Mind wandering again to the Metro fare enforcement report.

 RantWoman, as has already been established, is a bit of a nerd who spends a lot of time on the bus.

During today's bus travels RantWoman's mind wandered again to the recent King County fare enforcement officer report and to RantWoman's own experience riding around for more than a month with a demagnetized ORCA card, a card that only very occasionally produced the beep indicating that the card read properly when tapped. 

Adventures of RantWoman: Reporting on the Metro Fare Enforcement misses a number of points.

(Please do not tell RantWoman about paying her fare on her phone. Between a white cane, a purse, and whatever baggage RantWoman is carrying, taking out a phone and waking it up to pay a fare is more than RantWoman even wants to attempt.)

RantWoman currently has a small couch on a cord around her neck but the whole time her card was not beeping, RantWoman was pulling the card out of somewhere and trying to tap it. RantWoman is white and bathes regularly so maybe drivers just believed her when she said she had a pass. Or sometimes, the imperatives to stay on schedule outweigh more detailed inquiry.

That entire time, RantWoman had in fact paid for avalid pass, online through the MyORCA app. At some point, possibly after RantWoman encounterd a fare enforcement officer, RantWoman followed directions on the back of the card and called an 800 number. RantWoman was referred to her local transit agency. The person RantWoman spoke to looked up the number of transactions which had registered for the previous month. It was substantially lower than RantWoman's estimate of the number of her trips. Then it registered with RantWoman that she just needed to get her disabled pass replaced.

RantWoman imagines that her situation is probably a small minority of situations that look to drivers like someone has not paid a fare. RantWoman has no idea whether these comments are helpful in deciding what the report actually means, but here the info is anyway.

Do you HAVE OPINIONS about SoundTransit? Join a Sounding Board.

RantWoman posts this SoundTransit Sounding Board notice FYI 

Tramsportation Sounding Boards are a great way both to make one's views known and to learn A LOT about our transportation system

Sounding Board | Sound Transit

Jesus is dead and you want me to find my bus pass?

This post is dedicated to a former co-worker who always said, when declining to schedule a meeting on Good Friday, "Jesus is dead and you expect me to work." Further theological meditations belong on RantWoman's other blog. The point of this post is a small rant and a couple comments about shared dining.

RantWoman did not go anywhere to church for Good Friday. RantWoman did not go find a livestream. It has to be enough that RantWoman thought about the entire subject.

In particular, RantWoman rode the bus to a favorite neighborhood fried chicken place. RantWoman does not do fried chicken very often, but it seemed an easy way to get a couple bones to make chicken stock. RantWoman walked a couple bus stops toward home to a stop where there are two buses that between them come at least every 15 minutes and go straight to the best evening stop for RantWoman. RantWoman wound up actually dining al fresco with enough time to spare to wipe her fingers well before needing to find her bus pass for the return trip.

Except RantWoman could NOT find her bus pass, at least not where RantWoman usually puts it. THANK YOU to the driver who let RantWoman ride free. RantWoman was embarrassed and kind of in a panic. RantWoman has places to go this weekend and does not carry cash. Somewhere in this muddle, RantWoman remembered that AT LEAST she could do whatever is needed to link her MyORCA app to her Google wallet 

Honestly, RantWoman knows that paying one's fare from one's phone is supposed to be hip and wonderful. RantWoman, though, just finds the whole thought cumbersome. RantWoman almost always carries Ambassador Thwack the badly behaved white cane, a purse, another bag and of course her phone. RantWoman could probaby set her phone timeout interval longer, but it's just CUMBERSOM to have to wake the phone up, find the wallet and then wave the phone. 

But WAIT! later yesterday evening, RantWoman dug frantically through all the various pockets in her daily gear and, ta-da!, found her actual physical bus pass.

RantWoman is soothed! 

Spontaneity: Bright Sunny Day. Motivational Calamity. Lynnwood!

This journey needs good picture
even though this rhododendron
is from a different journey

RantWoman needs to recount a mostly joyous transportation on demand excursion out to Lynnwood to see her buddies The Weed Whackin Wenches. Curmudgeon and Wingnut have long ago migrated to Facebookistan and are otherwise having to be unintentionally adventurous, but getting to see them is always a delight. Before RantWoman gets to the meat of her recent journey, though, RantWoman needs to get one minor and two MAJOR gripes with Community Transit out there for the world to help digest..

1. As judged by signage on stops at the Aurora Village transit Center, Community Transit signage SUCKS. Metro has nice clear signage with good contrast that RantWoman can read as long as her nose is just inches from the signs. Community Transit signs have print that is too small and color elements that destroy contrast and make the already too small text even more unreadable.

2. Memo to everyone buying vehicles for on-demand service: give a contingent of people with all kinds of bodies and mobility devices and strollers and shopping carts a chance to test load the vehicles BEFORE you buy them. RantWoman was THRILLED when she finally connected with Community Transit's ZIP service that the driver has a reader that can read ORCA cards and even better that the last leg of the trip counted as a transfer. HOWEVER, RantWoman found the vehicle very hard to climb in and out of. The entry is high off the ground and the wall of the vehicle inside the door is very thick. RantWoman was offered the lift which did not seem on point, but the whole experience did not make RantWoman want to see how well RantMom and her walker would do.

3. Now the minor gripe: in the course of the journey RantWoman tried to download the Zip program app. The app has another name which RantWoman is not going to dig out of the text stream tonight. There was some hang-up in the download process. Curmudgeon and RantWoman both have Android phones. Curmudgeon reported also getting stuck, but neither of us have gone back to troubleshoot. For one thing there was a WONDERFUL customer service staffperson who is allowed maybe to think RantWoman might be a little nuts or giddy in the sunshine just because of being so happy about the parts of the trip that worked.

But back a few steps: Friday RantWoman started out underslept in the way that tends to make one basically a motivational calamity. Fortunately there was SUNSHINE and RantWoman had errands on the E line doing errands. It occurred to RantWoman that she has not seen the Wenches since exactly Christmas and that maybe it would be a good day to invite herself for a visit.

RantWoman texted and Curmudgeon instantly texted back YES!. 

The only hitch: Wing Nut, the driver in the household was out but hey there is this new service called Zip.

Excellent. RantWoman remembers getting to the Wenches' house via the E line, a Community Transit bus to the Lynnwood transit center and the last leg of the trip on foot, but RantWoman did not remember details like which Community Transit route was involved. RantWoman also remembered the last visit: RantWoman had let the Wenches kidnap her after an afternoon visit to RantMom but what RantWoman could see of the area around the transit center was a lot of construction mess. But RantWoman opted to proceed on the E line rather than catching something from the Northgate light rail system.

No Google. It was too nice a day and the lack of motivation that got RantWoman out in the sunshine definitely extended to excessive interaction with devices.

Plus RantWoman had to be reminded of the Wenches' street address; when RantWoman went to enter the address in the address field of her phone contacts, as soon as RantWoman entered the first digit some kind of autocomplete wanted RantWoman to be travelling off to Malaysia. RantWoman finally just entered the address in the Notes Field. RantWoman fired off a WTF Tweet to @GoogleAccess and now still needs to follow up with the reply. Stay tuned.

RantWoman tried the Zip phone number first phone from the Aurora Village transit center. Oops. Out of area. 

Okay, fog around the transit center. A helpful SWIFT driver suggested a couple route numbers and pointed RantWoman to the middle lane of the transit center. Sure enough, a stop for the 130 and a number of people waiting. A good sign!

