GTA - Sardine cans on wheels...
For those of my fans that don't know our local public bus company here is GTA (Greensboro Transit Authority) the spend lot of money refurbishing and old railroad depot, and on a bunch of brightly painted mini buses for college students. And they have lots of board meetings and feel good get togethers to pat them selfs on the back for doing such a good job....
Last Sat I took my weekly bus ride over to Yancyville Rd... I took the Summit Ave (Rt 6) which was standing room only leaving the depot.
I caught the returning bus later that afternoon in front of the Guilford Co social services building.
By the time the bus got to Bessimer St it was totally packed ... I'm talking not even room for more to stand. We (the bus) pulled up to one bus stop with a dozen or so people waiting to tell them there was no room and another bus would be by in an hour.
GTA runs buses on Sat once per hour... period. Even during the weekday when they run every 30 mins theres usually standing room only on this route.
The Four Seasons mall Rt 2 is just as bad.
Maybe I'm soiled... having been born and raised in Albany,NY I got used to CDTA...
Ever 20 mins theres a bus, if its a crowded route they will run two buses together if needed.
Whatever needs to be done to keep customers from turning away or being late. From 5:30 am to 2:30am... theres always a bus coming soon.
Anyhow I was pissed and spent GTA my concerns.... heres what I sent and what came back.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note that email sent to and from this address is subject
to the North Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to
third parties.
Name: Art Cxxxxxxxx
Whats being done about rts. 6 & 2 being overcrowded and standing room only on the weekends.
This last sat I actually saw people left at bus stops because they simply wasn't anymore room to stand on the bus.
Operating a bus in this condition is DANGEROUS !
This came back...
Subject: Out of Office AutoReply: [Website feedback] - Rt 6 & 2
Date: Sat, 17 Nov 2007 23:28:49 -0500
From: Kevin.Elwood@greensboro-nc.gov
To: ascxxxxxxx@msn.com
I am out of the office until Tuesday, November 20.
For GDOT information, call 373-4368. For GTA or HEAT, call 373-7735.
For close to an hour I sat there and didn't see a single GTA employee or supervisor.
Even the old Wackenhut security guard didn't show up till the first bus appeared... good thing he wasn't needed.
I look forward to your reply to my question regarding what is being done about the overcrowding on Rt 6 & 2 so I can add it to the
story I'm working on for my blog and web group discussion of government mismanagement of Greensboro.
Last Sat I took my weekly bus ride over to Yancyville Rd... I took the Summit Ave (Rt 6) which was standing room only leaving the depot.
I caught the returning bus later that afternoon in front of the Guilford Co social services building.
By the time the bus got to Bessimer St it was totally packed ... I'm talking not even room for more to stand. We (the bus) pulled up to one bus stop with a dozen or so people waiting to tell them there was no room and another bus would be by in an hour.
GTA runs buses on Sat once per hour... period. Even during the weekday when they run every 30 mins theres usually standing room only on this route.
The Four Seasons mall Rt 2 is just as bad.
Maybe I'm soiled... having been born and raised in Albany,NY I got used to CDTA...
Ever 20 mins theres a bus, if its a crowded route they will run two buses together if needed.
Whatever needs to be done to keep customers from turning away or being late. From 5:30 am to 2:30am... theres always a bus coming soon.
Anyhow I was pissed and spent GTA my concerns.... heres what I sent and what came back.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Please note that email sent to and from this address is subject
to the North Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to
third parties.
Name: Art Cxxxxxxxx
Whats being done about rts. 6 & 2 being overcrowded and standing room only on the weekends.
This last sat I actually saw people left at bus stops because they simply wasn't anymore room to stand on the bus.
Operating a bus in this condition is DANGEROUS !
This came back...
Subject: Out of Office AutoReply: [Website feedback] - Rt 6 & 2
Date: Sat, 17 Nov 2007 23:28:49 -0500
From: Kevin.Elwood@greensboro-nc.gov
To: ascxxxxxxx@msn.com
I am out of the office until Tuesday, November 20.
For GDOT information, call 373-4368. For GTA or HEAT, call 373-7735.
From: Arthur Chartrand [mailto:aschartrand@msn.com]
Sent: Sun 11/18/2007 4:21 PM
To: Elwood, Kevin
Subject: RE: Out of Office AutoReply: [Website feedback] - Rt 6 & 2
See heres another problem... nobody is in the office... or at the window on sat at the depot.Sent: Sun 11/18/2007 4:21 PM
To: Elwood, Kevin
Subject: RE: Out of Office AutoReply: [Website feedback] - Rt 6 & 2
For close to an hour I sat there and didn't see a single GTA employee or supervisor.
