Yes, the honeymoon with taking public transit, such as it was, is over. They had "switching problems" on the Orange Line tonight, they messed with my commute and my head, I missed not one bus but two, and thus I was an hour late getting home.
And by messed with my head, this is what I mean: the subway train leaves Community College, but stops before Sullivan. They announce that there's a problem and we'll have to stop until released. They announce it again. Then they announce we're going back to the last stop (leaving the question of then what unanswered for the moment).
Back at Community, they announce after a few minutes that they're sending the train back into town, so everyone off unless you want to go to North Station. We all get off; the train was pretty full. The train leaves, after a few false starts.
Some minutes later, another train pulls in, announced as the next train going our way. We all pile on, making it one crowded train. There's some of the usual clear-the-doors announcing, before they admit that actually, this train too will be going back, so everyone off again (unless you want to go to North Station).
There are now twice as many of us waiting. When another very full train comes along, only a small portion can fit on, though they say another car is right behind them. The train does actually depart in the right direction, but the next one doesn't come for another 5-10 minutes. It's also really full, and again only some people make it on.
By the time the third (or fifth) train comes along, everyone remaining is able to get on, though it is very crowded. And hot (80s today). And not pleasantly scented, shall we say. But the train does move, eventually, slowly, with stops between stations, and finally gets to the end 5 minutes after that second bus left. Which meant a 25-minute wait for the next one.
It sucked, basically. I could have written just that, but you know you have to get the splinter out or the wound will fester. If you're still reading, thank you. I'll try to be entertaining tomorrow (though there are no guarantees here!).
Let's have a better tomorrow, shall we?
I mostly knit, sometimes crochet or cross-stitch. I read, a lot. I love cats. I love hockey, especially my no-longer-local team, the Boston Bruins. Want more? Read on.
This is *exactly* why I started carpooling to work with a co-worker. I took public transportation to work in DC for about 8 years. 8 years and the quality got steadily worse, the prices went steadily up AND on top of that they got rid of some of the bus lines so there were fewer buses going the way I needed to go to get home.
ReplyDeleteI went through exactly what you detailed here more times than I can count.
Riding the bus was, more often than not, an extremely unpleasant experience where young hoodlums would basically subject everyone ON the bus to their tactics and the bus driver was completely disengaged.
Oh, yeah, and it took forever to get home putting me in a bad mood and being really exhausted by the time I got there.
Add all this up with the increase of accidents, both on the trains and with bus drivers running people over and it just got to be too much.
I used to be a big proponent of public transportation but not anymore.
Yep, that's the Orange Line. My husband and I joke that the cars must be made of spun sugar, since they break at the slightest hint of any weather at all.
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