Shortly the bus to the Lynnwood transit center came. There was lovely greenery along much of the route and then yet one more leg of the journey: find bay A1 where the Zip vehicle stopped. RantWoman has eyes enough to tell which direction bay letters and numbers change. After trying one direction, RantWoman realized she would need a different direction and had to find a place with a painted but not very convincing crosswalk. Luckily there was little traffic inside the transit center and RantWoman made her way to Bay A1.

Soon the Zip chariot arrived. RantWoman coped with the accessibility challenges listed above and the driver and another person delivered RantWoman right to the Wenches' front door.

There were hugs all around.

The house smelled wonderful. The menu was fajitas and rhubarb clafoutie (sp?) with this year's rhubarb.

So much worked, in spite of the hiccups!

As a final bonus, the Wenches' two cats M and C in the past have usually just ignored RantWoman. This time both came close enough when RantWoman dangled fingers down to sniff andC even let RantWoman pet her.

Oh Capitalism, I NEED a new cross-body WALLET

RantWoman has Things to Carry and capitalism, as in a favorite brand is not doing so well.

The relevant things RantWoman prefers to keep on her body, as opposed to in a separate purse all the time include:

ORCA Card and building entry Card Key: RFID devices used frequently that are most convenient under clothing and on RantWoman's right hip and where RFID PROTECTION misses the point. The more or less discrete under clothing is KEY!

ID, currently in the same crossbody wallet where the cards above ride. Also in that wallet: one of the cut-up T-shirt masks lingering from early in the #pandemic

Bank card and occasional gift cards: probably less frequently accessed than the RFID items above but still needing easy convenient access. Currently these have their own pouch that usually has coins, a hair elastic, and lip balm.

Cellphone, USB C cable and hot spot because RantWoman likes has heard that using a phone as a hotspot drains the batter really fast. In a separate pouch from the cards because RantWoman just does not want to get signals mixed up. Note: RantWoman has no information that such actually occurs; RantWoman is just squeaminh.

An assortment of way bolder than average pens which currently ride in the back of the case RantWoman uses for her cellphone.

Ponytail elastics, which ride with the pens or with the cards

Miscellaneous business cards, raffle tickets, ...

RantWoman a couple weeks ago shot photos. RantWoman had no way to label the photos as she shot them and RantWoman was not patient about navigation Google Photos on her PC. So instead, RantWoman popped open Photos on her phone, gulped about the new UI, and did the person with bad vision tell of holding the phone close to her nose to find the old pictures and emailed links. Oops, blogger doesn't like the links by themselves but at least RantWoman has the dates to try again from within Blogger. And Voila!

The VERY worn out wallet on the left
and a cellphone case
RantWoman has not replaced
even though RantMom
already bought her a new one

The short version of needed commentary: RantWoman bought the wallet in a store in downtown Seattle. The store was already struggling before the pandemic, the waves of graffiti and other Downtown Issues wiped it out. 

RantWoman MAY have been able to replace this beloved wallet once at the same brand of store in Northgate. But now in the modern age of e-shopping, there is no place to put one's hands on things and poke at pockets until after one buys it, tries it, and then decides it won't work. At this point, one can cope with sending things back or do gifts and try again. Guess who. Guess which holiday.

RantWoman already went through one round of this with two different brands and bags that turned out to be way too large. RantMom and Little Sister were gifted the opportunity to try them out. RantMom demurred and RantWoman has not quizzed Little Sister about her opinions!

And in RantWoman's email streams more Baggalini enticements appear so RantWoman tries again. RantWoman likes the Baggalini site on her phone except for the part about RantWoman has trouble finding the bag size. And lo, this is what turned up. RantWoman basically likes the bag except it is STILL bigger than RantWoman wants.

The spiffy crossbody Mini
that is not so mini but is cool
in some ways

And as long as RantWoman is grumbling, RantWoman wants to see ONE discount code, the one from the beginning of the email instead of different ones every time she clicks on a new color.

Oh Capitalism. Capitalism

Update: RantWoman ventured into search options with the string crossbody wallet. The search delivered a number of sites that want more than RantWoman has any intention of paying, don't describe the sze of the product and may or may not have usable straps. 

But the search did also yield the suggestion that RantWoman head over to the Nordstrom Rack and check out options in person, something RantWoman scaresely does at all anymore. Stay tuned. 

Eureka?  RantWoman realized midway though a deluge of not exceedingly useful search results that the phrase crossbody passport wallet should get RantWoman something with the desired thinness and discrete wearability. 

RantWoman also realized that she has a perfectly fine passport wallet with an expired passport. RantWoman prefers to get a new passport wallet. Stay tuned.

Just in Time to Welcome New Link Stations, a Challenge: A Week Without Driving October 22 - 29 with Free Advice for Mayor Durkan

RantWoman is fresh from the #WABikeSummit  #BikeWalkRoll event jointly sponsored by Amazon and WSDOT  Also, RantWoman has decided to welcome the Oct 2 opening of the next three Light Rail stations going North by offering unsolicited commentary about getting around as a legally blind non-driver. 

(IRK! RantWoman realized she wrote this post based on the pre-service change downtown bus network. When the new link stations open, LOTS of routes that used to run all the way through downtown now start or end at one of the new Link stations. So RantWoman's last few blocks advice is all wrong. Read on and enjoy anyway but stay tuned for a post-Service change version, and possilby not prettied up to shield the mayor from all the details of travel downtown.)

Coincidentally, RantWoman offers readers the following invitation to try to live a week without driving. Check out the Disability Rights WA invitation and signup challenging elected officials to sign up for a week without driving. RantWoman definitely also extends the invitation to staff members in elected officials' offices, people who work in government or private planning offices. In fact, RantWoman challenges anyone who does not already get along without driving to give this idea a try. And here. to get the idea started: suggestions about how Mayor Durkan might make it work.

Uber / Lyft and taxis don't count unless they are shared rides because they do not lessen vehicle congestion. Other members of one's household, faith community or social group do count. Carpooling counts because it imposes shared scheduling constraints. RantWoman is big on Biking Doesn't Work for Everyone so people who want to try biking are going to have to look elsewhere for advice. This post also will not cover issues like footwear, professional dress for all weather, hi vis for night time visibility or bags, brief cases, freight people need to carry. RantWoman Has Opinions. The opinions are just not going to appear here.

RantWoman also wants especially to cheerlead for families with kids to try going carless. Irrepressible nephew got his start early and by elementary school was already willing to help his class out on field trips. RantWoman would be glad to offer suggestions about how to make this manageable and is interested to hear realities like tired or nonexistent pedestrian infrastructure that make this unfathomable.

The invitation means it about one thing: there are plenty of transit dependent people willing to assist elected officials or staff who normally drive to plan their lives without driving for a week. RantWoman definitely encourages people to aim for the whole week, but if a week is going to be TOO MUCH, even a day will provide plenty of authentic transit experience.

With that as an intro, as a public service, RantWoman will now imagine some possibilities if Mayor durkan were to take up this challenge. Aside from a security detail in connection with death threats arising from a previous line of work, RantWoman imagines that Mayor Durkan probably has someone to drive her around and to do the kinds of between transfer errands RantWoman does all the time. Nevertheless RantWoman mentions this kind of errand as part of the picture. 

