ride the rapid
April 25th, 2006 by Andy
Who knew? Well actually, Tracy told me a long time ago but besides her, who knew? Who knew that Grand Rapids actually has a stellar bus system? The combination of high gas prices and car troubles have inspired me to start taking the bus to work. You know what I found? I AM IN LOVE WITH RIDING THE BUS!
I have discovered that I live at the intersection of two major routes (28 and 10) and I can get anywhere I want to go. For the last week, I’ve taken the bus for pretty much everything. Haeli and I took the bus on our date night to beaners, and our whole family took the bus downtown last night to grab some turkish coffee and cookies at Marie Catrib’s.
I had to take the car today to get to Holland and I am MAD about it. I’ve already gotten used to the freedom of not worrying about if I have enough gas or the fact that I’m way past due for an oil change. I’m hooked on reading on the way to my destination. It really doesn’t take all that much more time to ride the bus and besides, parking downtown is well… I don’t want to talk about it. And on top of all that, you meet some really interesting cats on the bus! I am totally serious, I am done with cars. Good bye fancy container for the same old internal combustion engine, you’ve plundered my wallet and raped the environment. I won’t miss you…
CRAP, I have to get back in that blasted thing to get home from school. 
Why, oh why, isn’t there a light rail system from Grand Rapids to Holland? What’s that you say?! You mean to tell me that we used to have an extensive steetcar and interurban light rail system?! Curses! Curses on these darn interstate highways. Whose idea were these things anyways? Who’s idea was it to abandon the huge investment in interurban railways and make us slaves to big auto and big oil empir… I mean companies? What’s that? You mean to tell me we got this idea from Hitler’s autobahn?! ARGHH… Subvert the empire, ride the bus!
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Comment by Andy — April 25, 2006 @ 12:03 pm
Oh boy!! Now I’m never going to hear the end about riding the bus. Thank you Andy. You are right, Tracey knows all about the RAPID. Let me start by stating that I have been on the RAPID exactly one time. That one time Tracey and the girls took the bus to my job. They waited for me and we rode the bus home. Of course, as we were walking to the bus stop, the bus drove by and we missed it. We waited another 15 minutes for the 2 minute ride home. I guess that you haven’t had the pleasure of waiting for the bus in the rain or middle of winter with the wind chill dipping into single digits. Not that I have, mind you, but my wife sure would love me to. I know everything you said was true. The oil changes, gas prices, parking, and traffic but the convenience of coming and going as I please is what I’m talking about. I guess what I’m saying is Subvert the Empire, except when it comes to my car. Sorry Andy.
Comment by Brad — April 26, 2006 @ 5:36 am
I read in “Fast Food Nation” that early in the century, businesses like Firestone, petroleum companies, etc got together and bought up trolley lines and then tore them up–they wanted to promote cars instead of mass transit!
Comment by Sandy — April 26, 2006 @ 10:42 am
I hear you Brad… no one please draw attention to the fact that I only tried the bus now that it’s nice out…
Comment by Andy — April 26, 2006 @ 3:53 pm
We have more mass transit options today than we’ve ever had in America, right? (That is an ignorant assertion, hence the ‘?’) Mass transit systems could only be purchased if the owners were willing to sell them, and the rise of the auto and bus did the street car in. Competition, not corporate conspiracy, made street cars increasingly unprofitable for the privately held companies that ran them. The only reason we have such a multitude of public transportation options today is that they are propped up by public funds. I’m not saying this is good or bad. I think that transportation is a basic need for monetary advancement in our country, maybe we should protect it with tax payer money. What I AM saying is… still, most people would prefer to drive alone than ride public transportation or carpool. THAT seems to be the real issue. I appreciate Brad’s honesty. How can you convince someone that it is in their interest to ride the bus if they have other options? Answer that question and I may consider giving the bus a shot.
Answer this one, too, if you have time. You know why the windows on those things are so big?
Comment by Chad — April 28, 2006 @ 12:49 pm
I just had another thought to solve your transportation issues to Holland and back. Subvert the empire, take distance ed. classes!!!! Hee, hee.
Comment by Chad — April 28, 2006 @ 1:00 pm
America has a multitude of public transportation options??? Maybe in some cities like Chicago or New York, but for smaller cities ( like GR) public transportation does not offer enough options to make it a viable option for many people. Buses to where I work only run every 30 minutes which means I have to be really early or really late if I choose to ride the bus–so I generally choose my car. When you travel in other countries that have good mass transit systems, you realize how poorly America ( for whatever reasons) has done in this area.
Comment by Sandy — April 28, 2006 @ 1:30 pm
I’m down with that. I retract my assertion. I feel your transportation pain, but… demand for public transportation drives the supply (i.e. frequency of the bus route to your place of work). Maybe we’re lucky to have any mass transportation options. There is just not enough density in the population of Grand Rapids to make lightrail an option or increased bus schedules sustainable without pouring public funds into them (while we are looking at critical short falls in budgets at every level of government). I can only guess that in other countries, mass transit is publicly owned and operated, which means greater contribution by individuals to the public good (i.e. higher taxes). If we are going to spend public funds to provide transportation, I’d rather give taxi rides to under-resourced neighbors in our community than watch empty buses trolley down M-37 every 10 minutes.
