America’s Sorriest Bus Stop: San Diego vs. Seattle
We’re moving on to the round of eight in our Sorriest Bus Stop in America bracket.
The cities in our Shameful Eight are Tampa, Pittsburgh, Chapel Hill, Seattle, San Diego, Englewood (NJ), and Munhall, Pennsylvania. And there’s still one more day to vote either St. Louis or Omaha into the final slot.
Today, two West Coast contenders pair up in the first match of the second round.
San Diego
After this stop, in San Diego’s Mission Valley, faced off against Commerce, California, in the first round, the local ABC affiliate went out to investigate. San Diego’s Metropolitan Transit System said it discontinued the route in April. But one woman told reporters she still uses the stop to board the bus. Only this week did the transit agency go out and remove the sign:
It’s not clear exactly how service was adjusted (did the whole route change or just this stop?), but merely eliminating a stop doesn’t really address the underlying issue of dangerous, unwalkable streets and uncomfortable waiting conditions — which isn’t the fault of the transit agency so much as the local transportation department.
I spoke to San Diego reporter Michael Turko about this stop, and he said there’s not another good option nearby. People like the Korean immigrant interviewed by Channel 10 will now have to walk more than a mile to catch the bus, according to Turko.
Responsible agencies: San Diego MTS, San Diego Streets Division.
Seattle
This tiny sliver of dirt between a Seattle highway and an active railroad track beat a bus stop Fremont, California, in the first round — by a lot. One reader informed us that at least the trains pass by slowly at this particular location, an industrial area south of the city.
This overhead view shows South Seattle College on one side of the street and the industrial zone on the other.
Responsible agencies: King County Metro, Washington DOT
Vote to decide which is worthy of the Final Four.
Which bus stop is the sorriest?
- Seattle (65%, 151 Votes)
- San Diego (35%, 82 Votes)
Total Voters: 233
I’m impressed that the San Diego ABC affiliate picked up on this story! I wonder whether they picked it up on their own or whether a tipster sent them a head up.
I love how San Diegans are so embarrassed to ride the bus they won’t show their face. The San Diego stop serves an auto oriented townhome complex. The Seattle one serves a community college.
The issue with so many of these isn’t with the transit agency (as has been pointed out) but with American land “use” practices of the last 75 years. That’s what needs to change.
What’s particularly sad in both of these instances is that these are local roads, which means they are funded through property & sales taxes paid by everyone. For roads of this width and caliber, the municipalities are certainly spending 3-5+ million dollars per mile, but there’s no room in the budget for the couple hundred bucks to install a bench?
I just wish people knew that most roads they drive & live on are local and paid for by everyone principally through property taxes. Then there wouldn’t be this outrageous & misguided entitlement by drivers – gas taxes only go to state and federal highways, and even then it doesn’t cover the full costs.
Too bad I didn’t know about this competition.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/688aff70c2b5294fcba804bee8c7be97b13682ed7ebc77476c75db3c426ade82.jpg .