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(51 posts)

Metro Bus Rage!

Started 9 months ago by Jiggers
Latest reply from metrognome

Jiggers
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Traffic was so bad yesterday, combined with the bus reroute's and Seahawks game, I caught the 55 on third ave at about 5 ish or so, the reroute has you heading East and on to 1-5 then back over to the W.S.bridge. I knew that ahead of time. I thought the driver was on time, but he was an hour late, and how did I know this, because there was another 55 right in front of us in the same traffic mess. It took 50 minutes to reach the Junction from third. This is becoming BS! I'm begining to really think that all of you like to sit in traffic for the fun of it. Metro better start adding more busses to popular routes. Bunch of pR*%*S!

Posted 9 months ago #
redblack
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99 SB was closed. you should have tried the water taxi.

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
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Southbound I-5 was gridlocked. I was just trying to get back into the Junction. Going to Alki is out of my way.

Posted 9 months ago #
johnnyblegs
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Took my wife 2 hours to get home from Queen Anne.
Mercer on-ramp closed. Viaduct closed. Seachicken game. How is that for city planning? She had to detour to Wallingford where I-5 was backed up all the way up 45th to Stone Way.

Posted 9 months ago #
GenHillOne
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Mercer ramp wasn't closed yesterday (?) It took me awhile to get home from Queen Anne too though, around 4:30, but mostly because of traffic ON Mercer between the center & I5. Then there was an odd line-up to exit I5 to West Seattle...thought I'd see an Alki pilgrimage, but don't know where all those cars went. A ton of drivers heading to Hempfest on both Friday and Saturday too!

Posted 9 months ago #
redblack
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jiggers: the water taxi goes to seacrest, not alki, and there's a regular metro shuttle to the junction (route 773).

http://metro.kingcounty.gov/tops/bus/schedules/s773_1_.html

http://www.kingcounty.gov/transportation/kcdot/WaterTaxi/WestSeattleRoute/Schedule.aspx

Posted 9 months ago #
metrognome
Member Profile

you guys are so funny. Yes, by all means, cancel all road construction, cancel all community festivals, cancel all sporting events.

And, if the government won't do that, lets spend more taxpayer dollars putting more buses on the congested roads so they can waste money sitting in traffic that isn't moving.

Its summer. That means road construction and community events and more chances for Seattle's pro sports teams to lose. Plan extra time. Deal with it.

At least no one's mentioned the Monoboondogglerail.

Posted 9 months ago #
Diane
Member Profile

I'm with jiggers on this one; this happened to me and about 30 West Seattlites 2 weeks ago, waiting for 54/55 after downtown parade on 3rd near Denny; we started as a few, grew to 30, as we waited almost 2 hours; problem is there's no way to know if the bus will finally show up in 5 mins, or never; when it finally came at almost midnight, there were 3 (54’s) stacked up; we all got on the first; the next 2 followed us empty; while waiting, many of us talked about wishing we had gotten on the 56 which came by 3 times, but then we'd have to figure out how to get to our homes/cars from where 56 drops off; but since we all thought/hoped the 54 would come soon, we waited, and waited, and waited; a few people had smartphones kept checking "one bus away"; was really no help; at least it was a nice summer eve, and got to know some of my neighbors, who were also all pissed about the ridiculous bus service
~
and don’t even mention the water taxi; it doesn’t run that late; and we were in Belltown, at least a mile from water taxi pier
~
last week I tried to go to an event downtown in the eve, tried to take 56 from Admiral/Olga; waited 40 mins; bus never came, didn’t know if it ever would, my event would be half over by the time I got there, if I ever got there, so I got back in my car and went to the library
~
very annoyed/frustrated with insanely unreliable Metro
~
folks in charge who are raising our car tab fees, keep telling us to get out of our cars and use transit, but we’d all get fired for showing up late if we tried to depend on the bus; Dear Metro, Please get the buses running on schedule!!!

Posted 9 months ago #
Diane
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also, our only championship professional sports team, filled with Olympians, our fantastic Seattle Storm, beat New York last night, with Lauren Jackson finally back; many West Seattleites went to that game
~
and Seacrest, Water Taxi landing, Alki Kayak, et al, is considered part of Alki; have you ever tried using those shuttles? bus rage inducing tiny unreliable, lines backed up with tourists; and how late do they run?

Posted 9 months ago #
transplantella
Member Profile

I'm agreeing with Jiggers on this one. I think we were on the same bus.

