My normal commute is a 4 mile ride to the bus, 18 miles on the express bus, then 2 miles to work here in Kansas City. We have a long way to go, but I see more and more bicycles on buses here.

There are really four tough problems that public transportation has to tackle in this country. The first is the relatively low population density in most areas that makes it less practical than in other parts of the world. The second is the unwillingness of the public to spend much on subsidizing it. In fact, it would have an even harder time if the public knew exactly the degree to which it is being subsidized.

The third is that even though public transportation is subsidized it's still not much cheaper than driving for lots of Americans and far less convenient. And fourth, buses are seen by many as an undesirable means of travel used by the poor.

Like it or not, trains are seen as a classier means of travel than a bus. They do have some advantages too. The routes are simpler to follow. They're less affected by bad weather. They don't get stuck in traffic (as much) and they can fit a lot more people.

I have only had to use transit with my bike once, and that was to return to LA from San Diego after a century ride.

I had a friend who used those front racks on the buses and had his bike stolen while the bus was at a red light. Now he sits closer to the door so he can run out and catch any potential thieves..

I knew it!!! [I'm also a transit professional, so it takes one to know one].

We can debate this all day long, but it's my personal belief (and not mine uniquely) that quality transit service shouldn't require a paper schedule. the bus should be there when you need it. but I'm preferential to solving mobility problems, others may have preferences to other values.

Have you read Human Transit yet? If no, do it now. Robot Check

the first two problems you point out are correct, but in the transit planning BIZ those are markets that we just say "forget it, it's not worth the resources to try to attract riders in these areas." Resources are finite so good transit goes where it's easiest to attract riders - density around stations, walkability, destinations, etc. So often technical and political "experts" get hung up on equality to everyone since "everyone" helps "subsidize" "it" - i'm using lots of quotations here on purpose to illustrate that most people don't really understand what it means to say "everyone subsidizes transit."

If people fully understood the extent to which they subsidized the roads they needed to drive they'd be furious. I think in my City the local investment in public transit is around $80 per person per year. Try to maintain a roadway network for that amount.

mode is irrelevent to mobility. people are hung up on the "stinky" "poor people" bus syndrome. The solution to overcoming that fear/perception is not necessarily to build a railway system (there are trade-offs with every technology). the perception issue is probably rooted deeper in societal or cultural issues that your community would be best to address sooner rather than later. that's just my opinion however.

You would really enjoy the book Human Transit by Jarrett Walker. Robot Check

I know in Atlanta the MARTA system is nicknamed "Moving Africans Right Through Atlanta" - in the South especially public transportation is seen as just a means of transportation for the poor. To be fair though there's no incentive for people around here to take public transit - parking usually isn't a problem unlike some other major cities and if it costs $2 each way to ride the bus, which for most people is about the same or more than the cost of gas for a commute. (disregarding maintenance costs)

By the way, I'm moving to Raleigh in October so I'm going to be trying out the bus system in the Triangle area :)

Wow, that person must have been out of their minds. When i've had my bike on the rack i stood right up front, not really to keep an eye on my bike, but to make sure someone else putting their bike on doesn't somehow undo the latching on mine. Last thing i need is having my ride run over by the bus..... :D

- Andy

Lots of people believe that gas taxes alone cover the costs of the roads, but even if you were to convince them otherwise and add up all the other costs (police/sheriff patrols, snow removal, etc) they'd either choose to believe it's funny math or they wouldn't care because we need the roads.

There are plenty of people who feel that public transit is optional and should pay for itself through fares or not exist. I don't agree with that, but I think it's a common view.

I do agree that the "poor people" bus syndrome is tightly linked to deeper societal issues but I also think that it's far easier to build a railway system than it is to solve those issues (not that we shouldn't try). Poor people will ride trains too and affluent people will figure out that they can survive the experience of riding with them. Hopefully they discover some other advantages of taking transit like being able to accomplish something on their commute, - even if it's sneaking in a nap. My theory is that they'll be less reluctant to hop on a bus once they've spent some time on train.

Crowded buses can be problematic. You try to stay at the front, but people after people get on from the front door, pushing the standing passengers (including you) all the way back. You can sit in front, but they are priority seats, which means you will be asked to give your seat to an elderly, disabled and/or pregnant passenger if necessary. Then you'll be pushed all the way back...

I intend to read it in the near future. However, the writer does not like the hub and spoke model and prefers a more radical approach where bus lines travel to the burbs or where jobs are located. It's a system where the bus lines travel a greater distance and often requries more transfers. The idea has a flaw as I pointed out when someone made a point from the book. Regardless, I will buy it in a couple of months.

Hah...... hahahaha. Sorry. In 20 years of riding transit i have never once needed to move more than a step to allow people to board. :)

- Andy

The route I take when I don't commute by bike is always crowded like that. Luckily, my stops near home and near work are both before the one where a majority of the passengers get on board, so I have no trouble finding a seat - of course, as long as I don't carry my bike on the bus! :)

I take the subway more often than I bike. It is 45-50 minutes door to door by train, and an hour by bike. But when I bike I need to add prep time at both ends on the way in to work. Coming home I just throw on my clothes and go. I only rarely end up on the subway with the bike, if it is raining hard, or if I have a mechanical issue. The trains are too crowded to take the bike on them during rush hour, and even during off-hours now. Mid day on weekdays is just about the only time they're not as they run a frequent schedule. Weekends can be a nightmare, nights too.

