Mayor Ron Dellums released his proposed city budget late yesterday, and as predicted, it ain’t pretty. The Mayor proposed, among other things, cutting 140 police officers, rotating library closures, shutting some parks, mandating nearly a month of furlough days and laying off nearly 250 city employees. To the Mayor’s credit, the budget is more or [...]
Busline Blog
Busline Blog: Oakland budget miscellany
April 25, 2009 – 2:46 pm
A few Oakland budget extras, for those of you who follow those sorts of things. First, the city has come up with a nifty interactive game you can play to try to balance the budget yourself, complete with fun budget facts. Check it out here if stepping up to the mic isn’t your style. Second, [...]
Busline Blog: Bye bye car
April 11, 2009 – 1:35 pm
I swore I’d never give up my car. Until I did. Is that the sound of my heart breaking?
Busline Blog: Telegraph at Sunrise
March 13, 2009 – 3:34 pm
When I first started riding the bus in the very early morning, I had an idea that I’d be the only person riding. The streets in Oakland are silent in the gray dawn. I pictured climbing a lonely bus, sitting by the window and watching the sun come up.
I realized how wrong I was as [...]
Busline Blog: You may as well just give them the $2
March 11, 2009 – 10:05 pm
AC Transit is considering raising fares to $2/ride, the much -advertised Measure VV be damned. Look on the bright side: if fares go up, you can save those quarters for laundry.
Busline Blog: Fix the 51 this week
March 9, 2009 – 12:15 am
Signs are up all over town announcing a series of open houses AC Transit is holding to try and sort out problems with the 51 bus. As someone who’s watched in amazement as not one, not two or three, but five 51 buses pass by within one or two minutes, I think this discussion seems [...]
Busline Blog: Perilous Rides
March 5, 2009 – 7:03 pm
Yesterday morning a bus was in an accident around 12th and Webster streets in downtown Oakland; a driver ran a red light and barreled straight into the bus. No injuries were reported, though moderate damage was reported to both the bus and the vehicle.
The accident follows an incident last weekend in which a man was [...]
Busline Blog: Overheard on the 1R
February 27, 2009 – 2:19 pm
A thing I love about Bay Area public transport is the consistency with which people treat buses and trains like personal living rooms. This covers everything from personal hygiene—applying makeup, removing makeup, clipping fingernails—to the All Time Most Annoying Thing Anyone Can Do, which is listen, loudly, to every single ring tone on their cell [...]
Welcome to the Busline Blog…
February 26, 2009 – 6:27 pm
… your source for all things AC Transit. As I’m sure many of you know, some crazy stuff happens on those buses. I ride the bus a lot, so I’ll be sharing anecdotes, observations, and things overheard. But I can only be so many places at once, and I know all of you have some [...]