Waited foevah for the 54 downtown which never came. Caught the third #55 that came by, at least it would get me to west Seattle where I can finally walk the rest of the way home if I have to. The whole juggernaut took hours.

Metro bus service on weekends is a total crapshoot, extremely unreliable. Always.

And I was traveling on a monthly Orca pass. The water taxi isn't included on the pass, I would have had to pay full fare on top of my bus pass fee, not to mention hauling the 40 lbs of food I had bought at the market all the way to the water taxi pier. No.

Here's an interesting aside. In my younger days I worked for several different public transit services in several US cities. As far as I was able to tell, no one in management (the big shots who made all the decisions) had ever actually used public transit. They all drove fancy cars to work.

I would venture to say that the reason public transit is so haphazardly run is because the people in charge have never been on a bus.

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
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redblack...I DON'T WANT TO GO NEAR, ANYWHERE NEAR THE BEACH OK.

Posted 9 months ago #
transplantella
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P.S.

A couple of weeks ago on a weekday afternoon we were waiting for the northbound #54 in White Center at 15th and Roxbury, the beginning of the route for the 54.

Its first stop and the 54 bus was 15 minutes late. How is that even possible?!

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
Member Profile

metrognoame.. I didn't say cancel events and such. I voted a big yes for the monorail to be built, it would have been done by now and way more efficient than busses, but the powers that run this city didn't pass it. The tunnel project is not benefiting you or I, its going to hurt West Seattle more than any other part of the city. If you own a house in West Seattle and have to work in downtown, and get on the bus because you can't afford to park, you better get your blood pressure checked weekly. You think its bad now, just wait...lol The point is, if you have to use the bus to get to work everyday, or often, you had better make some phne calls to the City, Metro or wherever, and let them know that it isn't wrking out.All it takes is one bus ride from hell, and they'll be many of them.

Posted 9 months ago #
anonyme
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I'm with you Jiggers. The bus service out here in WS has gone from not very good to horrendous. Can't even really be called a transportation system, because you have absolutely no idea when getting on a bus any more whether your trip will take 40 minutes or 3 hours. This has happened to me so many times in recent months, as well as being dumped off late buses so that they could skip the Arbor Heights loop - leaving me no way to get home. Senior fares TRIPLED for this BS?

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
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My new idea is now if I am in downtown and need to get back into the Junction during peak afternoon business hours, I'll avoid the 54 and 55 because they are so packed and wait for the 22. Its empty,less stressful and gets me to the Junction. The 22's only problem is that it cuts early.

Posted 9 months ago #
transplantella
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Jiggers, I believe I remember reading here on WSB reporting of Metro proposed cutbacks in July, that the #22 bus was slated to have its 'peak' and 'non-peak' service cancelled. That sounds pretty much like the whole #22 schedule.

Posted 9 months ago #
austin
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If you're taking transit and you don't plan your route very well, expect delays.

Posted 9 months ago #
The Velvet Bulldog
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Seems like the #54 in general has issues. I've been taking it for the past three years and have had more trouble with this route than any other that I can remember. I've lost count of how many times the bus just never showed up--coming from White Center and coming from downtown. Or, when it does show up, sometimes it's like, eight minutes early, so I leave my house ten minutes before it's due. Compound what seems to be a problematic route with all the other issues and you have yourself a full-fledged Clusterf**k. Although to be fair, seems like any time there are road issues/community events/sports events/a butterfly flaps its wings--you have a public transportation Clusterf**k. (No offense meant to the drivers, who in general, seem pretty swell.)

Posted 9 months ago #
JoB
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what is the name of that new show where the CEO has to work at his own facilities for a week incognito?

maybe it's time we insisted the city council and traffic planning mucky mucks took the bus to work.

Posted 9 months ago #
The Velvet Bulldog
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JoB--the "Mucky Mucks" can't rely on public transpo for the same reason a lot of other folks can't--because they have to get to various meetings throughout the day at various places throughout the city, and riding the bus wouldn't get them there efficiently, or necessarily on time.

I looked into taking the bus from here to a job I had in Wedgwood for a bit. Would have taken 2 or 3 buses and up to 2 hours to get to and from. During the day I had to go to job sites. Unfortunately the route 74, which served the office location, didn't run during the day--only during peak hours. So--bam--I'm in my car.

I know that some of our elected officials take public transpo, but I'm sure even they are using those City-owned Priuses to get their work done during the day. Ironic, ain't it?

