‘Transit’ Archives
Transit: Route changes and the luck of the Irish
By JOHN CHARLES WILSON Here we are, coming up on the Spring “pick.” For those of you not familiar with the term, that is when Metro Transit drivers get to pick their piece of work for the next three months, in order of seniority. That is also when route and schedule changes are made, unless a state of emergency trumps waiting for the next pick. The schedules based on this pick go into effect March 9, 2019. Fortunately, changes affecting the Phillips neighborhood are fairly minor. They are: ”¢ Extra buses eastbound on Route 2 on weekday and Saturday nights. ”¢ Minor schedule adjustments on Routes 2, 5, 9, 14, 19, and 22. ”¢ Routes which currently run on 8th Street downtown are changing over to 6th Street due to construction. These include Routes 5, 9, 19, 22,and 39. This also means the Ramp A/7th Street Transit Center will not be in use. Route 39 will start and end at the Ramp B/5th Street Transit Center instead. Route 14 already goes [...]
Transit: The ghosts of transit past
By JOHN CHARLES WILSON Since The Alley is starting off on a new foot, I thought this was a good time to discuss the past of our transit system. I was a child in the 1970s and a teenager in the early 1980s, when the Metropolitan Transit Commission buses were known as the “Big Red” for their color scheme. MTC ads called it the “OughtaMobile” ”“ as in you “oughta” ride the bus instead of driving. Slogans like “Go to California for 30 cents” abounded. (Of course, they meant California Ave. in Saint Paul ”“ and nowadays that price would be $2!) Before 1982, the adult fare was the same at all times of day, but discount fares for senior citizens, people with limited mobility, and students only applied during non-rush hours from the mid-1970s on. I remember finding it odd that children got a discount during school hours and at night, but not right after school, when it would have been most useful. Until 1979, the senior [...]
December 2018 service changes and a comparison between Minneapolis and Milwaukee transit
By JOHN CHARLES WILSON The last “pick” of the year is upon us. A “pick” is when Metro Transit changes bus schedules and drivers are assigned new routes. This service change goes into effect the 1st of December 2018 and includes the following adjustments that will affect the Phillips Community: ”¢ Route 5 will have trips reinstated that were eliminated during the driver shortage. ”¢ Route 21 will run slightly less often. ”¢ Route 53 will have one trip in each direction reinstated. ”¢ Route 67 will have one weekday morning trip reinstated; however, there will be significant cuts in both the morning and evening seven days a week. In addition, please be reminded that special schedules are in effect on Black Friday, Christmas Eve, and New Year”'s Eve. Black Friday and Christmas Eve are usually a Saturday schedule plus a few rush-hour trips on commuter routes. New Year”'s Eve is usually almost a regular weekday [...]
