Dumb 5:30 a.m. ?: Public transportation

[Scanner]

Okay, it's 5:30 a.m. as I work overnight in CAT scan at my hospital. I have a naive question to ask people here.

I was calculating that it's costing me about $10.00 roundtrip to make the trip to work here (in only gas, not ins./repairs,etc.) so like a lot of people nowadays, I am thinking of public transportation.

As luck would have it. . .there is a bus depot about 5 blocks in distance from where I live and it goes to the hospital - one way fare - $2.40. . .so about $5.00 . . .I can shave a bit off if I buy advance tickets.

(the downside is that my walk to the depot goes by a county jail where often the released stand by on the street waiting for rides but I could drive my car to a nearby parking lot to bypass the feckless and the great unwashed)

However, what's motivating me half as much is when I work overnights, I have a long boring ride through the NJ pine barrens home (picture straight roads, a hypnotic hum, and scrubby pines to either side). I have caught myself nodding off so this as much a safety issue as it is a financial issue I am considering. I do about equal number of days and nights at the hospital.

My question is. . .and it may offend and I apologize in advance for that. . .what kind of people ride the bus? I conjure up images of smelly wine-o's.

Is the experience actually okay?

Is it frustrating trying to keep with the schedule?

Thanks in advance for the answer and again, I apologize for a possible "uppity" question.

[jeffrey]

I think it depends a lot where you live. When I was living in the US, there was a junior college fairly close to my house and the vast majority of people were students. In the bigger cities (San Francisco) there are a wide range of people that took bus, BART, light rail and cable cars. I can't vouch for other areas, but since I hate driving (spoiled from the great public transportation in Japan) I had absolutely no issues with it.

[MiikeB]

I rode the bus for awhile here in Virginia Beach, VA. Although I personally did not mind it, I am sure you would not have enjoyed it. A lot of wine-os and drug dealers, along with bootleggers etc.

You also see a lot of people who are just doing what they have to do to get through life, people who have strong spirits and such. Kinda inspiring sometimes.

[Scanner]

I don't mind the thought of a couple of wine-o's. . .I am not even repulsed by the idea of sitting next to one (after all. . .I see the indigent all the time at the hosptial).

I am just not thrilled at the thought of being the only rider on there who owns a home, has 3 kids, works a job, takes a shower every day, etc.

The area I live is a mix of rural and suburban.

[cschin4]

I am just not thrilled at the thought of being the only rider on there who owns a home, has 3 kids, works a job, takes a shower every day, etc.


I think you are watching too much TV! Just kidding. Seriously. Why don't you just ride the bus for a couple of days and check it out? You may find it is really convenient and worth doing. If we had public transport I would happily use it as I find it so much more relaxing to be able to sit on a bus and not have to worry about traffic and parking. I like to take tour buses for trips and find it very convenient.
On our last vacation, we didn't drive the entire week because the bus stopped right in front of our hotel and it was so much more convenient and easy to hop the bus and go downtown.

[asmom]

Originally Posted by cschin4

I am just not thrilled at the thought of being the only rider on there who owns a home, has 3 kids, works a job, takes a shower every day, etc.


I think you are watching too much TV! Just kidding. Seriously. Why don't you just ride the bus for a couple of days and check it out? You may find it is really convenient and worth doing. If we had public transport I would happily use it as I find it so much more relaxing to be able to sit on a bus and not have to worry about traffic and parking. I like to take tour buses for trips and find it very convenient.
On our last vacation, we didn't drive the entire week because the bus stopped right in front of our hotel and it was so much more convenient and easy to hop the bus and go downtown.

I have to agree! It's only for a short trip to work, you will never know what type of other people catch the bus except for the judgments you make up in your head. And so what if you're the only educated, affluent rider? You don't have to make a connection with anyone. Just put in your headphones or read a book, don't make eye contact with anyone and life goes on. I ride public transit, I have to drive to the train station but I wish there was a bus that ran in front of my house. For the record, I have a master's degree, a home, husband, kids, etc. Also while riding I have seen many people I recognize like physicians and attorneys.

[MonkeyMama]

It depends where you live. I think you just have to give it a try and see if you feel comfortable.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Please put up with a little personal discomfort if necessary in order to arrive home safely. Your family needs you.

Is it a big enough hospital to have carpool boards? My lab-tech friend moved out to a distant suburb and was able to find two other people to share rides with, thus slicing her commuting expense by about 2/3.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Depends on the time, I only use public transit for work. And it's AWESOME. But only when I ride my typical 9-6 rides. If I work later I drive into work and park. I am uncomfortable riding alone as a female at 10 pm plus at night. And my DH isn't comfortable with me doing it either.

I've ridden public transit in New England and LA. In LA I would ride 9-5, then go home, get the car and go back to school. I do the same now. So basically I paid twice as much to work nights.

But the peace of mind was worth it.

[Scanner]

Yeah, I guess the only way to know is try it and I am certain I am working with prejudices here, which is why I am asking everyone here the scoop on public transportation.