Posted 9 months ago #
metrognome
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yep yep and people who drive their cars NEVER encounter traffic ...

I think a better idea is to have those of you who define the quality of transit planning by whether there is an express bus between where you are and where you want to go should be put in charge of transportation planning for a year -- you wouldn't last a week cuz you would have to deal with citizens with the same expectations you have ... but they live spread out across the county.

No public transportation system is designed to provide service that meets everyone's need for every single trip they might want to take. You couldn't afford the taxes for a system like that. You have chosen to live on a peninsula with four lanes out and four lanes in. That's kinda like moving to Vashon and complaining there isn't a bridge to WS so you have to take the ferry.

Posted 9 months ago #
JoB
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metrognome...

i will agree that no public transportation system will meet everyone's needs...
but i have to tell you.. having ridden the public transportation systems in other large cities.. Seattle's doesn't come close.

whatever idiot thought running a major transportation corridor right past the stadiums was a good idea obviously hasn't spent much time in that area on game days

but even they ought to be able to look at the stats and tell they have a problem

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
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The problem with route #54, it continues on up thru Greenwood when it turns into the #5 after it hits downtown. Traveling that long of a distance in multiple traffic mess passing Greenlake and up through Aurora avenue, visa back all the way to White Center, it makes predictability timing a joke. Same with route #55. Metro has to add another bus to the #54 route. The monorail would have eased that pain if it was built, but we have got nowhere in that regards being in West Seattle.

Posted 9 months ago #
GenHillOne
Member Profile

I don't think I fall into the "more/perfect" routes category as much as I wish they'd run on time. Predictability is key and the regular rider here avoids the bus TO work because it's lacking. As mentioned, the 55/5 often has an actual window of 20 minutes around the published stop time, which is annoying just on the way home, but impossible when you have a schedule to keep.

Posted 9 months ago #
datamuse
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I think a better idea is to have those of you who define the quality of transit planning by whether there is an express bus between where you are and where you want to go should be put in charge of transportation planning for a year

But I don't see anyone saying that, metrognome. I see people saying they'd rather the bus not show up an hour late. Is that unreasonable?

Posted 9 months ago #
WSB
Member Profile

If someone hasn't already mentioned it ... the bus system is a COUNTY service, not a city service. Highway 99 is a STATE highway, not city or county. I would suggest you take bus complaints to your elected officials, particularly one who is up for re-election this very fall, County Councilmember Joe McDermott, if you have already gone as far as you can through whatever complaint system Metro has.

Posted 9 months ago #
transplantella
Member Profile

WSB--with all due respect--taking community concerns to elected representatives is an exercise in futility. Not that griping on a web forum is any more productive....(at least it is mildly theraputic)

The political process in this country is broken. Candidates make promises to the little people they have no intention of keeping , and their never-ending political campaigns are paid for by big contributors whose aims have no correlation to the public sentiment.

To admonish us to take our concerns to bought-out political representatives working their way up the government pig trough of upward mobility is the same as telling us to post our Christmas wishes to Mrs. and Mr. Santa Claus c/o the North Pole.

Futile prayers to false idols.

Posted 9 months ago #
Diane
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now where is that 'like' button?

Posted 9 months ago #
metrognome
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JoB -- the roads and the buses were there long before the stadii. So tell me, and be specific, where would you run the buses to get from WSB to downtown where they can pick up passengers in the SODO area ... or would you just not serve those people and businesses in SODO.

datamuse -- see post 20 from the Velvet Bulldog:

"I looked into taking the bus from here to a job I had in Wedgwood for a bit. Would have taken 2 or 3 buses and up to 2 hours to get to and from. During the day I had to go to job sites. Unfortunately the route 74, which served the office location, didn't run during the day--only during peak hours. So--bam--I'm in my car."

See also previous comments in other threads (as well as comments after stories on the home page,) from people who complain that there isn't direct service to their spouse's place of work or to Ballard or to the UW or to other places that meet their individual needs but for which there is not enough demand to justify a route. A common latent theme to the complaints out here is that the government exists to meet MY specific needs and I take any failure to do so as a personal affront and a reason for RAGE (see title of this thread) because I pay my taxes.