The author does a good job of illustrating the various trade-offs that you make when choosing a system that values single-seat trips over transfers, and so-forth. I think your take-away will be that nothing is right or wrong, just different. And understanding the consequences to each decision will make you a better practitioner.

I read about a similar thing happening in another city. As described; the thieves worked in pairs, at a stop light, one would run up and release the wheel mechanism on the rack, while the other snatched the bike. It was gone in seconds.
For that reason I started strapping a bungee cord around my bike(s) to the rack frame. It also comes in handy if you ever encounter a mechanism that's loose.

It's a two mile ride from my house to the bus stop, the bus then goes straight to my work from there. I put the bike on the front rack, never are any other bikes on it when I'm going.

When I lived in Denver the light rail system was fantastic and basically heaven sent. A trip that used to take over an hour and required two transfers only takes about 15 minutes on the rail system. It has its own right of way next to the interstate so not only does it not get stuck in bumper to bumper traffic - you can pass all the cars and gloat.

65 miles from front door to office. 6 1/2 miles gets me to a commuter rail station. In the winter I usually take my bike in the car, but this time of year, ride to the station. Get off the train then ride 5 miles to work.

Now that the days are longer, the after work ride often gets extended to ride to a station closer to home; 9 1/2, 19, 23, and 30 miles respectively. The Friday nearest 6/21 (longest day of the year) I ride all the way home.

The commuter rail has become so popular with cyclists that they now have a dedicated bike car on each train.

Metrolink Bike Cars | Metrolink

In Atlanta our transit system is fairly friendly to bicycles. There's a bike rack on buses but you're out of luck if the rack is full. I've never used the bus for carrying my bicycle. But I've taken the bicycle on the train many times - not my routine but something I do when the weather is nasty and cold. I've never had a problem getting myself and the bicycle on the train. If the luggage area is full, people don't seem to mind me just fitting in with everybody else. The train is an option if I'm disabled somehow on the road because a train station is never more than a couple miles walk on my commute (which is 40 miles RT).

But I like riding the bicycle a lot more than carrying it on a train. I probably do the train-thing about 20-30 times per year.

I just let people pass me. I've ridden some of the busiest trains... HBLR after 4th of july fireworks in hoboken, the term jam crush overpacked would apply there. Operator had to go extra slow on a sharp curve or we would definitely have toppled over (you could feel it leaning). Also on PATH in the PM, i use the term "sardine mode", and the 4 & E after new year's eve fireworks. I had to physically push myself into the wall of people to board more than once. My knees are weird, so i prefer to stand, and often stand for over an hour or more on some trips if they are bothering me, so often i don't even process anything about finding a seat.

- Andy

I chose where I live based on the availability of a bike or public transit option to the three likely work sites for my federal agency. In almost seven years, there have been very few times I couldn't bike to and from work. The biggest was due to an injury so I had to be humble and get a ride with my wife to work. That was like carpooling since she basically drove by my office on the way to hers. If I have a mechanical issue with the bike while I'm at work, I can load the bike on the front rack of a bus that will take me to within a half mile of my house (and past three bike shops if needed). Using Metro (our subway) isn't an option with the bike since only folders are allowed on the trains during rush hour. I have more than one bike, so I can switch out if I am having a problem in the morning. My bike commute is quicker than the bus and just about the same as taking Metro when you factor in having to get to the transit.

That's next to, if not completely, impossible on the bus. The aisle is barely wide enough for one person and his/her backpack. Add to that the arms sticking out from the seats on both sides of the aisle. I've done that before. Just not the kind of experience I'd like to repeat...

I wonder if anyone was ever tempted to do this. Buy a large bag, remove both wheels and put the frame inside. Then board the bus! I like to know where this guy sat down?? Quite brazen if you ask me.

Nice find haha.

Having a N360 & dyno hub, i'm gonna say no & stick to the rac or just to riding... :D

- Andy

I don’t disagree with anything tjspiel said, but have some comments.
A good illustration of this is from a Tale of Two Cities-in this case Los Angeles and San Francisco. San Francisco is an older city than LA, having reached major metropolitan status before the advent of the car. Los Angeles grew to major metro status with the car. San Francisco-the city, not the newer outlying areas, has pretty good public transit compared to LA, which is horrible. People visiting LA often do not realize this because of the massive amounts spent on projects like the red line, which are often the only parts of the system that visitors see.
Except that if you point out to them the massive subsidies on automotive transport-roads and bridges-you will just get blank stares

In my case, this is not true. I have a long commute by commuter rail. Buying a month pass, my fare roughly equals the price of gas (30 mpg on my 2007 Toyota). I have no more payments on that Toyota, and maintenance is minimal, since I only put about 10k mi/year on it. If I drove it to work every day, I would have to have a new car right about now, and another $300/mo payment. I plan on at least another five years in my current car.

The demographic I see on commuter rail is defiantly higher paid that those you see on buses and light rail. In San Diego, where years ago I commuted by bike on Commuter and light rail, the attitude of the transit police was very different toward both. On light rail there was almost a kind of bullying attitude, and zero tolerance for the slightest infraction, especially if it involved a bike. I was never hassled for anything on the commuter train.