Back to the convenience thing. the average American (this is one of a few statements I could document, most every thing I say is conjecture) spends 72 minutes a day driving (more than twice the amount of time the average parent spends with their children). Private cars account for 86% of all trips. 2/3 of car trips are made alone. Starting in about 9th grade, people usually only ride the bus if they HAVE to. This is a broad stroke… Americans like their space. That’s why we get 1/2 acre lots in the burbs and drive SUVs. That’s why we drive alone. It’s a cultural issue. When we all pack back into the city, and driving 2 miles becomes a 30 min trip, we’ll start using mass transit.
You’re great, Sandy. I’m glad you posted. I was starting to feel like an Andy’s blog stalker. I was one of the two lame-ohs who check the blog regularly… okay, sometimes twice a day. It’s so refreshing to be able to converse openly in front of the three other people who post. Maybe if we get load enough we can draw a crowd.
Comment by Chad — April 28, 2006 @ 2:36 pm
Why do Americans like their space? Why do we not live where we work? Why do we not ask about the consequences of fossel fuel consumption? Why do we invest in more and more highways to support the car and instead of more and better public transportation?
I agree that consumer demand drives most of the ills that we like to blame on big corps… but what drives consumer demand??? could it be that we are so encultrated into the empire of global consumption that we can’t even tell when we are manipulated into choosing a certain lifestyle of consumption? could it be that the empire wants (even needs) us to believe that living any other lifestyle is impossible?
I refuse that accept that “this is just the way things are”… might there be more than meets the eye? might the principalities and powers actually have significant influence in our lives and the systems that we swim in? And if they do, then shall we not prophesy against them? Shall we not proclaim an alternative life in the Kingdom of the Beloved Son?
And no, here in west michigan we do not have more public transportation options than ever before. The interstate highways made auto travel a viable and efficient way to get between Grand Rapids/Kalamazoo/Holland/Grand Haven/Lansing/Muskegon. It was a concious choice to invest in highways instead of improving the existing light rail system that was already in place. And of course if economic growth is the ultimate good, then the move to the car is a greater good. Just think about the massive increase of consumption that the auto represents (really think about all the markets that have something to do with the automobile).
It’s all about sustainable indignation for me… what steps can I take to live and proclaim an alternate reality than the one that is presented to me by the powers? I can’t sustain complete and utter indignation, it would be paralyzing. But I can sustain a bit of an inconvience of riding the bus. NOT everyone can, really and truly. BUT, I can. My work and situation allows me to, and so I will.
Comment by Andy — April 28, 2006 @ 3:58 pm
Perhaps, instead of creating a brand new reality, it might be wise to use what we have currently, such as a good highway system and a large supply of vehicles, and merely ‘tweek’ how it is used and how it works. The Romans used their roads to transport their large miltary units and connect various parts of the empire, and yet Paul was able to use that extensive network to promote the gospel, which I’m betting was not what the Romans had in mind. There is definately a possibility of using and promoting alternative fuel sources, and while it can be an expensive endeavor and certainly would not happen overnight, most likely individuals would be willing to give the time and energy needed to make it work, especially if gas prices continue to rise.
However I do wonder from time to time, what are the consequences of using fossil fuels? Yes I hear all the facts and figures tossed about (that also seem to change every other week) in regards to possible global warming and the numerous catastrophe scenarios that have been imagined. And yet, after 120 years of keeping track of CO2 emissions, what we find is that the earth has warmed only by 0.5 F, and much of this can be contributed to the lack of volcanic ash in the stratosphere and a slight increase in solar radiation For those that are scientifically challenged volcanic ash acts similar to a mirror and reflects heat and light back into space, and a temperature drop is quite normal such as what was seen when Pompeii and Mount St. Helens erupted. When such elements are reduced in the atmosphere more heat, light, and radiation are able to bombard the earth, which leads to a very slight increase. I’m not convinced that we should be so quick to jump on this bandwagon until we can actually observe such mechanisms as they occur and actually have some hard data that isn’t based on subjective climatology computer models. Subvert the empire, but make sure you understand what its prohpets are preaching
Comment by Michael — April 29, 2006 @ 11:27 am
Andy, I’m with you on the bus commute, especially with gas prices hovering at $3/gal, heading higher for summer. It sounds great in theory. The downside is this: I currently leave the house 15 minutes before I’m due at work. The subversive commute translates to a 38 minute bus ride including one transfer and then a 1.5 mile walk/bike ride from the nearest stop. Yes, I could nod off gratefully on the way to work or catch up on the stack of magazines on which I’m perpetually behind, and get a bit of exercise but… I’ve got little kids and can’t ever seem to get enough sleep to begin with. Subvert the Empire and get up an hour earlier or sleep in, get home earlier and stay dependent on my car? I’m either sacrificing time with my kids or some zzzz’s, both more precious to me than fossil fuel consumption, so this summer I think my subverting will be limited to boycotting mass-produced and genetically modified psuedo-phoods by tending my own backyard organic garden, a mere 40 second commute from my bed. If you can get that Urban Farm thing going, I’ll bike or ride the bus there - promise.
Comment by Angela — April 30, 2006 @ 7:33 pm
YES! There is perhaps nothing more subversive than a backyard garden!! I love it!
Comment by Andy — May 1, 2006 @ 2:58 pm
Andy what a great thought on the mass transit issue. I have been thinking about this some recently and have realized that part of our problem in this area is MI culture. We have a car culture here and most of business is based on it. I spent a week in Germany a couple years ago and loved, LOVED the PT there. I have no idea how to make this more of a reality here in the States outside of NY, LA, and Chicago. But, man it would be nice.
Comment by Dan Rose — May 4, 2006 @ 11:18 am