RantWoman doesn't know anything more precise about Mayor Durkan's address than "Laurelhurst" Maybe based on a previous media account of unplanned visitors and sidewalk chalk it's a part of Laurelhurst where there are sidewalks.  Nevertheless, RantWoman offers a routing that involves:

--get to a bus stop

--Get to the Light rail.

--Ride the Light rail downtown. Walk or do something a trip planner probably would not suggest to take transit to within a block of work.

RantWoman has little personal experience in Laurelhurst. One time RantMom, her church lady friend driver and RantWoman arrived much too early for a scheduled medical procedure. Instead of sitting in a waiting room and fidgeting our driver drove up and down some random Laurelhurst streets. RantWoman remember big houses set far apart. RantWoman assumes there were sidewalks but cannot remember for sure. RantWoman once during WTO had a role in helping plan a reception for representatives of some international NGO's and therefore showed up at the reception. RantWoman is pretty sure she arrived by bus and foot. RantWoman definitely remembers that there were not a lot of sidewalks and streets were windy and steep. So RantWoman found someone she know and asked for a ride home.

But back to a suggested travel routing for Mayor Durkan heading downtown to City Hall. RantWoman is going to leave the "get to a bus stop / light rail station" segments of the trip to Mayor Durkan. RantWoman suggests that Mayor Durkan aim for the Roosevelt station. Northgate is too far in the wrong direction from downtown and should be attracting lots of commuters from the N whose bus routes now terminate at Northgate. 

RantWoman is not too fond of Husky Stadium at any time of day but has no read on rush hour crowding. RantWoman thinks the University station will involve too much traffic even if a good bus connection runs near Mayor Durkan's house. This leaves Roosevelt Station which RantWoman is recommending sight unseen based on commute load considerations and the the proximity of Whole Foods, Bartells and some other retail for the kind of transfer point shopping RantWoman tends to do on the way home.

Ah, but this is morning commute and the next question: where would RantWoman recommend Mayor durkan get off the train?

If Mayor Durkan wants to use a 15 or so minute walk on each end of the trip as part of a fitness routine, RantWoman suggests getting off at Westlake Station and walking along either 4th or 5th Avenues to City Hall. 

RantWoman is less fond of whatever the University STREET station is going to be called because the hil to 4th Avenue is pretty steep.

RantWoman is definitely not crazy about the Pioneer Square station because elevators, because Pioneer Square.

But if Mayor Durkan really wants not to have to walk the whole way, RantWoman would suggest riding Link all the way to the international District station, coming out on Jackson St. turning LEFT and left again at 4th Avenue S. At the bus stop there, catch one of the northbound buses about 3 stops to within a block or two of City Hall.

One elegant point about this approach. Mayor Durkan can go home from the same bus stop by busing to Westlake station, and then reversing whatever she did in the morning to get to the Roosevelt station.

There. If anyone else wants to consultRantWoman... But first let's enjoy welcoming new Light Rail stations.

With enough Plexiglass

RantWoman offers the following commentary about resumption of fare collection aboard Metro October 1.

RantWoman reads all the "Transit should be free" voices. RantWoman still disagrees: people with means should pay and transit should be a better deal than driving. That includes cost, time, ease of ride. RantWoman cannot drive so the value proposition is easy for RantWoman. RantWoman is aware this is not true for many; RantWoman is happy to coach anyone who asks about coping tips and ways to find beauty in the experience. RantWoman will not quit her day job waiting around for customers.

Fare Collection: ORCA

UPDATE: RantWoman has successfully bought a pass for October. When logged into ORCACard.com find the card number and then look for the Add Value Link. That link will take you to a screen that lets you both add to the ORCA Wallet and buy passes.

Thank you helpful human on the phone.

Now, as originally posted.

RantWoman as noted is actually glad to pay fares. Metro needs the money. RantWoman has a bus pass in her budget. RantWoman has enough stresses trying to pull threads out of RantWoman's chain of coping behaviors. Buying a bus pass, like getting dressed every day and braiding her own hair is part of RantWoman in stability mode.

Imagine RantWoman's surprise tonight when RantWoman logged into OrcaCard.com to see what is what. RantWoman thinks she bought a pass for April. RantWoman of course did not need a pass because fare collection was suspended. If there was a refund, RantWoman will have to review old bank statements because she can only see 90 days of transactions online or in her banking app. Probably the first thing to do is contact a human during business hours.

A couple notes: the website does not appear to want to sell passes, only autoloads. RantWoman really prefers not to set up an Autoload. RantWoman also actually WANTS to buy a pass instead of use her ORCA wallet. Why? RantWoman may or may not make 18 round trips / month EXCEPT when RantWoman travels, she sometimes makes several stops that add up to more than whatever the current transfer window is. RantWoman HATES even having to think about transfer windows. That alone makes RantWoman prefer a pass.

Enough about money. With enough plexiglass....

RantWoman has taken note of plexiglass appearing in MANY retail and restaurant locations. RantWoman is trying to go all "whatevs..." about the situation.In the case of new plexiglass appearing aboard Metro buses, RantWoman is glad to know she is not alone in her annoyance. RantWoman asked a driver. The driver mentioned that the plexiglass causes glare, makes it hard for him to see certain angles, and makes it hard to hear. RantWoman would not have minded guessing wrong.

Of COURSE the Plexiglass makes it safer for the drivers to deal with all the people who walk by while paying their fare. But RantWoman finds herself with complicated opinions about everyone walking by all the high-risk people who ride in the ADA Courtesy area. RantWoman is comfortable most of the time with two people or two households in the courtesy area. This is because there are many ways for people to turn away and not blow streams of droplets into each other's faces. RantWoman also wears a hat and stays seated when getting on or off the bus. So RantWoman can probably live with people streaming by breathing over her head.

RantWoman also generally appreciates that the straps closing off the courtesy area have been removed. This of course is necessary when everyone is going to enter through the front door and need to pass back past the courtesy area. And front door entry means anyone who needs it can use the life or the kneeling bus. So everyone wear your masks. People who are still afraid to go out might need to think about alternatives, but mask up. Ride safe. It's a new day.

Why RantWoman loves the Bus part T

Spoiler Alert: RantWoman LOVES the bus because compared to taxis, there is MUCH less expectation that RantWoman will be able to carry on a coherent conversation about professional football. Also, payment is simpler: RantWoman buys a monthly pass and just taps the card on her hip everytime she boards the bus.

This reflection brought to you by POTLUCK.

Potluck involves various combinations of bus and car pool, but this round for medical reasons we were down a driver and the car pool travels were redistributed. RantWoman was happy to get herself there.

RantWoman prides herself on bus adventures on the way to various locations where a much loved potluck occurs. But Sunday, RantWoman needed to cook food. RantWoman has an injured arm. RantWoman was not even up to looking up the best timing for her needed routing. Plus RantWoman has some taxi vouchers related to a very pilot project. So RantWoman phoned a taxi. Rantwoman phoned a taxi after the Seahawks game, but for a route that would pass by the stadium.

Tis the season for app download glitches. Another app, another glitch while waiting for the taxi. RantWoman will revisit.

Cab driver asked RantWoman for her destination and we got rolling. Along the way, the game came up. Bear in mind, RantWoman's conversational capacity for football extends just about to who won? and Was it a good game? Taxi driver though also wanted to talk about the logistics of picking people up and competition for space with buses. Look, RantWoman understands a guy wants to make a living, but if the fastest way to move lots of people out of an area quickly is the bus, welll, RantWoman would suggest the cab drivers target some more distant pickup options. RantWoman did not explain this thinking to the driver; she just noted his point of view.

