This from a bus stop on 14th Street. Check out the look of terror on the passengers face:
Brutal, yeah?
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Transit
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photo by schizoform
Thanks to a reader for sending:
“You might have seen the talk of the non-new 43 bus (http://connetiquette.
Anybody going to mourn the loss of the 68? Given that GA & the 70’s are a long block over, it seemed redundant to have buses on GA, Sherman & 11th.”
And for those that missed it, guest poster Eric Nuzum had a great post on why it is more likely to witness unusual things happening on the bus.
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First thanks to a reader for sending the news that the taxi gas surcharge ends today.
“Ok, major announcement to add to your site (unless you already knew this):
Sent a complaint to the DC Taxicab Commission about the gas surcharge. It is being removed tomorrow! Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Second, you can catch some free taxis around town. It’s a promotion but a pretty cool one. From an email:
CATCH A WARM RIDE HOME
(IT’S BETTER THAN CATCHING A COLD)
WHAT: Cold and flu season is upon us. To the rescue are the makers of TYLENOL® Warming Liquids, offering FREE TAXI RIDES in Washington, D.C.* so you can warm up.
*Passengers will be taken to locations within the District of Columbia only, with a maximum value of $25 per ride.
WHEN: The taxis will be in Washington, D.C. from December 15 through December 21 from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
WHERE: Outside of select CVS/pharmacy® locations throughout Washington, D.C.
§ 12/15 – 12/21 @ 6-7 Dupont Circle, NW
§ 12/15 @ 1199 Vermont Avenue, NW
§ 12/16 @ 1025 Connecticut Avenue, NW
§ 12/17 @ 435 8th Street, NW
§ 12/18 @ 400 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
§ 12/19 @ 1275 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
§ 12/20 @ 4555 Wisconsin Avenue, NW
§ 12/21 @ 3031 14th Street, NW
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Thanks a million to the reader who kept updating me with the whereabouts of this crazy bus until I could finally snap a photo. It’s been spotted on Rock Creek Church Road for almost a week. Dang, I suppose this would’ve made for a good caption contest. Well, if you’re feeling particularly inspired we can have a bonus caption contest.
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So Smart Bike DC has been around for a bit now and I’m wondering what folks think of it? Are there any subscribers out there? I’m seeing lots more folks on these around town so it seems to have a bit of popularity. Are the experiences with the program mostly positive or negative?
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Well, a number of folks have been waiting all week for this question. On Monday we learned that metro will begin randomly searching bags. The Washington Post has a full article here. They say:
“Metro officials yesterday announced plans to immediately begin random searches of backpacks, purses and other bags in a move they say will protect riders and also guard their privacy and minimize delays.
The program is modeled after one begun three years ago in New York that has withstood legal challenges. However, experts said it is difficult to measure the effectiveness of such searches, beyond assuring the public that police are being vigilant. New York officials declined to say what they have found in their searches; none of the other transit systems conducting random searches have found any explosives, officials said.
Metro officials said the program was not in response to a specific threat but prompted by increased security concerns before next week’s election and the inauguration as well as by the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and later bombings of commuter trains in Madrid, London and elsewhere.”
So do you believe this is a good security measure or a violation of your privacy? For those who feel it is a violation of your privacy will you refuse a search?
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From Park Road Guy:
Traveling with this corrupt company of thugs was a complete nightmare last weekend. By 9:00 pm Sunday, the New York Police Department arrived on the scene to attempt to negotiate a solution between Eastern Travel’s frantic, angry and confused driver and a group of even more frantic, angry and confused passengers who had been left stranded on the streets of New York with no ride as multiple Eastern Travel busses dropped off passengers and refused to pick them up. Fraud of the worst variety. Here’s footage:
I was one of the passengers and, once again, I had been severely burned by Eastern Travel and its corrupt and unprofessional ways. I don’t know of a single company that gets away with as much abuse of its customers as Eastern Travel. I implore anyone looking to travel on a budget to NYC to do their best to avoid using Eastern Travel. They have absolutely NO respect for their customers. It’s hard to even address their ethical standards, since they don’t have any. Where to even start?
To begin, my girlfriend and I decided to risk another round trip from DC to NYC with Eastern Travel even though we had been left stranded for hours waiting for our return bus at Penn Station a year ago. We needed to make it to NYC on a Friday morning by noon and Eastern Travel is the only option. This first episode included a bizarre shouting match between a passenger who had threatened to ‘get her knife out’ and one of Eastern Travel’s linguistically challenged ‘agents’ who was screaming at everything in sight. I could not believe the lack of professionalism in a travel company. It was hard to believe a business like this could survive, but then, let’s face it, Eastern Travel is an unbelievably cheap option. We decided to chance it once more to save a few bucks and get to NYC on time (I’ve since decided the marginal difference is worth it for a company that actually has a semblance of customer service. Story continues after the jump. (more…)
“We bid on a house on Delafield in Petworth. I work at 13th & K Street and wanted to know if you knew of carpools or the best way to get downtown. Any information would greatly be appreciated.”
Well, first let me say congratulations. Second, I believe there are types of folks, the bus folks and the metro folks. I happen to be a strong devotee of the metro. Now you are sort of between two metro stops – Petworth and Ft. Totten. Since you need to get to Farragut North, I’d recommend you take the Ft. Totten Metro which has the Red Line so you can shoot straight down to Farragut North without having to switch trains. I’m guessing you are probably a 15 minute walk to the Ft. Totten station so you may want to find out what the bus routes are so you don’t have to walk home when it’s too cold or too late at night.
So for those up in North Country – how do you get downtown? Is there a bus near Delafield that’ll take you all the way downtown or would you recommend the metro?
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This helmet stopped me dead in my tracks as I was crossing Florida Ave. on 14th Street. A bit disturbing, but certainly pretty wild.