Jiggers -- it is called throughrouting and it saves your dollars. And yes, the long routes can cause problems for on-time performance. You can disconnect the 54/55 from the 5 but it will cost big $$ to add enough more buses (and yard space and mechanics) and drivers to do that. I ride the 54 all the time and it is usually pretty close to on time. I also drive a lot and my travel times are unpredictable; Saturday I drove to Ballard and lost 15 - 20 minutes due to the traffic from Hempfest. When I drove home via the only logical route due to the SB 99 closure, I lost another 10 - 15 minutes, mostly because Belltown has become such a hopping destination on weekends. I guess I should blame the government for not shutting Belltown down on the weekends the Viaduct is closed.

I'll say it again, you earthlings are endlessly amusing.

Posted 9 months ago #
metrognome
Member Profile

transplantella -- IF the political process is 'broken', you can't blame it all on elected officials and bureaucrats. Citizens and corporations and unions bear responsibility as well, a concept citizens seem to have difficulty accepting.

So, blog readers, how do you participate in YOUR government(s)? Besides complaining, I mean.

Citizens in a democracy get the government they earn.

Posted 9 months ago #
JoB
Member Profile

metrognome...

i would run them around the stadiums... up to 6th and back down if i had to..
just like other cities do when they come up against that kind of public transportation roadblock..

or the city transportation "gods" could give up a lane to dedicated bus travel.. not bus and rideshare...

the bus only corridor could be moved from 6th (?) to 1st or 4th where it would actually be more effective...

no matter how much the bus economists keep touting bus as the cheapest option.. it isn't going to attract ridership as long as it has to compete with the existing traffic for roadspace...

i would love to design a public transit system for the metro... i won't get to.. but someone should.. actually design a system that works and is reliable...

because convenience and reliability are what it takes to build a well used public transit system.

.

Posted 9 months ago #
JoB
Member Profile

metrognome...

hum... you have two busses that turn around instead of going through and you still have the same number of busses on the route...

and more reliability.

Posted 9 months ago #
Bostonman
Member Profile

Its not surprising really. Given the size and population of Seattle the public transportation isn't adequate. Its a bus only system which means it shares the same roads, traffic delays, construction projects and slowdowns as people who are driving a car. If weather is bad the buses will break down before cars. The water taxi is a small titanic waiting to happen. I have seen it off the docks when it breaks down spinning in circles.

I hate to say it but even Portland had a better system, at least they had a light rail that ran east and west into the city. Seattle has the Husky stadium to the north, the only 2 major highways to the east side of the state intersect with I-5 on the North end of Seattle and the South end right by the stadiums. Too many bridges with too few lanes. Its a complete disaster. For a reference of time I used to take the bus into Seattle, I work just North of Pikes market on the water. If I took the bus from Alaska junction it was about 45 minutes to an hour. Driving its 20 minutes plus I get the freedom of not having to worry about the bus schedule. If I need to come into downtown on the weekend its no problem because of the parking I have.

Seattle has a long ways to go to catch up with other big cities.

Posted 9 months ago #
JimmyG
Member Profile

Metro is not just inefficient in its routing, its inefficient financially.

Metros operating costs (per boarding) are 38% higher than the national average.

Sound Transit and Metro should be combined into one agency, as it is now we are paying for two full bureaucracies to run two systems that overlap and share so much. Change whatever rules or laws prohibit this and fold them into one system. The in-fighting between the two agencies over the DSTT, the LRV, drivers, supervision, etc. is ridiculous.

The only bright spot I see on the horizon is the end of the ride free area, long overdue.

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
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It is foolish to eliminate the free ride zones in downtown. The free ride zone doesn't go very far first of all, second of all, it is more efficient to board people on and off faster rather than take more time for people to pay the fare in that sector. There will be a longer waits for your bus to reach you in the suburbs because of those little minutes that add up. I imagine there were a number of reasons to have free ride zones. One of them I suspect was to move downtown traffic faster This is all just specualtion of course. Government is broke so to say, so the freebies are going going gone...Welcome to the new revolution!

Posted 9 months ago #
Julie
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We ARE the government.

Posted 9 months ago #
Al
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"Government is broke so to say, so the freebies are going going gone...Welcome to the new revolution!"

Isn't this the whole point of the new Republican agenda - pay your own way? Run the government like a business so if a social service needs to be subsidized because it can't support itself on its own revenues then the cost of such service needs to be passed on to the users rather than the general public? Or the service gets cut? If so, then Metro and many government services are heading in just that direction. Hopefully we can get through it without tearing each other to pieces in the meanwhile.

