BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON President Trump plans to have a military parade in Washington, DC on his birthday, June 14, which also is Flag Day. While he is giving himself this grandiose present, Metro Transit is giving the Twin Cities, especially South Minneapolis, the present of better bus service starting…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON Metro Transit is facing one of the worst crises I’ve ever seen, and I’ve been a transit fanatic since the 1970s. This crisis isn’t caused by a lack of funding or ridership, but because of a shortage of drivers. Quite a few routes in the Southside…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON 9/11 changed long-distance transportation in America by causing the industry and its governmental partners/regulators to ramp up the “Security State.” Though the changes in airline travel are the most well-known, long-distance bus and train travel were affected as well. Amtrak and Greyhound both adopted ID requirements…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON This is the 50th year since public ownership of transit began in the Twin Cities. As such, I find it appropriate to go over the past decades and how the MTC (later MCTO and finally Metro Transit) has performed, and what should be in store in…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON Metro Transit’s last round of schedule changes took effect on Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019. Those changes were mostly minor adjustments. The biggest change was the reopening of 8th Street in downtown Minneapolis. The following is a list of changes that affect the Southside Pride readership area:…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON The Twin Cities Transit Riders’ Union (TRU) has been recently advocating that Metro Transit quit charging fares and become a free service, like the public library. In this column, I would like to discuss the pros and cons of free transit. First of all, free transit…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON It’s that time of year again: The State Fair is upon us, and after that, those of us who are between the ages of 6 and 18 get to go back to prison for the next nine months. It’s also time for one of the four…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON There are internet forums where people discuss every issue under the sun. Yes, even obscure subjects like public transit have their own online discussion groups. And, as you can guess, many people in those groups have the “transit vs. roads” or “transit vs. cars” misconception. Interestingly…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON While transit users in the Twin Cities rejoice at improvements such as the new C Line “over North,” many are still annoyed by the thinning out of “plain old bus service,” which has gradually occurred over the past few decades. While the Southside Pride readership area…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON Metro Transit has published the service changes for June 8, 2019, and I have some unofficial information to share about possible changes (and one sure one) coming in August. First, the changes that affect the Southside Pride readership directly are in June: Two additional morning trips…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON Metro Transit has recently announced an initiative to get control of bad behavior on our transit system, especially on the light rail trains. The idea is to make the system more appealing to “choice” riders—that is, those who have a choice as to whether or not…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON Aladdin promised new lamps for old. The federal government, despite Trump’s recalcitrance, has decided to fund new bus stops for old, including on Routes 5 and 21 in the Southside Pride readership area. Planned improvements for these stops include: new shelters with heat and lights, electronic…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON The infamous “pick” is upon us. That is, the time once every quarter of a year where Metro Transit adjusts its schedules and sends its drivers scurrying to new routes. The schedule changes in effect the 1st of December 2018 affecting the Southside Pride readership area…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON Bus riders of Franklin Avenue, REJOICE! As of the June 9th schedule change, the bridge over I-35W will be reopened. Route 2 will lose that pesky detour through Stevens Square and its customers will win five minutes of their lives back with every trip from one…
BY JOHN CHARLES WILSON Few Minnesotans know who Mark McLaughlin or Herman Liebelt were. For the safety of our transit operators, this is a crying shame. You see, on Black Friday 1998, in the mid-afternoon, Mr. McLaughlin was peacefully driving King County bus number 2106 with 34 passengers on board.…
