For some reason this year there are a TON of bike riders running around Denver.
My guess is the price of gas plus these bike stations (y'all have seen the red bikes & racks around town) and the warmer weather, etc etc etc all combined to get people out on their bikes to and from work.
I know that bikes are legally allowed to "share the road" now but I'm still a bit irked by this.
As a driver, whether personal or professional I was required to obtain a license.
Proving that I both knew and understood the rules, regulations and ways of the road.
And that I had shown a reasonable aptitude for surviving out in traffic with other drivers.
I also pay taxes for using these roads.
I pay license and registration fees.
I pay gasoline taxes and other taxes that are applied to the support of the privilege I've earned by being granted a license.
NONE of which a bike rider has to do.
Yet they share the benefits that you and I had to work hard to be given.
Back to these laws, rules and ways...
If I get caught wearing head phones or ear buds or using a phone to make calls or text while driving my vehicle, whether my personal vehicle or the bus, I'm fined up the ying.
In fact, at RTD I can get into serious trouble as that's a major safety hazard & violation: it divides my attention and prevents me from hearing both the conditions around me and emergency vehicles.
If I don't use my turn signals, if I run red lights, if I exceed the speed limit and if I fail to use head lights from 30 minutes before sunset to 30 minutes after sunrise - I'm fined.
And not just teeny tiny warning shot fines.
We're talking $100 and up for any of these.
So yeah, I'm a bit miffed that I have to share the road with folks doing 10mph in the bus lane during rush hour: folks who have their ear buds in, never look behind them, dart in and out in front of me and folks who don't share any proven qualification or financial burden for the use of the same road as I'm using.
Am I going to go out of my way to scare the poop outta riders with the bus?
LOL - nope.
I tap the brakes so they can hear that air release and know I'm coming up behind them, I go around them when traffic allows and I avoid them when I'm able.
What I do like to do is pull up beside them and mention that if they'd hop on board, pay the fare and let me take them home, they wouldn't be sweating so much in the heat or they wouldn't be as soaked to the bone in the driving rain!
I'd say I could care less but all the words I've typed above would prove me wrong.
So let's settle for, "I could care less but not by much!"
As Always, "Welcome aboard, set your bike in the rack, find your seats - Let's Roll!"
Friday, July 22, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Transfers, How Long Do They Last?
For some reason this topic is one of the more frequent questions I'm asked.
In a variety of ways but the bottom line is that y'all seem most confused about transfers.
Let's start from the beginning:
Let's imagine we're getting on the 15 out at Auraria Campus at about 5:45pm.
You get on the bus, pay your fare and ask me for a transfer.
We're scheduled to arrive out at the end of the route (Colfax and Helena) at about 7pm.
So when I "cut" your transfer it's going to be good until 8pm.
You may get off at Colorado to catch the 40 South but the ticket I've given you is good going East, North and South until 8pm.
Notice I didn't say West?
That's the number two more popular question:
Why can't I use this ticket for my return trip?
If you flip your transfers over you'll notice close to the very top, in bold letters it reads:
"Not Valid On Route Of Issue In Opposite Direction"
And just a little further down, again in bold print:
"Transfer Is Valid For One Hour After Last Stop On Route Of Issue"
Most folks don't think to read the back of that transfer but those are the more common questions and RTD has anticipated this and answered these questions for you.
So many people try to use the ticket in the other direction.
That's one of the first things I check when you show me your transfer.
I see the date, the month, whether am or pm, the time and the direction.
There is other information we Drivers provide each other for more detail but those 5-ish are the first things I see and pay close attention to.
For round trip tickets, you can get those at some stations, at Market Street and Civic Centre Stations, and the light rail stations allow you to purchase round trip tickets and they print "round trip" with an expiry very clearly.
So now y'all know.
Well, at least the 20 or so of you who wrote to me and asked!
Don't forget, RTD has a FaceBook page and they are really good about answering questions and there are other Drivers and even Passengers who help each other out on the page.
