April 09, 2008 News & Views » Cover

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Diary of a CATS rider 

The true tale of a commuter who ditched her car to ride public transportation for five days — and lived to talk about it

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click to flip through (3) JASIATIC - THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM: A CATS bus prior to being boarded by passengers
  • Jasiatic

  • THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM: A CATS bus prior to being boarded by passengers

   

Page 4 of 6

Not only that, but the couple sitting behind me is waxing philosophically about Jesus. The driver is stopping at every yellow light as if we're being monitored by cameras. And is that Mallard Creek Church Road we just passed?

CATS doesn't make it easy for riders to know where the hell they're going. And sure, I could've asked the driver, but she had a scowl on her face that made me just want to get on the bus and get the hell out of dodge. Who knew the Graham Street bus actually meant North Graham Street? What's even worse about this hellish trip is that I could've driven to work five times for as long as I've been on this bus. People must get fired every day fucking with CATS.

When the clock reads 11 a.m., I send a text to my boss. "Don't laugh, I'm lost on the bus."

His response, "Ha, ha."

Finally, I get back to the transit center and instead of taking another bus ride, I call my friend Michelle.

"Can you come get me?" I ask.

"Where are you?"

"At the Arena in Dunkin Doughnuts getting coffee." Then I tell her about my long tour around North Charlotte. After she finishes laughing, she says she's on her way.

Well, the coffee was good!

I get to work about 11:45 a.m., and the whole staff is laughing at me.

If I'm going to keep riding this bus, I'm going to need to figure out the right routes and the like. So, I log on to www.ridetransit.org; this Web site allows you to plan your trip. And it also shows you just how long it takes to get a few miles on the bus.

I'm wondering, "Is it possible to take a lunch break on the bus?"

How about no.

Just to get downtown to Fuel Pizza, it's going to take 45 minutes. And you can best believe it takes another 45 minutes to an hour to get back. Fuck it. I'm walking to Subway.

Around 5 p.m., while I'm waiting for a ride to the transit center, my friend Joe calls. He wants the details on my bus riding experience.

"It sucks." I say.

"I told you that. You can say you want to save gas all you want. But even if gas was $5 a gallon, you're not going to stop driving a Mustang to ride the city bus. Not here," he says.

I'm getting on the 9 (Central Avenue) bus again. It's time to go home. The bus is pretty empty for now. But that doesn't stop people from violating my personal space. There have to be eight empty seats around me, but I'm trapped between an "onion man" (someone who smells so bad it makes you cry) and some dude I've hit with my bag twice hoping he would ease back. When I get home tonight, I will be staying there because riding the bus is worse than driving though traffic. It's tiring. It's time consuming. And I've wasted more time than money. Money you can get back. Time is lost forever.

March 19

This morning, I'm determined to learn from yesterday's mistake. That means I won't be getting on the Graham Street bus when I make it to the transit center. I'm even going to ask the bus driver questions.

It's about 9:26 a.m. when I get on the 9 (Central Avenue) bus. When I make it to the park-and-ride lot, the bus is there. But despite my best efforts to run up the stairs and make it, the bus took off as I reached the second step from the top. Just evil!

I hope she gets a flat tire in the middle of her route. Some bus drivers will wait for you ... if you have a stroller or you're in a wheel chair. I guess that's commendable, but what about the rest of us who are just running late? Can I get some consideration? I guess not. But, I digress.

This bus driver is really nice. A little too nice if you ask me. He's holding up the bus because the guy who just got on doesn't have correct change. Umm, dude, some of us are late for work (again). Can you move it along?

My phone rings after I find a seat. It's my friend Beverly, who also can't believe I'm on the bus.

"You're still riding the bus?" she asks.

"Yes. Hello? Hello?" My call drops as the bus pulls off from the stop. That's some mess. Well, this gives me a chance to check out my surroundings. The riders are quiet this morning, so maybe it's a good thing I'm not talking on the phone. The bus pulls up to its first of many stops. As the passengers get off, the driver says, "Have a blessed day."

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