Now What Will Bus Riders Do?

The monsoons came and cooled down my desert home for quite a few days and nights. That makes waiting on a bus a pleasure, cool desert breeze, low humidity, clouds rolling in promising a late afternoon or evening shower. One can let one’s mind wander and the half an hour maximum of wait time for a bus is gone before you know it.

You get on, the bus driver takes your fare with a smile and a "Need a transfer?" and off you go across town. The bus in a large city is a big assistance to everyone and in times of financial crisis or if families only own one vehicle, it becomes their lifeline to the rest of the community.

There was not much a warning that the buses were going to strike. Apparently, the unions were negotiating and the drivers may have known something but the first the residents of Tucson heard of a possible strike was on Saturday July 31, 2010. Then on Monday 2 August, there were only six or seven of the bus lines running and only from six in the morning to seven o'clock at night! If you get out of class at ten PM or if you are working in a restaurant until nearly midnight how do you get back home?
August 2011 update: not sure if this summer is better than when the season of strike was here...now the public transportatio prices have gone up considerably. A monthly bus pass that was $32.00/month is now $42.00/month. The all day pass went from $3.50 to $4.75. One way ticket is now $1.50 instead of $1.25 and no word yet on whether a transfer will now cost money;it was free once the one way ticket was paid.

barbara bethard