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In last month's letter I complained about, among other things, the Madison bus service ("it pretty much sucks" is what I wrote). Not everybody thinks so, as the two letters to the editor attached below show. The letters also made me realize that I have to qualify my criticism and that I would like to make it more constructive. First the qualification: Madison metro bus service pretty much sucks if, for instance, you live in Middleton, like I do. Trying to get, in the morning, from the northeast part of Middleton (near the town of Westport) to work in the Middleton industrial part in the west - a total distance of four miles - is impossible unless one wants to take a detour around the Capitol. I also repeat that Madison Metro customer service sucks: I sent them an email about that weeks ago and still haven't heard back. So yes, for people who live on or near a privileged bus route in Madison, Madison buses can be a great way to get to and from work or other places. For anyone else public transportation is not a sustainable alternative to individual transportation - my bike is an alternative to my car, the bus isn't. I actually have taken the bus twice this year already (which I think is more often than all of last year) from Middleton to Hilldale to pick up a Community Car. And yes, the buses were on time, every time, both ways, the drivers were courteous, and the rides generally pleasant. The Madison bus system has, however, several flaws that make it unattractive, but that could be easily, well, not that easily, remedied if only the politicians had the guts to do it - an we had the courage of our convictions to pay for it and hold their feet to the fire. First, we need a wider public transportation network than just Madison and a few suburbs. For that a regional transit authority structure should ideally be in place, but that presents another problem: We need the dumbest state legislature in the nation to pass the appropriate enabling legislation. Meanwhile, our local politicians and Madison Metro have the same instinct their counterparts worldwide have: When public transportation runs a deficit, they try to save money by cutting routes and service. That leads inevitably to a downward spiral. To break that, we need to increase the number of routes and the frequency of the buses: When a product doesn't sell, you have to make it more attractive, not less so! Ideally, public transportation should be free. Of course, somebody will always pay for it, but we should get rid of the fares. To finance it, we should slap an extra tax on gas - after all, it's the cars that cause the traffic problems, congestion and negative environmental and health effects. Buses should also have the right-of-way. They should have dedicated bus lanes on all streets that now have two car lanes in each direction (yes, the number of car lanes would be reduced). They should also have the right-of-way when they pull out of bus stops, i.e. cars have to stop to let them in. Also, they should have special traffic signals, so they have the right of way at intersections, too. Finally, make the the routes and schedules more user-friendly. Simplify! We have to make up our minds whether we want a public transportation system that is efficient and attractive, or not. If not, then we might as well get rid of it altogether. George Zens
Letters to the editor
To the editor, I would just like to comment on the Letter from the Editor ‘Sustainable Rantings’ in the January 2008 issue of the Sustainable Times. I moved to Madison about one and a half years ago from Atlanta. Weather permitting I ride my bike into work (Old Sauk Road to UW Hospital). When I’m not able to do that I ride the bus. I find the bus system here to be very impressive. It is, 99% of the time, right on time. There seems to be a bus for my route most of the hours that I need it and the price is fair. Just looking at the bus stop route signs around town and the printed schedule it seems like there are a lot of options. The bus may not work for some people depending on where they live or where they are going, but I don’t think any bus system can be an answer for everyone. If you are out there and thinking of giving your car and the enviroment a break I wholeheartedly encourage you to give the bus a shot. Kathleen King Madison
Too rough on buses? Dear Mr. Zens: I think you dismiss public transportation too quickly in your recent editorial (January 2008 Sustainable Times). While I understand your frustrations, I would like to let you know there is a group in the area working to make the bus system better. The Madison Area Bus Advocates are not just looking at tweaking the current system. We have some bold, innovative proposals for overhauling the system to make it faster and more convenient. Please visit our web site (www.busadvocates.org) and look at the “Madison Metro Mover” link to get to some ideas on “Bus Rapid Transit.” Did you see the recent documentary shown on PBS about the bus / ped / bike initiatives in Bogota, Colombia? (http://www.pbs.org/e2/) Other countries are pioneering projects that we could repeat here in the Madison community. In Bogota they built a fast, efficient bus system, as well as some paved roads just for bikes and peds (cars can drive in the mud)! The Madison Metro bus system serves many thousands of riders a day, and keeps those riders out of cars. This past summer, the San Francisco Bay Area was able to boost their bus and train ridership on both urban and suburban systems by 15-25% through special incentives on high ozone air pollution days. This shows that our bus systems are ready to boost sustainable travel overnight, should the political will materialize. To the extent bus riding keeps people out of cars, it can have a tremendous effect on improving the environment. I hope you can consider providing additional coverage of public transit in your subsequent issues. Members of the Madison Area Bus Advocates would be happy to write some columns on these issues that you could consider for publication in your newspaper. Keep challenging us to be more sustainable with your excellent journalistic endeavor.
Sincerely,
Barbara Smith
Madison
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