Mid-West Mass Transit

One of my favorite parts of my work day in Denver used to be the commute. I loved riding RTD. It was one time of the day when someone took care of me, "Sit back, relax, allow us to drive you home." Don't mind if I do.

So when I visited the campus last spring, I was thrilled to see so many buses abounding the city. There are free campus buses and affordable city buses. I knew I'd be right at home whatever my commute entailed. Although I can pleasantly walk to campus, I choose to ride the bus for the sake of time and convenience.

In Denver, I developed a quiet bond with my bus drivers. Not that I really ever knew their names, but I recognized them and they recognized me. Bus driving in Denver (and I would surmise most other cities as well) is considered more blue collar work, probably requiring a GED and a CDL. Here, college students drive the buses. Although as a student, I'm sure bus driving is actually a pretty good gig. It probably pays a bit better than other college town jobs and schedules well into a college student's calendar.

I'm not used to seeing white college kids driving buses. So I was caught a little off-guard last night when my bus pulled up and the bus driver was kinda cute. He engaged the regulars in friendly conversation and even politely listened as a disabled man extolled the virtues of Sarah Palin. When the conversation moved to food, the bus driver started to much on bell pepper strips. After awhile the bus was more empty and he listened to the radio, Democaracy Now of course. As other students got on, he recapped the reports to them, and they all bantered about McCarthyism, China and police brutality. Seriously, where else do cute bus drivers eat pepper strips, listen to Democracy Now and engage in philosophical conversations? This is officially a liberal college town.

For me, culture shock has played itself out more on the bus than anywhere else. I line up every morning with approximately 10-15 other students at the bus stop. Maybe half are from other countries. We all file onto the bus, and the young curly haired bus driver sips coffee out of her travel mug, like she is casually watching traffic go by from a porch. Mostly I get a seat, sometimes I don't when it is raining and the bus is packed. People are usually pretty social and you can strike up conversations if you like. For being a well educated ridership, I was initially surprised by how many people don't read on the bus. Then after about day four of school I realized why. The bus offers us all a bit of respite, it is fifteen minutes of our day that we can just space out or get lost in our own thought, we don't have to read on the bus, so we don't. I tend to space out a lot or listen to others' conversations. This morning I almost missed my stop because I was admiring poetry written by a 7th grader displayed on the bus as part of a poetry in public places project. I always look for the poetry on the bus every morning.

Disembarking the bus is also where my "fast paced" city expectations clash with mid-west ways. After I pull the chord to exit the bus, I usually stand and surf my way toward the front of the moving bus to facilitate and expeditious stop. It doesn't work that way here. The first time I did that people looked at me as if I had never ridden a bus before, like "where do you think you are going?" Here, you wait until the bus has come to a full and complete stop, like an airplane at the jet bridge, only then do you leave your seat. Likewise, the bus driver won't leave the stop until everyone is completely seated. What a progressive way to ride.