Even the old Wackenhut security guard didn't show up till the first bus appeared... good thing he wasn't needed.
I look forward to your reply to my question regarding what is being done about the overcrowding on Rt 6 & 2 so I can add it to the
story I'm working on for my blog and web group discussion of government mismanagement of Greensboro.
| RE: Out of Office AutoReply: [Website feedback] - Rt 6 & 2 | |
| From: | Elwood, Kevin (Kevin.Elwood@greensboro-nc.gov) |
| Sent: | Tue 11/20/07 9:44 AM |
| To: | Arthur Cxxxxxxxx (ascxxxxxx@msn.com) |
| Cc: | Adams, Bruce (Bruce.Adams@greensboro-nc.gov); James, Libby (Libby.James@greensboro-nc.gov); Linney, George (George.Linney@greensboro-nc.gov); Nichols, Nancy (Nancy.Nichols@greensboro-nc.gov); Pittman, Dionne A (Dionne.Pittman@greensboro-nc.gov) |
Mr. Cxxxxxxxxx,
Thank you for your comments regarding GTA Routes 6 & 2. It is unfortunate that no one was at the customer service window at the particular time of your visit, but that is the reason that we offer multiple points of contact, and as you see, your concerns have reached the appropriate ears.
I am forwarding your concerns to our transit planners and other appropriate staff who will look into the issues you have raised. Thank you again for voicing your concern.
Kevin Elwood
Greensboro Transit Authority
So there you have it... seems GTA has no plans of doing anything about the Rt 2 & 6 problem...
they send it to a planning board to discuss...
we'll see... I doubt anything will be done.
I don't see GTA running two buses back to back , I don't see them making the RT 6 bus a 30 min bus all the time. After all the majority of the riders are black, the route goes to the black neighborhoods so...
But we'll see.
So there you have it... seems GTA has no plans of doing anything about the Rt 2 & 6 problem...
they send it to a planning board to discuss...
we'll see... I doubt anything will be done.
I don't see GTA running two buses back to back , I don't see them making the RT 6 bus a 30 min bus all the time. After all the majority of the riders are black, the route goes to the black neighborhoods so...
But we'll see.
posted by Unknown at 8:47 PM
2 Comments:
Sundance, I strongly believe that public transportation should be supported by government, as it is in numerous countries around the world. Good government, in my opinion, will do everything that it can to take care of its less-fortunate citizens and provide extensive services for everyone else (rich, poor, and in-between), while at the same time, government agencies offer opportunities for others to receive helping hands until they are completely able to take care of themselves (that is what any decent person would do!). In that vein, public transit is a necessity, and the Greensboro city government should work with its transit division to make sure that every customer (the people who ride the bus) is getting on and off buses driven by courteous and professional staff, traveling on a bus system that saturates all areas of the city, and riding in buses that arrive and leave on time. GTA should increase the frequency of arrivals and numbers of buses running on each route based on real-time passenger numbers, and schedule service every day of the year, including holidays. I like the 2-or-more bus practice in Albany, New York! And it would be sweet, if GTA would schedule buses every 20 minutes, on every route. There is a strong reason WHY a lot of people continue to AVOID parking their personal vehicles to ride the bus! This is not only a Greensboro problem: All of the Triad agencies (GTA, Hi-Tran, WSTA, and PART) are running on systems that need some kind of upgrading, ESPECIALLY during the weekends! High Point and Winston-Salem offer NO Sunday service, and PART only schedules Sunday buses between the Triad and Boone.... What's wrong with this picture? Thanks for sharing.
Jonathan, thanks for you reply and I agree with you. The city should have a effective public transit system.
Sadly what we in Greensboro have is GTA. Since my original post GTA has split the six route and started the 15 route. I no longer make the weekly trek to Yanceyville Rd so I have not rode either of the routes.
I have seen full buses still and been on the Rt2 which at times is another sardine can on wheels.
GTA needs overhauling... they need to look at who rides the buses and where they go to more closely.
They also need to get away from this HUB system they seem to love so much.
If I was in charge of GTA I would look into running the buses every 20 mins with one extra bus on every route (except the connectors).
And the major routes would not be held waiting for every route to get back to the depot before leaving.
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