It Just Doesn’t Matter
It just doesn’t matter what New York City does with their buses on the Upper West Side of Manhattan - not any more than it matters what Bogota does with their buses along their highway sewers. Every city has to deal with its own issues.
Still, the idea that bus travel in New York City is prestigious is about the most ridiculous transportation claim I’ve seen mentioned in the past year. That taking the bus might be slightly less horrific and/or scary, or slightly more convenient, for well-to-do Upper West Sides Manhattanites than riding the subway is no cause to declare that riding the bus is ‘prestigious’.
When I first suggested the bus travel proponents were full of it, I didn’t actually believe that anyone was gutsy enough to make the claim that bus travel in New York City was ‘prestigious’. If you told me so, I’d probably have said something to the effect, “You’re smokin’ crack.”
I mean, Iraqi crop dusters invading New York? Believable.
America’s Hat attacking Detroit? Plausible.
Martians invading the Panama Canal? Possible.
But bus travel in New York City, ‘prestigious’? Someone thinks we just fell off the turnip truck.
But the ‘bus travel is prestigious’ brigade has some advice for you and your town — become New York City:
Want successful buses? Tear down the bypasses and tear up the parking lots.
Thank you, very much.
In other words, want successful buses? Take away all other options.
And this is exactly the point I’ve made time and again - only people who absolutely have not other options will ride the bus. It’s only a true statement 99% of the time, though, so beware - you might actually have to think for yourself.
There are other cases where people will ride the bus - like people who enjoy door to door delivery. The only way buses can get any ridership is to literally drive up to people’s doors and drive them off in front their destinations. It’s nothing more than an incredibly expensive taxi service - except you get treated like cattle. This is the Extreme Convenience option. Listen, I’m all for Personal Rapid Transport, too - yay PRT! Let’s hurry along as quickly as we can to that Jetsons future. But in the meantime, this door-to-door service will only work for a very few people, and most folks who ride the bus are forced to travel using this undignified form of transport. People deserve better.
Let’s just try to work this out:
What I am saying, based on my own observation, is that there are plenty of middle-class and even upper-class New Yorkers who ride the bus.
You know what this means? Exactly nothing.
You know why? Because New York City is not San Francisco or any other city. What New York City does with their buses is irrelevant. It just doesn’t matter what New York City does!
There are some general principles and ‘design patterns’ we can take from other cities and towns and countries - like the fact that people really like rail travel and generally dislike bus travel - but it’s just a general principle.
I have a new marketing slogan:
Buses - like gruel for breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day of the week.
Or how about this one:
When in doubt, bail out!
You can ride a bus, or ride the rails - I know which most people prefer.
Quit trying to force people onto buses, and start focusing on getting people a decent way to travel around town.
Walking. Biking. Rail.
No excuses.
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