As Always, "Welcome aboard, take a transfer, find your seats - Let's Roll!"
In a variety of ways but the bottom line is that y'all seem most confused about transfers.
Let's start from the beginning:
Let's imagine we're getting on the 15 out at Auraria Campus at about 5:45pm.
You get on the bus, pay your fare and ask me for a transfer.
We're scheduled to arrive out at the end of the route (Colfax and Helena) at about 7pm.
So when I "cut" your transfer it's going to be good until 8pm.
You may get off at Colorado to catch the 40 South but the ticket I've given you is good going East, North and South until 8pm.
Notice I didn't say West?
That's the number two more popular question:
Why can't I use this ticket for my return trip?
If you flip your transfers over you'll notice close to the very top, in bold letters it reads:
"Not Valid On Route Of Issue In Opposite Direction"
And just a little further down, again in bold print:
"Transfer Is Valid For One Hour After Last Stop On Route Of Issue"
Most folks don't think to read the back of that transfer but those are the more common questions and RTD has anticipated this and answered these questions for you.
So many people try to use the ticket in the other direction.
That's one of the first things I check when you show me your transfer.
I see the date, the month, whether am or pm, the time and the direction.
There is other information we Drivers provide each other for more detail but those 5-ish are the first things I see and pay close attention to.
For round trip tickets, you can get those at some stations, at Market Street and Civic Centre Stations, and the light rail stations allow you to purchase round trip tickets and they print "round trip" with an expiry very clearly.
So now y'all know.
Well, at least the 20 or so of you who wrote to me and asked!
Don't forget, RTD has a FaceBook page and they are really good about answering questions and there are other Drivers and even Passengers who help each other out on the page.
As Always, "Welcome aboard, take a transfer, find your seats - Let's Roll!"
Listen Up!
Over and over again I've been getting emails from folks who complain about the number of accidents and bad drivers behind the wheel.
I'm going to say this yet again for you complainers:
I'm a Driver at RTD, not the crap private companies about which you're complaining.
I'd complain too if I had to ride those lines or if I was involved in their myriad of accidents.
RTD only runs about 60% of the routes.
The rest are run, operated and maintained by the private companies.
The majority of accidents and of drivers ticking y'all off are from the privates.
Give them a call.
And call the union since they keep giving work away to the private companies.
You know how the unions on a national level have caused millions of American jobs to go overseas and tons of companies and manufacturers to head out of the country and to the foreign nations?
Well, the same happens here at RTD - the union forces RTD jobs to be outsourced to the private companies.
And as you can see by the quality of the service y'all receive from these private companies...
So if you want to comment about a bus that while leased from RTD, but not operated or maintained by RTD, think twice, then think a third time and please don't waste your time writing.
The privates frustrate and make me just as sad as they do you.
They embarrass me so I'd rather not be associated with them and I'm not: I'm an RTD Driver.
Ok, enough said!
As Always, "Welcome aboard, find your seats - Let's Roll!"
I'm going to say this yet again for you complainers:
I'm a Driver at RTD, not the crap private companies about which you're complaining.
I'd complain too if I had to ride those lines or if I was involved in their myriad of accidents.
RTD only runs about 60% of the routes.
The rest are run, operated and maintained by the private companies.
The majority of accidents and of drivers ticking y'all off are from the privates.
Give them a call.
And call the union since they keep giving work away to the private companies.
You know how the unions on a national level have caused millions of American jobs to go overseas and tons of companies and manufacturers to head out of the country and to the foreign nations?
Well, the same happens here at RTD - the union forces RTD jobs to be outsourced to the private companies.
And as you can see by the quality of the service y'all receive from these private companies...
So if you want to comment about a bus that while leased from RTD, but not operated or maintained by RTD, think twice, then think a third time and please don't waste your time writing.
The privates frustrate and make me just as sad as they do you.
They embarrass me so I'd rather not be associated with them and I'm not: I'm an RTD Driver.
Ok, enough said!
As Always, "Welcome aboard, find your seats - Let's Roll!"
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