[irmanator]

i used to ride the bus in rochester ny and it was ok, I actually didn't get my drivers license till age 24 because of the buses. Then i moved to the sticks and NEED a car.

[GoodBuyGirl]

All types of people ride the bus. I always found it very entertaining. At 5:30 in the morning though all you are going to get is a bunch of grumps that just crawled out of bed going to work.

[MomofFour]

I have a feeling you will find a lot more people like yourself than what you think. With the rising gas prices, many people are trying to find ways to cut expenses and will be on the bus as well! As someone else posted, you should certainly try it for your own safety.

[herm4]

My Dh starting riding the bus recently and was surprised to find many co-workers taking the same bus. He is saving us aprox. $160 a month by riding the bus!!

[Like2Plan]

Originally Posted by Scanner

My question is. . .and it may offend and I apologize in advance for that. . .what kind of people ride the bus? I conjure up images of smelly wine-o's.

Is the experience actually okay?

Is it frustrating trying to keep with the schedule?

I take public transportation on an infrequent basis (no routes to where my regular job is).
I think it depends on the area and the time of day. In this area for the morning and afternoon rush hour, it is commuter traffic comprised of well dress business professional for the most part. There are also tons of tourists especially after the Washington's birthday holiday weekend through September. Occasionally, there are folks who are not as well dressed.
I've never had a problem with the public transportation in this area. It is relatively clean and efficient.
You could try it out and see how you like it. If it doesn't work out, you could always go back to driving.

[geojen]

I rode the bus for awhile in East Lansing. The pluses:
No driving, the bus literally picked me up right in front of my house, no parking responsibilities, cheap, cheap, cheap.

The downsides:
The schedule sucked, especially after 6 pm. Basically, if I missed the 5:45 bus, I had to stay on campus until 7:30 for the next bus. But, this will vary depending on your public transportation system. While not totally sucky, East Lansing has a ways to go in the route-timing department.

Also, you will have to put up with some weirdies, but that is with everything. I have been on the bus with a drunk man who insisted the driver "take him downtown, damn it" even though he was on a bus that did not go downtown. I was also forced to listen to an old lady tell me where she keeps everything in her purse once--even her used tissues!

Overall though, I didn't mind the bus. Yes--you give up some freedoms in that you cannot pick and choose when you want to leave because you have to stick to their schedule. But IMHO, the positives outweighed the negatives.

That being said, because of the sucky schedule and me having to teach night labs, I only rode the bus for 1 semester....then I drove to campus

[ceejay74]

I live in Minneapolis and I don't have a car. I take the bus, walk, and very occasionally (once or twice a year) hire a car or call a taxi. I agree with most of the other comments here--you do see some mentally ill people on the bus, some drunks, some teenagers who like to talk big and swear a lot, some eccentric chatty old people--but if you mind your own business you usually don't get approached or even noticed.

I also agree, though, that as early in the morning as you'll be leaving work, you'll only see other people going to and from work, and maybe a few travelers if your bus goes by an airport or train station.

Does your workplace reimburse public transportation? Mine offers pretax bus passes, which saves me some money. My husband's job lets him purchase his on a company credit card. Anyway, $60-$70 per month for total transportation costs is much better than most folks, I guess!

[Scanner]

Well. . .being the very, very adventurous guy I am. . .I took the forum's advice and rode the bus to work yesterday.

And it was mostly what everyone said, although I was just about the only white guy on a bus about half black and half hispanic. That being said, it was not street bums and wine-o's. Just normal people trying to get where they need to go.

I will say it did lengthen my day by about an hour, mostly because the bus interval pick up time. But it saved me about $5.00. And that's just calculating gas money.

If you figure the IRS allows. . .what these days. . .$35/mile to write off ( ??). . .I would think a conservative $.10/mile goes into repairs (wear and tear on car).

So. . .my roundtrip is 52 miles. . .that's an additional $5.20 so. . .I probably saved $10.00/day by commuting.

(you get to think about these things on the bus )

All in all. . .I will definitely use it as much as I can. . .however, when I am trying to go from my office to hospital or hospital to office. . .and I am on a tight schedule, I don't think I'll do it. It's just too long.

Like today. . .I had to leave work at 2:15 and be at my office by 3:00. It's just too dicey.

But when I work overnight. . .I will definitely use it.

[vsjhoc]

Originally Posted by Scanner

If you figure the IRS allows. . .what these days. . .$35/mile to write off ( ??). . .I would think a conservative $.10/mile goes into repairs (wear and tear on car).

The IRS Standard Business Mileage Rate for transportation expenses paid or incurred beginning July 1, 2008 has been increased to 58.5 cents per mile. This is up from the 50.5 cents per mile rate covering the period of January 1 through June 30, 2008.

[atomicrc11]

If you do end up riding the bus more, I would suggest subscribing to you local news paper. That's what I do and it really helps time pass. Commuting on public transit is one thing that still drives newspaper circulation. I have no qualms about either myself or any female friends I know taking public transit in Boston. There are some dicey neighborhoods and it's not so safe to be a lone female there, but in general on the buses and trains it's quite safe. Just using common sense and notifying a driver of any issues can avoid most problems.