And I agree it would have been extraordinarily faster to use the water taxi if it had been open. Water taxi to shuttle to Junction. Faster than bus to I-5. Why would you not want to do that? I am just curious as it's an actual viable alternative to the bus, unless it was after-hours.

Posted 9 months ago #
datamuse
Member Profile

All right, metrognome, but I'm also seeing complaints about buses showing up anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour late, and that this isn't infrequent. To me that's a much bigger issue than whether a bus provides door to door service, which I agree is an unrealistic expectation.

On the other hand, two hours to get to Wedgwood doesn't strike me as realistic either. I could get to my job in south Tacoma in that amount of time, faster if I drove to the park and ride.

If more funding is what it takes to get this system working better, I'm all for it--and right now I only use Metro occasionally.

Posted 9 months ago #
JoB
Member Profile

jimmG...

great point.
Portland's public transportation only took off when the entire metro area was unified into one system...

the breakdown? Vancouver... Could have had light rail 10 years ago but it's not part of the metro system and shortsighted voters turned it down :(

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
Member Profile

Al...not everyone can afford to ride the Water Taxi.. You must be doing ok yourself.

Posted 9 months ago #
jxb
Member Profile

The Orca card my employer gives me works on the Water Taxi, fortunately.
.
Even if it didn't, though, I'd still pay for it, considering my only other option is the 55 Metro bus. Compare the cost/commute times for going downtown and back each work day in an average month (43.3 trips).
.
Rte. 55 bus: $108/22 hours per month
Water Taxi: $162/7 hours per month
.
Sure, the price difference is substantial, but with the water taxi I spend 15 fewer HOURS a month on public transportation, and that doesn't even include the extra monthly hours waiting for late buses. (The water taxi always leaves on time.) Is that worth $55? To me it is.
.
Of course, if I had to rely on those horrible shuttles to get to the water taxi, then all bets would be off. The water taxi is only practical if you 1) live near enough to walk or bike to it or 2) you drive and park on Harbor ave.

Posted 9 months ago #
yeah-me
Member Profile

Jiggers ... I don't think anyone is telling you to go to the beach or to ride the water taxi everyday (if too expensive). I believe it was a suggestion as an alternative from downtown when First Ave is jammed up with a game and the South Viaduct is closed.

It would have cost more, but with the taxi shuttle to the Junction you likely would have made pretty decent time (and maybe even enjoyed the boat ride).

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
Member Profile

I've enjoyed more boat rides to last me into the next life here..

Posted 9 months ago #
Dunno
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My only question is about Sunday afternoon. Why, with SB 99 closed did DOT have the Xpress lanes on I-5 running North Bound. Heads should roll!!

Posted 9 months ago #
todd_
Member Profile

I agree Dunno and Jiggers.
.
Traffic was a nightmare on Sunday afternoon trying to get from the Seattle Center area to WS. Sorry to hear about peoples frustrations with buses. Something is not right, buses are often late and they are running red lights with regularity all over the city.

Posted 9 months ago #
Al
Member Profile

Jiggers, you made a huge assumption about income levels. In fact, I ride my bike to work so I don't have to pay for the day-to-day transit/driving fees. In some cases, once or twice a year, if there's a reason I can't ride my bike and need a viable option, I choose to take the water taxi. I don't think people were saying you should take it every day...but it is an option for horrendous traffic situations.

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
Member Profile

Al.. I'm unemployed so there you go. I dred going to Alki on the weekend because it has become way too crowded. I prefer Alki during the weekday, like a matinee movie. You almost can have the whole beach to yourself. I rode on the Water Taxi last year, but had to request a cab up to the Junction after the lame free shuttle ended early.. If the shuttle ran more later times, I'd ride the Water Taxi a few more times. Its annoying to have to go out of your way. So, I rarely go out of my way and plan ahead.

Posted 9 months ago #
redblack
Member Profile

jiggers: maybe you should read the links i provided. the shuttle has extended its hours in the past year or two. the water taxi would have taken you out of SODO and away from gridlock pretty quickly, and the 773 would have taken you out of seacrest - against the grain of beach-cruising traffic - to avalon, and then to the junction. and i believe that the schedule flexes for events like corporate sports games.

i'm not trying to tell you what to do, but you might give it a closer look.

Posted 9 months ago #
lostcoyote
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n/t

Posted 9 months ago #
Jiggers
Member Profile

Metro buses need a can of lysol on everyone.

Posted 9 months ago #

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