The Great Busing Experiment

I did an experiment today: I took the bus to work.

My sister's car died really dead a few weeks ago, so I've been sharing mine with her. Because she drives a lot more than I do, I usually don't have a car during the day. I was planning on catching a ride to work today but my ride left without me. I tried to get a ride with someone else, but that person wasn't going in to work until late, so that didn't work out either.

In despair, (oy!), I layed down on the couch and stared at the ceiling as I tried to figure out how I could get to work.

Could I walk?

Not in these boots. And not with my laptop.

Could I get someone to drive me as a favor?

I couldn't think of anyone who'd be available at that time of the day.

As I lay there wondering, "How on earth do people get around without cars?" it suddenly came to me:

The Bus!

It only occurred to me because at the wedding I mentioned in my last post, a friend of mine who used to lived in New York mentioned taking the bus when she moved to this city.

No one takes the bus around here. Well, obviously some people do, but the majority of my city's population have cars. The bus is generally seen as a mode of transportation for people who have no other choice. (In other words, they're too poor.) More than anything, I think it's a cultural thing. In New York, everyone takes public transportation. Out here, it's embarrassing to take it.

If celebrities want to help the country, like they say they do in their "Pledge to Obama" video, what they really should do is promote public transportation in their own city. Buying hybrids doesn't help the environment nearly as much as popular public transportation could.

Note: The photograph above is of the original busing experiment.