Traffic was MINIMAL on the route needed and soon the cab was in front of the house RantWoman was visiting. Time to pay.

Cab driver did not want to deal with RantWoman's voucher.

Total fare was modest so RantWoman was fine with just using her debit card. Out on the tip of Alki, some connectivity piece was not fine with processing devbit card payment.

So RantWoman resorted to cash. Luckily she had planned for possible need for cash, with some left over if she decided to taxi home and presumably into a zone of better connectivity. IN fact, RantWoman did NOT taxi home: RantWoman grabbed a space in one of the carpools that was headed to near the start of a favorite RantWoman bus line. Happy travels.

Why people take ACCESS and taxis, and ....

RantWoman is unclear that the world will be thrilled to hear today's tale of transit-related woe and, RantWoman wishes there were some intrigue. The world is not thrilled.and they just get to visit; RantWoman lives this STUFF all the time. Some of this STUFF could of course be cured with taxi, paratransit or checking one's route every dang time before setting out, but this is RantWoman, and RantWoman willing to plunge into adventures other people do not even attempt.

RantWoman's travel needs: a trip to the Bonney Watson location on International Boulevard for a memorial well noted elsewhere. RantWoman looked up routing and the options basically were either Link +a line or Link + F line. Link Station options were either Tukwila or SeaTac.

Google maps has no concept of elevator and station construction issues.

RantWoman is on an email list full of so many Sound Transit elevator issue notifications that frankly RantWoman's head is close to exploding. That does not even mean RantWoman gets all the notifications read or that she remembers the ones she does read. For instance if RantWoman had remembered about both elevators at Pioneer Square being out of service or being serviced or some linguistic variant of not available, RantWoman would have just ridden the bus she was on another stop and hopped onto Link at University Street.

Once at Pioneer Square, RantWoman decided she had zero interest in flights of stairs but that she could hop one of many buses that go to the International District Station. RantWoman could hop a bus--once she found the bus stop which had been moved a block north of where RantWoman expected it. And bingo, another elevator all blocked so off RantWoman headed to the second elevator at IDS. At least there is a second elevator!

Thank you on-board announcement for the reminder that the SB elevator at Mt Baker station is also out of order. Good thing RantWoman will only need the NB elevator coming home.

Now where to get off?

RantWoman had no interest in the 4 flights of stairs from the pedestrian overpass to the street at SeaTac. RantWoman only figured out station construction at Tukwila when she arrived. .RantWoman noticed a sign for Via, Metro's experiment in short-haul trips to and from Light Rail stations, but by then RantWoman was too rattled to try to figure out Via.

For RantWoman's trouble, instead RantWoman got to deal with signage and temporary bus stops. RantWoman detected minimal signage without a map and there were NO signs between the station entrance and the temporary bus stops. RantWoman can read maps and signs if she is close enough to them. Temporary bus stops tend not to be advertised with signs tall enough to seen from any kind of distance and it would be a dice roll whether RantWoman would be able to see the signs anyway. But some to help along the way would be marvelous.

After a couple missed attempts, RantWoman got directions from a bus driver and found the A line. The driver nicely called the stop which was only a couple stops after RantWoman got on. There was still a by RantWoman standards modest walk to Bonney Watson. It was a nice sunny day, a little breezy and of course lots of traffic noise on International Boulevard. The sidewalk was in good condition, and there  was only one driveway to worry about before RantWoman got close enough to Bonney Watson to identify its turn in.

Bonney Watson staff let RantWoman follow rather than take an arm and guided RantWoman to the memorial. The memorial and reception went about as expected. RantWoman had figured she would just retrace her walking path, cross with the light and catch the bus back to Tukwila; RantWoman is extremely grateful that Bonney Watson staff offered her a ride back to the Tukwila station. RantWoman supposes some more Perfect Storm elements could be added to this saga, but will not mind if none show up.

Viva Via

Oh Good. RantWoman’s Twitter feed is full of other transit nerds already asking a number of questions about Via, the new app and pilot program that provides rides between southend Link stations and other destinations.

 

Wheelchair accessible? The app promises someone will call. RantWoman will leave further reporting to Twitter.

 

Um, no. RantWoman will not just leave further reporting to Twitter. RantWoman saw the bit about refer a friend. RantWoman will refer a couple people near and dear to her who now use paratransit. RantWoman thinks light rail a substantial part of the trip plus Via for a short distance might be an awesome substitute for a long paratransit trip at least for paratransit riders who also ride the bus..  RantWoman also thinks the convenience of Via would make a great substitute for scheduling hassles and the need to schedule in advance. RantWoman hopes zillions of people who use wheelchairs or other mobility aids will call or sign in and attempt to book a ride just so there is some kind of record of likely demand. RantWoman also thinks running this service long-term without wheelchair accessible vehicles is not legally sustainable. But RantWoman is not a lawyer.

 

Appaccessibility? RantWoman downloaded the App via the Playstore and the link on Metro’s website. No autorotate. Sigh. Then as RantWoman was creating her signin at some point the phone froze and Talkback and vibrate on touch both refused to work. RantWoman eventually was able to go back to the home screen. The next time she opened the app, whatever the issue was seems to have resolved itself. So far

 

Fare? The same as bus fare, $2.75. Does having a monthly pass count or does the fare always come out of one’s ORCA wallet. What if one has a disabled pass? Via seems to be targeted at people who do not already ride the bus, but RantWoman has no trouble thinking of trips that would greatly expand possibilities for riders with a disabled pass, and for lower cost per ride than current  paratransit.

 

I am blind and may or may not be able to find the nearby corner. How do I connect with my Via ride?

 

Confidentiality? RantWoman is not crazy about the app displaying her phone number. RantWoman  would also prefer an anonymized promo code rather than one based on her first name.

 

So RantWoman is eager to see what else the riding public has to say!

 

And here is a link to download the app yourself.

http://bit.ly/2A1gRxc

 

 

 

 

 

This weekend in transit realities

This weekend in transit realities:

 

Cranky?

Bus driver as RantWoman boards her last bus of the day, “How are you?”

 

RantWoman: “I am well, but I can do cranky if needed.”

 

Bus driver laughs, which is exactly what RantWoman needs.

 

 

ORCA mania for senior visitors

ORCA gripe for seniors who frequently visit Seattle: RantWoman encountered a visitor outside her faith community. Visitor and wife are in town while his wife completes some kind of professional certification exam. Visitor was just walking around the neighborhood and rantWoman struck up a conversation, a most wonderful conversation about various interests including the social values embodied by transit.

 

But visitor was also slightly unhappy. He has a Reduced Fare Permit in Spokane. He has an ORCA card in Seattle but no way that he knows of to use his ORCA card AND take advantage of reciprocity for other areas’ senior / Disabled passes. He said he was able to get a senior discount to buy an all-day pass for Link but that a bus driver told him the all-day pass is not valid on the bus.

 

Huh?

 

RantWoman lost patience trying to check what ORCAcard.com says about day passes and has no info about what bus drivers are told, but huh? To RantWoman it makes sense that people who buy a day pass want to be able to use all modes of transit where payment by ORCA is possible. So…

 

 

ABCESS

It’s Sunday, which means it is time again for seniors who might like to see each other andtransit dependent people who would like to see beloved seniors to meditate about ACCESS or as one beloved senior who refuses to use it calls it, ABCESS.

