2 B, or not 2 B?

 In this case, the two Bs were bus and bike, and I didn't particularly like the answer. With the bumping of my neck, again, from my poor choice, certainly not the first, I've been riding the buses a bit. Conveniently, or possibly even fortuitously, the Massachusetts "Try Transit" promotion started on the day of my surgery, August 1st, so I've been riding buses for free, including the trips to Springfield for my surgery and my follow up four weeks later.

Yup, I've been trying transit, and I've found the experience, well, trying. Don't get me as wrong as I seem to get myself (in trouble), I'm truly happy that the transit option exists, and I even accept that it is generally slower than riding a bike, a reasonable reality. Buses are great, but I'm not inclined to give the local Pioneer Valley Transit Authority (PVTA) the same evaluation.

Running a transit system requires organization, but I'm not convinced that is a strength of the PVTA management. I first experienced the effect of this on the day before my surgery, when I bussed to stay with a friend in Northampton to take the commuter route to the hospital. Yes, there is a commuter bus that runs from Amherst, through Granby, then on to Springfield, but no, it doesn't arrive at a time reasonable for most commutes. The earliest bus arrives in Springfield at 10:35AM.

Luckily, my friend in Northampton hosted me to catch any number of express buses with early arrival in the city. I just needed to get there. Ok, check schedules, I could catch a bus in Granby then transfer at Hampshire College for a line running to Northampton, or so I thought. But no, when I started to board the van shuttle at Hampshire, the driver asked if I was a student, and when I replied, "No," I was refused entry because the shuttle van is for students only. What? Why? The PVTA schedule makes no mention of that. 

Waiting again for the bus line I originally rode from Granby to now continue to UMass, then transfer to a different, less direct, route to Northampton, I called PVTA customer service to suggest the schedule, and people using, would benefit from a note stating the shuttle van is for students only. That suggestion didn't work because I was told by customer service that, no, that wasn't true. Anyone was allowed to ride that the shuttle.

Sigh. Oh well, the next transit option to arrive was headed to UMass, and having been refused the earlier shuttle, the indirect route had become the faster, and more reliable option. I took the scenic route, for whatever amount of scenery downtown Amherst and the UMass campus could offer. The shuttle, that would wait for another day.

In the weeks after myself surgery, another day came along with another trip to Northampton, so I tried for the direct shuttle again. If at first you don't succeed, try, try transit again. Once again at Hampshire, I flag down the shuttle van that didn't seem to slow for the stop. This was because it was the same driver as earlier who apparently recognized me as the non-student, but with the van stopped, I explained that I had called PVTA customer service and was told I could ride the shuttle. When this was refuted, I asked that the driver call into a supervisor for clarity.

PVTA customer service and supervisor are not the same, and they apparently have different information, and the supervisor agreed with the driver, only students are allowed on the shuttle vans. I would need to use a bus, not a van, with the same route number, listed on the same schedule, with no written designation of which was which. If this seems a horribly bad lack of system to you, we agree. I waited again to again board the bus line I had again earlier departed. Yes, sigh.

But on the plus side, I was able to reschedule my follow up appointment last week from 9AM to early afternoon, which allowed me to ride the most direct non-commuter line from Granby to Springfield. That even arrived early enough for me to wander, including across the river, before the meeting that truly cleared me to drop transit and return to my bike.

But buses are great, and I am still recovering, and I am making a concerted effort to act smarter and not over do it, so yesterday, I decided to try the PVTA route from Amherst to Greenfield for a wander around the town where I completed my student teaching practicum for a teacher certificate, a burg a genuinely enjoy. No, the earliest bus there doesn't arrive in time for a 9AM commuter either, and service runs only every two hours or so, but with the addition of racks to the fronts of buses, I could bring my bike, ramble round town more rapidly, and rely on that rig as another route home if required.

The Amherst/Greenfield bus schedule,

 read it as you may.

Wrong. The bus to Greenfield is in fact another shuttle van, and vans don't have bike racks. Ok, quick choice, and willingness of the driver, who works for a subcontractor, not PVTA, to delay a few moments, I locked my bike at the bus stop. Of course PVTA never placed a sign there to let anyone know, including the driver who was new to the route. It was Google Maps that told me roughly where to wait, Faith in Google.

New to the route, that explained why when I first asked if the van was service to Greenfield, the answer was not immediately certain. It also explains why we took a very different route than the one showed on the PVTA schedule, not that those are a source of reliable information. It even explains why we arrived early at the third stop, having entirely skipped the second, trurned around for that, returned to the third again, and eventually made it to Greenfield about a half hour late. Yes, the driver went the wrong way, but it was PVTA who used an inexperienced driver who they sent without adequate preparation.

Greenfield is great! I really like the town and have always felt comfortable with the people there. In fact, part of my wander was to take a quick gander at a two family home there that intrigued me enough to at least look at it from the street. From there I recycled some cans I found on the street, chatted with a fellow walking his bike pulling two trailers connected in tandem (!!!, but I neglected to photograph it) then headed to the center of town and the fantastic Coop through a hidden entrance to Energy Park that I'd never noticed zipping through by bike. Yup, all speeds have their merits. I even had time to scope out the inside of the public library I'd previously neglected before returning to catch the 11:33 return bus via a quick perusal of the Salvation Army store.

Most longer distance bus routes have some margin built into the schedule, so while the morning run had run late, I figure there'd been a chance to recoup much of that, so I made sure to arrive back at the station on time. Wait, wait, and at 11:50 the shuttle van arrived. Seventeen minutes behind seemed reasonable, and right there, I knew to be suspicious, so I asked, "Are you headed back south to Amherst, or do you still need to complete the run up to the hospital and return again?" The reply: "I have to take a break to pee, but you can get on now, and we'll run up to the hospital."

I prefer outside to inside, especially the inside of a van, so I elected to wait 15 minutes for the return, even using some that time to grab a couple FRTA (Franklin Regional Transit Authority) schedules and ask the station customer service representative the question, "Are there any of your routes that operate buses without bike rack?" 

"No, but there are only three bike slots per bus and they are first come, first service. Also, some bikes with really wide tires won't fit."

"Wow, thank you for the complete and full answer! You're better organized than the PVTA, not that that would be hard to do."

Big smile, "Thank you!"

I knew I like Greenfield.