learned of a bus crash also at Disney World. The rear-end crash took place at the Contemporary Resort on Disney property. Approximately 50 people were on the two buses and 12 guests were injured in the accident.

Disney spokeswoman Andrea Finger said the company is conducting its own investigation and working with law enforcement to ensure the “well-being of those involved.” Disney sent representatives to the hospitals where passengers were being examined, she added.

The Orlando Sentinel has more on the bus crash.

I noticed a sign on a NYC bus today that noted that there are workshops this month discussing the future of bus transit in NYC. Next week are the last two workshops in Staten Island and in Manhattan.

It looks like the majority of this phase of “bus rapid transit” is focusing on the select bus service which allows for rear door entry, payment prior to boarding, new specific bus lanes and fancy traffic lights that know when the bus is coming and stay green longer.

There’s a Bus Rapid Transit – Phase 2 report from the NYC government that you can download as well.

It seems pirates are all the craze lately after all of the very unfortunate events with pirates taking over ships around the world. Now all of us transit fans have been wondering when pirates will take a bus or a train. Well don’t wonder anymore! It seems that there are real bus pirates and this documentary series proves it.

The Bus Pirates series started a couple of years ago and you can now purchase a DVD of all of the exciting episodes for $10. Not sure if I found the episodes funny but I love that the guy gets on the bus, asks the driver if the bus stops at a specific location, bus driver says no and drives away anyway. I know that’s happened to me before!

Looks like fun to film in any case – here is one one of the episodes:
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As I travel around the world, and ask a local for advice on how to get from point A to point B, 90% of the time, the answer is some subway/tube/train. However, in many major cities, the bus can offer some excellent alternatives.

For example, in NYC, there are no subways north-south east of Lexington Ave. Many tourists would take a taxi in this area. But there are many bus routes that can get you to the same place cheaper. You can buy a day Metrocard for $7.00 and hop on and off the bus and subway all day.

In London, there are hundreds of buses just waiting to take you whereever you need to go. Even in the small UK town of Bath where there is no underground system, there is a great system of buses.

Do I think that a bus can always replace a train or taxi? No, but it is another alternative to think about as you travel. You get to see more of the town or city you are visiting as well as go further than you could with rail.

So next time – hop on a bus!