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| A fence and hostile road force Northern Virginia bus riders to walk via a circuitous route between Seven Corners Transit Center and the popular Eden Center mall (photo by me) |
A
bus rider hops off at a stop with no amenities other than a sign and pole. The
rider must cross a hostile arterial road, full of speeding cars, to transfer to
another bus.
The
nearest marked crosswalk is a lengthy walk away, long stretches of the road
lack sidewalks, and the bus route the rider must transfer to runs only once per
hour. Missing the transfer means an angry boss, a blown job interview, or a
postponed medical appointment.
So,
the rider takes their chances and crosses the street right at the bus stop’s
location, hoping to take advantage of a brief lull in traffic.
***
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| WMATA's portrayal of a rider injured when attempting to cross a dangerous street to catch a bus, as seen on a recent Metro ride (photo by me) |
Though
the Washington, DC region is relatively multimodal by U.S. standards, countless
residents don’t use the transit routes serving their neighborhoods, dissuaded
by the pedestrian-hostile infrastructure, infrequent service, and Spartan
bus stops that give rise to scenarios like the one described above. These
obstacles have contributed
to a car culture that underlies WMATA’s well-documented ridership, service, and
maintenance challenges and turns every effort to improve regional mobility into
a long, drawn-out battle.
But WMATA’s
latest onboard safety announcement, currently airing on the transit provider’s new
7000-series trains, appears to blame bus riders for the tragedies that result
from the car-first nature of the region’s transportation system.
In the
animated video,
a character – referred to as “a loof” – tries to navigate the above-described tight
transfer scenario by rushing across a stretch of street lacking a crosswalk,
only to be squashed by the bus they were trying to transfer to.
The
scene then shifts down the street to the nearest crosswalk, where another
character – “a lert” – obediently crosses with the stoplight. In contrast to
the stricken “loof”, the “lert” appears to be out on a leisurely dog walk,
rather than trying to catch a bus.
WMATA
concludes the video by advising all riders to…commence drumroll…“be a lert.”
***
This
was not WMATA’s first “loof-lert” safety announcement – other animations
featuring the same two characters have highlighted basic safety practices rail
riders should keep in mind when on Metro trains, platforms, and escalators.
But it was the first such announcement I have seen that targets bus riders, and
it demonstrated how out of touch local leaders are with these riders’ needs.
If DC-area
leaders considered bus service a priority, providing an extensive network of
frequent routes operating in dedicated lanes, riders transferring between lines
would have access to safe walking routes. Due to the short headways, riders
could afford to wait for a green light and cross a street at a crosswalk even
if it meant having to wait for the next bus.
But
thanks to our region’s neglect of non-car modes, riders do not have that luxury,
especially in outlying suburban areas. Even when a transfer between two bus
routes is scheduled with a seemingly comfortable amount of layover time,
unpredictable car congestion can delay the first bus and leave a rider with just
seconds to make their connection. Someone who misses a bus not only risks sacrificing
employment and other vital life needs, but often must stand perilously close to
passing cars for 30 minutes to an hour, at a stop lacking
a shelter or bench, to await the next bus.
Some
riders stuck in this predicament may make a split-second decision to cross a
street outside a crosswalk, giving themselves a chance to make their bus
transfer. These riders are not aloof, clueless fools (as portrayed in WMATA’s
video), but rather real people doing everything they can to make ends meet, forced
by a subpar transportation system to take a dangerous risk.
***
Airlines
– the transportation providers with both the most iconic
safety announcements and the best
safety record – don’t have to dissuade transferring passengers from sprinting across
active airport taxiways. The reason: pricey, but necessary pieces of infrastructure,
such as automated trains and moving walkways, transport passengers between
terminals and gates in a timely manner.
If
airplane passengers ever were required to self-navigate airport tarmacs to make
their connections, the resulting public backlash would dwarf the negative
publicity United Airlines faced after dragging a paying customer off a plane
last year. High-level leaders, not riders, would be considered the “loofs” at
fault and would face long-term consequences.
But the
mere concept of an airport designed to force passengers into such a dangerous
situation is unimaginable. Because our country takes air travel seriously, we’ve
made the necessary investments to keep the aviation system functional and give
passengers proper amenities.
In
contrast, our society largely views non-car ground transportation options as low-quality
social services, rather than important forms of mobility. Thus, users of these
options are forced to navigate hostile roads without any protection from
roaring automobiles.
Bus
riders don’t require the flashy people
movers or light
displays that we have come to expect in airports. But are accessible bus
stops, routes that operate at reasonable frequencies, and service that is not
chronically delayed by car congestion really too much to ask for?
