If you follow me on Twitter or know me in real life or read this post, you’re probably wholly aware of my hate-on for Metro Transit. My anger usually percolates on poor weather days. And, believe me, we’ve had plenty of those this summer.
Preferred method of transportation. (Photo credit © zir.com from Wikipedia)
My recent complaint is with a route that shall be henceforward referred to as UNFASHIONABLY EARLY. For those of you who are unfamiliar with using the so-called “services” of Metro Transit, they include this thing called GoTime. It’s a posted phone number at each stop that allows you to call an automated voice who tells you in—what I’m beginning to think is—a snide tone when your bus is supposed to arrive. Lately I’ve been foiled by the only partial integration of an actual GPS system that’s been years in the making. Apparently, when The Voice tells you a bus “will depart” vs. “is scheduled to depart” the former means the GPS is tracking said bus and the latter means the posted time (read: schedule).
That’s frustrating enough because I’ve left work thinking I would get to the stop on time but the bus manages to get there early and leave me behind in the dust or, more aptly, the torrential rain. The early bus arrival is really the point of this post because, barring being a Time Lord, there’s nothing I can do to prevent this from happening. Believe me, a TARDIS would be my preferred method of transportation in this city. Far more reliable even if it gets me to my destination in the wrong year.
In any case, the bus I often take in the morning only runs a few times a day: twice in the morning, twice in the evening. I take the second (and last) bus of the morning. Said bus is frequently UNFASHIONABLY EARLY. I had enough the other day when it arrived at the stop fully six minutes before The Voice said it was supposed to be there. So I wrote what Cokebaby calls one of my “crackpot letters” to Metro Transit to lodge my complaint.
Here’s the response I got:
“I reviewed the situation and unfortunately the [UNFASHIONABLY EARLY bus] does not have a scheduled time point for your stop. To explain this if we look at the Riders Guide you will see the bus is scheduled to leave Stop [SUBURBIA] at 7:39 AM scheduled to arrive at Stop [URBAN SPRAWL] for 8:01 AM. Arrival at any stops in between these two time points depends on how many passengers the Operator has to pick up and drop off along the way. It may be the case that on average the bus arrives at 7:50 AM but in cases when there are fewer pick up’s and drop off’s then the bus may be there earlier at 7:44 AM.”
Excuse me? Pardon my French but WTF is GoTime then? No, really, I’m not even being tongue and cheek here. What is the effing point of GoTime if it’s just an imaginary time? Also, what other stops in the city aren’t “scheduled” ones and how do I find this information out if not through GoTime?
You can be sure that I’ve sent a response back. It includes the word “archaic” because I find it hard to believe that we’re living in 2011 and they can’t even get an automated voice to lie to me properly.
Kimberly Walsh is a social media and online community manager. You can follow her on Twitter @AliasGrace.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I agree with this post. Halifax Transit is extremely archaic. When I first moved back to Halifax from Vancouver, I spent the first 6 months complaining about the transit here and how unbelievable it is. Despite never being on time, not running frequently, etc. I also dislike the schedules (as you discussed). For example, I take the 9 from home to work. My stop, fortunately, is listed on the schedule (Robie & Lady Hammond) with the next stop being Barrington & Duke. That’s ridiculous! There’s a lot that can happy between those two points in Halifax. Plus, during rush hour they only allow for an extra 3 minutes of delays … I just think it’s insane.
If you select any bus from the Vancouver bus website (http://tripplanning.translink.ca/hiwire?.a=iScheduleLookup) you will see that they list the times for EVERY stop. Vancouver also had the ability to text the stop number to “33333″ and they send you the schedule for the next few buses coming by.
Halifax, by far is the worst city for public transportation that I’ve lived in (I’ve lived in Ottawa, Vancouver, and Winnipeg). St. John’s is worse, but they’ve JUST developed a bus system.
Likewise, I’ve made use of many public transportation systems both in North America and Europe. Halifax is by far the worst that I’ve experienced. It’s like it’s designed by people who never actually use it. Hmm…
In any case, the Vancouver method sounds great. North of Toronto each bus stop is equipped with a machine that tells when the next bus is arriving (tracked by GPS) and sells bus tickets. Imagine how great our public transit could be if instead of coming up with lame excuses the people who run Metro Transit would think of the customer.
I agree. I’ve used transit all over North America and beyond with great pleasure but can not make it work for me here in Halifax. It is always easier to drive. That’s a sad fact for our city.
Alison: I grew up in Toronto and never bothered getting my driver’s license because I relied on public transit. Transit in this city kind of makes me regret that decision. At the same time, I’m on a mission to point out the flaws and get changes made. In my opinion, the whole system needs a complete overhaul. Too many routes overlap significantly, there aren’t enough direct routes to the major urban centre, scheduling is terrible, GoTime is clearly a joke. And I don’t believe customers should be expected to just arrive 10 minutes early to a stop, especially where there’s no bus shelter considering the kind of weather we get. The level of service that’s currently provided by Metro Transit prevents many people from relying on it and is therefore one of the causes of traffic congestion. I certainly don’t have all the answers but that’s one someone with experience should be paid to figure out.