 

RantWoman has a couple much loved elders who both live two different buses away from RantWoman. They both need ACCESS and should not try to bus. RantWoman would be thrilled to see both of them at the same time on Sundays. RantWoman and others are glad to hang out with Beloved Elder. However RantWoman is NOT thrilled to regularly collect data about ACCESS rides being out of pickup window, need for multiple calls, postponements, and other features of fabulous customer service.

 

But onward to the next week.

Free?

Should transit be free?

 

What are all the benefits of providing 1500 low-income households free transit passes as the Seattle Housing Authority and the city are now doing?

 

Should people who ride transit to city council hearings get a transit discount the same way car drivers get a parking discount?

 

Is it really reasonable to fine people who cannot afford $2.75 in bus fare $124 or even $50?

 

https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/king-county-metro-is-changing-how-it-handles-bus-riders-who-don-t-pay/923897492

 

 

Turns out the answer to the last question, see link above is NO! Thank you King County Auditor and Metro staff responding to the auditor’s report. RantWoman is glad something is being done about this.

 

As far as transit vs parking, RantWoman just buys a pass anyway so something discount does not even register.

 

And the 1500 public housing resident families: RantWoman notes that a lot of transit service is financed by sales taxes. WA has the most regressive tax structure in the US. Poor people pay a comparatively large percentage of their income in sales taxes. So, whether they are paying for passes or not they are in fact paying for transit service. Plus more people on transit means less congestion and CO2 emissions for everyone.  And then there is the HUGE increment in flexibility if one has a pass compared to having to pay attention to transfer windows. In other words, RantWoman is FINE with this program.

 

RantWoman also has plenty of people in her life who do not buy passes because they say they do not ride the bus enough to justify the expense. RantWoman sometimes finds this reality a trial because RantWoman is just not used to keeping track of transfer windows. And it is hard to know one’s friends are closer to the edge than RantWoman.

 

So, should transit be free?

Transit should not be free for people who get on the bus with bathtub-sized lattes or reek too heavily of alcohol but do not have bus fare.  And this goes double if they tell the driver they are going to church.

 

(RantWoman keeps money in her ORCA wallet for various reasons and once in awhile offers to pay someone’s fare, gets them a paper transfer, and makes their day easier. RantWoman does not do this for people who are just obnoxious and offensive.)

 

RantWoman thinks paying one’s fare and thinking about the cycle of buying passes probably helps a lot of people keep their act together. This includes both busy professionals and people living a lot closer to the margins.

 

RantWoman thinks people who buy passes all find transit service very valuable and if they use the service well, they get back many times the cost of the pass in services. Maybe RantWoman is wrong but Rantwoman thinks a lot of people are happy to pay voluntarily. At some point, the bus runs anyway and making room for people who truly cannot pay is the right thing to do. RantWoman particularly applauds the idea of replacing the practice of repeatedly harassing the same people over the same issues with staff to find the people getting harassed more appropriate help. And RantWoman thinks getting kids started early can build a lifetime of ease and comfort with transit.

Portland version of ORCA and quest for low-income fare

This is a blog as filing cabinet item.

Portland implementing ORCA like electronic fare collection and aiming for low-income fare.
http://www.opalpdx.org/2016/10/were-winning-but-were-not-done/

Success of low-income fare in King County has been because of deciding that anyone already qualified for a number of different programs automatically already qualifies for the low-income bus fare.

Cracked? Not anymore?

Yesterday on the B line RantWoman had one too many apologetic conversations with fare inspectors. RantWoman's ORCA card has been responding appropriately when tapped about one time out of 4 or 8 for several days.

Luckily, RantWoman's public transit odyssey of the day included a routing that took RantWoman past the Metro offices with time to stop in and replace the faltering technology. RantWoman so would not mind opportunities also to collect data about things she would FIX if given the opportunity.

RantWoman appreciates the clerk saying that RantWoman's card is in fact cracked. RantWoman finds that an entirely acceptable explanation for why the thing does not work. Friendly Clerk was able to transfer but this month's and next month's passes. Friendly Clerk was NOT able immediately to transfer the contents of RantWoman's ORCA wallet. Friendly Clerk said it will take 9 days or so.

Please excuse RantWoman but what genius invented a use case that makes that acceptable?  RantWoman STILL is not inclined to tote around a lot of quarters. What if the RantWomen decide to take another trip to Tacoma? What if the RantWoman decide to brave rampant construction  on the waterfront and try to take a ferry somewhere?  What if RantWoman lands on a bus and needs to pay more than her pass? What if RantWoman wants to plan an excursion with Irrepressible Nephew or an out-of-town visitor? WHAT IF, indeed? True, RantWoman does keep insisting that it should be possible to pay other people's fares out of her ORCA wallet and this possibility also is a challenge on planet ORCA?

Ahhh, but now that RantWoman's ORCA card reliably elicits the expected noises every time RantWoman brandishes it, even in its usual carrying pocket, what ELSE must RantWoman comment on. RantWoman appreciates that RantWoman's new card registered automatically in RantWomans orcacard.com account. RantWoman also appreciates that the transactions on RantWoman's previous ORCA Card still show up in the record on RantWoman's orcacard.com account.

And due to all these successes, RantWoman is once again trying to wrap her brain around what to expect as far as fares. Remember the rantWomen's trip to Tacoma. RantWoman THINKS the transactions reflect payment for both inbound and outbound legs of the trip. But RantWoman is wondering whether the posted additional charge is too little, just right or too much.

RantWoman, admittedly, could have MUCH worse conundrums, but she is just wondering...

Memorial Day Road Trip: Destination TACOMA!

What to do on Memorial Day?

Honor the memory of the first female graduate of the Air Force Academy killed in Iraq / Afghanistan?

Honor the holiday's origin after the Civil War?

Ummm, well, how about another RantWomen Road trip, this time to ....Tacoma!

The pretext: the RantWomen are still trying to plan a family reunion involving RantMom's siblings, and spouses, a couple widowed sister-in-law (same uncle, different marriages, but RantWoman is fond of both and HOPES they might both come) We think and MAYBE some adult cousins and their kids. Yesterday's journey confirmed that Tacoma offers a wonderful combination of easy transit connections and options, downtown walkability, and excursion options in town or out of town.

We also especially bless Little Sister for help finding a good lodging option right near transit options! RantWoman thinks it would be possible to do a couple days just in Tacoma, no driving on the Tacoma Link. RantWoman may be overestimating the level of transit ruggedness, but not the multiple days, at least at the aunts and uncles' tourism pace of things to see.

Transportation question: will people rent cars or use short-term car share? Stay tuned.

Lodging bonus: the lodging accepts pets, has some kind of still unspecified hearing accommodations. Rates seem reasonable.  There seem like enough options to meet the family's requirements to balance togetherness with the reality that certain combinations of family members, based on LONG experience with such gatherings, should not spend too much time in each other's company.

RantWoman guesses this means there will be room for everyone's teeth too. In fact rantWoman insists on writing of this not only because she finds the row of dentures in the bathroom overnight at such gatherings ghoulishly entertaining but also because the dentures make her feel less guilty about the state of her own teeth. Just blame the DNA.

But RantWoman gets ahead of herself. Here are some postcards:

Getting there: The ORCA transaction. RantWoman WILL pay multiple people's additional disabled fare on top of regular pass levels. RantWoman WILL pay this out of her ORCA wallet. Both going and coming, the drivers seemed able to give directions. RantWoman WILL check her ORCA transaction list but so far things look good.

Going and Coming: the Sound Transit 594. Face it. RantWoman has a beef with Sound Transit. Sound Transit buses that go to Snohomish County in RantWoman's experience do well about accessibility. Sound Transit Coaches that go to N and E King County do nicely about accessibility: low entry. Easy options for wheelchair entry and maneuvering Ability to lower the bus. Space in the courtesy area.

Buses going to Pierce  Countyare another story, a big fat sour accessibility frownie face.  RantWoman has in the distant past gone to Tacoma and back with a wheelchair user but the present Greyhound-like buses seem a big barrier. RantWoman is told that if a wheelchair user shows up, he or she can be accommodated but RantWoman wonders how.. The bus entry involves several steps. The aisles are narrow so no one larger than a twig can move around easily and never mind if someone has a mobility device or RantMom's bleeping backpack.

Both RantWomen did manage to board the bus both ways: Getting off, RantWoman went first and caught RantMom's backpack so RantMom only had to deal with the stairs. But both RantMom and RantWoman give the experience a GIANT frownie face. This MIGHT mean the RantWomen would just consider options involving the Sounder but the Sounder was not available. Frown!

The Tacoma Light Rail: both RantWomen found the Tacoma Light Rail great fun! Good thing after the bus ride.

The tour, or wayfinding minus advance planning.
Off the 594 at 10th and Commerce. Wrong turn. Should have gone up the hill. RantWoman formed a positive impression of possibilities on days  other than holidays,. RantMom just got tired without going up the hill to more specific Theater district attractions. But never mind: the Link showed up. The RantWomen rode back to the Tacoma dome and then back to Union Station. This restored RantMom's energy.

At Union Station, the RantWoman found the winding ramp up through the UW Tacoma campus. We found it pleasant but partway up the hill, bus bladder and rumbling stomachs kicked in. Time for restroom break and lunch.

Digression about geriatric tastebuds:
RantWoman has read that what people can taste changes as they age. RantWoman is not sure she wants to know what is going on with RantMom's taste buds. This time the issue: what on earth makes combining black olives, dill pickles, and guacamole on a sandwich sound like a good idea?

Memo to self: two 6" subs sounds like a MUCH better idea than trying to ado a footlong together. That way RantMom can have her pickles, olives, and guacamole and RantWoman can have pepper jack, jalapenos, and spicy mustard.

But onward to the next legs of our walking tour.
After lunch the RantWomen decided to go all the way up the UW Tacoma path. We were enjoying the greenery. We were not particularly headed for any specific destination. Good thing. Every time we got to an intersection, a place to turn, first RantWoman would ask RantMom whether she saw anything interesting. No, so up the path another block. Then RantWoman suggested just turning right. RantWoman did not really expect we would make it all the way to the Theater district. We did find a path back down to Pacific Street. There RantMom spied a path near the historical society.

The path RantMom found led to a long walkway, the kind of long smooth walkway that tempts RantWoman to stretch her legs and to strike out ahead of RantMom and the need to dodge both zigzags and RantMom's backpack. Both RantWomen understand this will happen and don't even yell about it. Good thing. Has RantWoman mentioned RantMom's hearing loss?

RantWoman was enchanted by the possibility of a view of water. RantWoman was also glad to stretch legs and move at a faster pace. But there was a voice in RantWoman's head.

RantWoman, it's an overpass. It's a LONG overpass. A noisy overpass. And RantMom is probably not having a super good time at this pace. SLOW DOWN.

The Bridge of Glass

RantWoman had been admiring two installations that looked like evergreens rendered in blown glass. RantWoman also suddenly came upon something she never would have expected to see on an overpass, a wall of niches with various blown glass works!

After several fascinating minutes of looking ath the Bridge of Glass, the RantWomen decided we had gone far enough and the walk back to the bus stop in the breeze and sunshine would be enough walking for the day.

For more information:   The Museum of Glass with wonderful descriptive text on its website

ORCA, Confessions, Fine.

RantWoman confessions:

RantWoman's ORCA card has gotten sort of finicky: sometimes ORCA card readers read it; sometimes they do not. RantWoman has heard the suggestion that ORCA cards wear out and maybe she should take herself to the downtown METRO offices to get a new ORCA card. So far RantWoman has not done that.

RantWoman is also a little scatter-brained. SOMETIMES RantWoman will tap her card twice in the same link station. RantWoman will tap it once the first time she finds a card reader or as she enters the station and then forget she has tapped it when presented with another ORCA card reader near the tracks. Apparently somewhere in RantWoman's travels yesterday she did this.



Typical ORCA card reader

RantWoman has no clue she has done this. The tone is the same when one taps on and when one taps off. The green light is the same when one taps on as when one taps off. Apparently, though, something appears in the teeny tiny backlit, dim no-contrast visual screen that is different when one taps on than when on taps off. And people would expect RantWoman to figure this out why????

RantWoman learned this yesterday aboard Link when a fare inspector was wondering what she was doing riding the train after she had just tapped off. RantWoman presented her ID as requested. RantWoman listened to the fare inspector's lecture about procedures until he got to the part something like "it says in..."

At that point, the ill-behaved white cane had been curled up lounging indolently on RantWoman's bag and slacking off on his ambassadorial duties. RantWoman had to direct the fare inspector to look: "which part of this white cane do you not see?"

(RantWoman was also thinking to herself, well if anyone is going to DO anything with ORCA data, dealing with the out of balance tap pairs falls in the area of data cleaning, not something she currently gets paid to think about, but...)

Okayyyy, but next time you might get a $124 fine.

(Link fare inspectors not known for sense of humor; Fine. Do that, and RantWoman will consider sending a $124 bill for free usability and / or data ETL consulting. Okay, RantWoman, CHILL out! Just CHILL out!)

SHARE, the Bus, WHAT NEXT?

RantWoman's faith community is replacing the carpet in our worship room. RantWoman's faith community hosts a SHARE group, a group of homeless people who stay together in our worship space at night. RantWoman considers it an interesting accident that carpet replacement is occurring the same time as SHARE is hosting what seems to be annual "we will sleep out until more money arrives" protests.

RantWoman frequently needs to start her day by getting her feet on the ground about something or other and today the something or other is the SHARE protests. Please hold on for the ride and consider options for further action and discussion.

Key elements in RantWoman's head:

--SHARE is an organization of self-managed homeless shelters that has done fantastic work for over two decades and now seems to have repeated internal struggles getting in the way of its mission and of ways to address stresses due to outside factors. Historically SHARE has developed groups of homeless people housed by different faith communities. In recent years SHARE has also been involved in the operation of tent cities. One point that sticks out from rantWoman's info streams: SHARE cites an incredibly low cost / bed night. The costs mostly include modest administrative costs and whatever different faith communities ask for as reimbursement for utility costs, paper products, or other needs.
    RantWoman actually thinks sometimes costs can be too low and if SHARE for example needs to ask for reimbursement for say bookkeeping services, that is part of the cost of doing business. Further comments out of scope of this blog.

--RantWoman's faith community includes a number of people who for various reasons are closer to homelessness realities than we might prefer. This includes a few current or former SHARE participants, people with long work connections to human services, and a couple people (urk, including RantWomana actually) for whom the faith community has been an important part of a picture about connections to badly-needed help.

--RantWoman's faith community has hosted a SHARE group for something like 10 years. The group sleeps in our worship space. Among SHARE participants, the space is highly prized for quiet and ways for people to feel privacy even though everyone is sleeping in one large room.
    Having the SHARE group sleep in our worship space is not really some effort to be holy or to subject SHARE participants to a particular spiritual regimen. It just works out that having the SHARE group sleep in our worship space works best for all the other things that happen in our building.
   RantWoman's faith community came to welcome the SHARE group after a long spell of various highly unsatisfactory issues with people sleeping outside under our eaves. The SHARE group offers much better control of our space, regular eyes on the area and predictability. Some in our congregation get to know individuals better than others. Many of us notice people who are working and cannot afford housing or who are experiencing various kinds of disability and medical issues. Some people only have jobs if they can show up and not seem homeless; they only accomplish this through challenging bus planning. In a few cases, there is nothing to be done except grieve alongside the group when someone cannot be helped.


--RantWoman often sits in meetings with representative of employers who want to ask various things of transportation systems. Some employers want low-wage workers to be available to clean offices outside the times when the offices are occupied by all the people who travel during usual commuting hours. Some employers ask for tax break that, to RantWoman's ear do not reflect their impact on the region's infrastructure. RantWoman notes recent news stories about Amazon. In one case, Amazon was trying to establish a distribution center on a much shorter timeline than transit planners can respond. In another case, Amazon cynically wanted to hire homeless people for graveyard shift work even though the ONLY time people sleeping in sheltersa hve to sleep is overnight. If the SHARE sleep outs do nothing else, it is important to keep provoking conversations about things like this.

--One aspect of the self-managed model is that groups housed at individual faith communities or  "everyone" will sometimes sleep outside as part of work on conflicts or violations of commitments to host congregations. RantWoman has gathered that SHARE participants are not united about the current sleepout strategy and is looking for more opportunities to listen to concerns.
   RantWoman also notes that the group her faith community hosts has slept out a couple times over the honoring commitment issues. One time the issue was an individual in the group and people from the faith community had no idea what the issue was until after the group returned. In the other case, both the faith community and the SHARE group identified a problem at about the same time and the group slept out until enough information emerged to identify one individual and address the problem.
   RantWoman mentions all this up front because RantWoman appreciates SHARE participants' efforts to honor their commitments even though RantWoman's faith community would not necessarily ask the same measures when conflicts arise. On the other hand, for some in RantWoman's faith community, theatrical protests are practically a sacrament and the only question is picking through details and figuring out who might feel called to do what. RantWoman is not in close contact with other faith communities but assumes there are some similar dynamics about addressing homelessness and other crises, figuring out what to do next.

--Over the two plus decades SHARE has existed, the housing crisis in the Seattle area has gotten a lot worse. Rents are skyrocketing. Both the state and county safety nets have basically been shredded through tax cuts and the effects of recession on revenue streams. At the very least theatrical protests should be prompting other people to look at realities and keep working at our regional housing crisis.

--SHARE articulates specific urgent needs related to bus tickets and to sharing resources with a growing number of organized tent cities. RantWoman would like to understand the tent city dynamic better but has plenty to say about bus tickets.

Frankly, the bus ticket issue annoys RantWoman and rantWoman is going to have to see if someone else from her faith community can help track down information.

RantWoman knows that Metro staff and service planners are very aware of many transportation issues affecting homeless people. VERY senior Metro staff participate in the Annual one-night count of homeless people with particular focus on people who sleep on buses or ride as much of the night as they can.

RantWoman knows that discount bus tickets are distributed to various nonprofits to help people in extreme circumstances get to necessary daily life and medical events.

RantWoman has written elsewhere of her own preference to have a pass rather than keep track of transfer windows or paper transfers from 1-time fares or bus tickets.

RantWoman gets panhandled fairly often, and frequently at bus stops. RantWoman often carries little cash and prefers at least modest entertainment, music or a good joke, as well as practical focus. If someone at a bus stop really needs to get on a bus, RantWoman wants to help; if they are just panhandling at a bus stop and not trying to go anywhere, RantWoman is generally less forthcoming. One of RantWoman's responses to panhandlers is to keep some money on  her ORCA wallet and occasionally to put bus drivers through the exercise of letting RantWoman pay someone's fare even though RantWoman really likes having a pass for herself.

RantWoman knows that the number of bus tickets available is probably pitiful relative to the need. RantWoman appreciates the value of having numbers to better specify the "pitiful"

RantWoman also thinks, but is going to ask someone else to verify,  that people who renew their car tabs still have the option of requesting 8 bus tickets so they can try the public transit their car tabs are helping fund. As an aside: RantWoman has NO problem asking car drivers to support congestion relief for cars by asking car drivers to help fund public transit. RantWoman would be happy to go on about how many more people can get around in limited road and street space on transit than if everyone drives. For the SHARE conversation though, RantWoman would simply like to tell people about the option of requesting the bus tickets and then donating them to the nonprofit of their choice to help ease the bus ticket crisis.

Here we come to another stopping point: the new ORCA Lift fare aimed at low-income people. RantWoman has so much more flexibility and opportunities to interact with life because of having a pass! RantWoman thinks anyone with even modest income might feel the same way. RantWoman wonders how many SHARE participants are signed up for ORCA lift? RantWoman wonders what barriers they encounter. Yes of COURSE the number of discount bus tickets available should be greater, but RantWoman also wants to encourage people trying to manage their own lives to connect with and use resources that are available.

There. Now RantWoman will get about actually talking to people, seeing what to do next with her concerns.

A monthly pass AND a route recommendation

If the only tool one has is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. This week RantWoman is in that position about transit-related info. Here is a hypothetical note to RantWoman's friend Grandma Barefoot who is riding the bus a lot more since she quit driving at least for now while she continues to recover from a stroke.

Grandma Barefoot is just NOT digging the trip planner, or RantWoman is pretty sure the online schedule. Luckily between RantWoman and another crack trip planner user, all sorts of custom bus routings and insights are coming Grandma Barefoot's way.  Here is the next chapter in her attainment of bus prowess!

Dear Grandma Barefoot

Congratulations on getting your first monthly pass purchased through the orcacard.com website. I am not surprised that you are riding the bus enough to make it worth the price, and I personally find passes SO much easier for unlimited service to deal with than thinking about transfer windows and having to pay again halfway home and problems like that. I am glad we made it through the website. If you had been any more frustrated, I probably would have told you to chill out and call someone who gets paid to help people on Monday. But in celebration of progress, another unsolicited hint.
Consider the Route 50. It runs every half hour Mon-Sat and I did nto look up what it does on Sundays.

You can look it up online at kingcounty.gov but just guessing, I bet you might find a printed schedule easier to deal with. You can probably get one of those at the library or a couple other nearby locations. Or...RantWoman can throw one in her RantWoman bag and hand deliver next time we see each other.

[Here are some good locations to catch the bus each direction]

Eastbound it goes over near the entrance to Seward park if you want a walking excursion.  From there it goes back to the Othello Street station. [Grandma Barefoot used to like to drive to Seward Park for a long walk; these days, Grandma Barefoot is a lot less enthusiastic about anything the least bit hilly.
Westbound the Route 50 goes over to W Seattle where there are a couple places RantWoman knows are sometimes on Grandma Barefoot's itinerary,like her grandkids' house!

Anyway, consider this an invitation to ask more if you are interested.

Enjoy!

Sincerely,

RantWoman

Postcard from the frizzy edges, with a pot of lentils on the side

The Frizzy Edge, the next chapter of There and Back Again Electrically.

 RantMom: I didn’t see you on the news.

 RantWoman: Well I missed the #BlackLivesMatter demonstration. I missed both the demos for and against equal access for transgender people to the restrooms they identify with. I missed a couple other demos. So No, I would not expect you would have seen me on the news.

 Instead RantWoman was collecting data on the frizzy edge of various strands of transportation and communication infrastructure.

 

Monday RantWoman joined a contingent from her faith community to go to Olympia lobby the heck out of the Washington Legislature. #waleg

 One of the joys of RantWoman’s vision issues is that she gets to make reasonable accommodations requests of friend and foe alike. #a11y RantWoman is really grateful to have received the handouts pages in advance. RantWoman thinks it would have been COOL to include hot links to the legislature’s bill tracker page for the bills to be addressed. RantWoman is also the sort who might like to tweet copies of the sheet from the website to others. Oh well, maybe next year and in the meantime, you’re welcome for the free electronic advocacy consulting.

 

Remember RantWoman’s somewhat high-strung, verbally over-the-top electric-car driving friend Monsieur Chauffeur? Before Christmas, Monsieur Chauffeur managed to total his Leaf because of body and frame damage caused by some inattention-related crunch into a parked car.

 Monsieur Chauffeur is frequently able to salvage triumph from such awkward moments. In this case internet research and relentless negotiating yielded not another Leaf, but instead a new lease of an all-electric BMW, sustainably sourced, full life cycle analyzed, all sorts of German engineering touches which Monsieur Chauffeur is always too happy to tell passengers about.

 German engineering or not, there seem to be hiccups. On RantWoman’s first ride there had been some hiccup about downloading travel coordinates from an iPhone to the car. Monsieur Chauffeur had called one level of customer assistance and learned he would need to talk to some kind of connectivity guru on Monday. RantWoman is glad we arrived at our destination on a Saturday anyway.

 RantWoman also appreciates that the car’s GPS does not seem to get as upset when driver’s deviate from its routing suggestions as some other car GPS systems RantWoman has ridden with. At one moment on Monday’s trip the car was extremely polite while telling Monsieur Chauffeur he needed to make a legal U-turn!

 Next moment of infrastructure frizzy edge: connectivity at that place we gathered to organize ourselves. Whine. Grumble RantWoman realized she might be the only person in the group wanting to tweet and set about asking a couple somewhat Twitter-aware fellow travelers about hashtags. No one had thought of the issue so RantWoman appointed herself hashtag czar. Grumble. Maybe if RantWoman had better cell coverage she would have checked out the hashtag she chose. Only later in the day did she realize the day’s tweet stream has a hashtag in common with something in Australia. Oh, well. Twitter users, COPE.  #qld2016

 

This trip the electric car hiccup was in charging the vehicle. Seattle to Olympia is just on the outer edge of the car’s range and Monsieur Chauffeur had looked up charging options in parking lots on the Capitol grounds. The parking lot attendants were helpful with directions to vacant spots. Monsieur Chauffeur plugged in his chariot, invoked whatever was supposed to happen from swiping a membership card and off we went to lobby.

We did not yet for instance have anything to lobby about as far as asking electric car users to pay for roads just as other drivers do through their gas tax. RantWoman is pleased to note that very capable public servants in the WA Department of Transportation are working on this, but in the meantime, there would be the public howling as Puget Sound Eastside drivers learn they either need to work with tolling and congestion relief or they need to fund other transportation options. Or both! And yes, RantWoman is GLAD there are ongoing discussions of #carbon pricing and funding streams also mixed up in the conversation, even though nothing focused emerged for this group to lobby about.

 RantWoman is also glad she had plenty else to talk about that day and managed not just to spew scorn on the WA Senate Republicans who think that summarily firing the Secretary of Transportation is the way to solve complex transportation problems where technical know-how and need to iteratively adjust different parameters are highly on point. #WAGOP

 Even the most passionate advocates eventually go home. RantWoman, Monsieur Chauffeur, and another passenger gathered and returned to the car late in the afternoon. Monsieur Chauufeur inserted the key and the car emitted pitiful communications about having only a 5-mile range, not the fully charged range we were expecting. Thinking the problem might be the charging station, Monsieur Chauffeur moved the car to another charging station. No evidence of charging. Call customer service, a couple different voices, at times projected into the whole car.

 Monsieur Chauffeur was getting frustrated. His available data streams were not doing a great job about finding other charging options, dealership options closer than Tacoma, options to get back to Seattle One of the customer service streams involved suggestions of a 90-minute wait to put the car on a flatbed and take it back to Seattle. At some point Monsieur Chauffeur and one of the customer service voices figured out that maybe the problem was not with the car but somehow with the card reader needed to validate Monsieur Chauffeur for that particular charging network. That still left the problems either of finding a high-capacity charging option close by, inviting oneself to stay overnight and charge the car with someone we knew in Olympia or of getting back to Seattle. Monsieur Chauffeur could go with the car, but not those pesky passengers.

 Enter the transit options on Google Maps.

 Enter Google maps, except RantWoman’s phone is getting flaky about holding a charge, flaky in a way that suggests need for a new physical device. RantWoman had already partially charged her phone after some topical tweeting, but by this time the phone was also emitting pathetic signs of electronic insufficiency.

 Yes, Options exist. Other Passenger and RantWoman can walk a few blocks and be on a transit path to home. Or Monsieur Chauffeur can use a bit of his range to spare and drop us at the Olympia Transit Center. This option featured invaluable amenities: a RESTROOM and a live human to answer questions. RantWoman somehow did not absorb from info on her phone that the most direct bus goes from Olympia to Seattle in the Morning and comes back in the evening, but plan B, a Thurston Transit bus to Lakewood and a Sound Transit bus from there proved fine.

 The routing was fine. Then there was paying the fare. Sigh. RantWoman has a Regional Reduced Fare Permit. RantWoman also has plenty of money in her ORCA wallet for trips not covered by her monthly pass. The one thing RantWoman did not have was cash. One thing Thurston ttransit does not yet have is ORCA card readers. Sigh.

 RantWoman tends not to carry cash. If RantWoman has cash, she tends to, well, spend cash. On Monday, RantWoman had thrown the cash she had into a donations bowl related to lunch.

 RantWoman’s friend had cash. Exact change was another matter, and RantWoman’s friend is pretty much an ORCA card virgin. This meant she wound up paying more to transfer between systems than she would have if she used an ORCA card. Sigh. It also meant when we needed one more fare for the last leg of the trip on Light Rail, RantWoman’s friend got a whole bunch of Sacajawea dollars back from the $10 bill she inserted into the vending machine, a sort of satisfying bonus all in all.

 RantWoman also lives in a fantasy world where it should be possible sometimes to pay another passenger’s fare from her ORCA wallet. RantWoman’s experience about this desire is uneven. Just sayin’.

 Everyone got safely home. RantWoman fed the Queen of Spdes and feasted on her most recent culinary exercise with lentils, and we all lived to lobby another day, if we are LUCKY about things we care about that make it past cutoff or get woven somehow into the budget. Stay Tuned.