ikarus8737 (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} ikarus8737) wrote in ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} octranspo,@ 2006-10-29 15:19:00 |
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OC Transpo 101
I've realized that a lot of people don't know how to use the bus system properly and if they did, they would find it a whole lot less frustrating. Here are some tips and then other veteran drivers/riders can add to them. I'm only speaking of route navigation here, not etiquette.
1. Keep moving:
Don't wait for a specific route to come along when you have other choices that will take you in the right direction. Take that bus as far as you can to a place where you have more options. The bus you are waiting for might be late or full.
Example: If you want the #2 or #7 on Rideau and you're going to Bank st. take the 14, 18, 306 to the Rideau Center where you can also catch a #1 or #4. Or if you are waiting for a #2 Blair at Richmond and Woodroffe take the #18 or #87 to Westboro where the #2 leaves every 12 minutes instead of every half hour.
Another reason to keep moving is that sometimes if a bus is late or breaks down, OC control may insert and extra down the line from where you are waiting: let's say a 97 Airport breaks down at Lebreton station, OC control may only cover the trip from South-Keys station to the Airport, so you should always take the 97X South-Keys if it comes first and wait at the last stop for the Airport bus.
2.Don't wait for a bus that will take you right to the door if you can take one that will bring you within a few blocks:
Example: A lot of people wait for the #4 at the Rideau Center to go to the Bus Station when it's only a 3 minute walk from the #1 or #7. Don't wait for the #128 to show up if the #125 comes first and it's a 5 minute walk in from Innes.
3. Take the slower route to get to a destination if it comes first:
Example: If you're at Westboro going to Bayshore, the 97 arrives in 2 minutes and the 96 arrives in 10 minutes, take the 97 even though it takes 7 minutes longer to get to Bayshore.
4. Don't be afraid to backtrack:
Sometimes it's better to overshoot your destination and transfer than to take one route there directly.
Example: You're going to Montreal and Bathgate from downtown. It's probably faster and less exhausting to take any bus to Blair and then the #2 or #129 to Bathgate than to take the #2 all the way from downtown.
5. Alternatives:
There are lots of routes that will take you where you want to go but you don't know about them. Check out a route map or the OC website to see all the routes that will take you along the way to your destination.
Examples: The 101 follows the same route as the 95 from Hurdman to Orleans. It's also a fast way to go from west to east and vice versa. If you are waiting on Carling eastbound between Bayshore and Lincoln and a 182 comes along, take it. It's less crowded than the 85 and 97 and it takes the transitway from Lincoln to Lebreton & sometimes Hurdman. The 116 will take you from South-Keys to Hurdman during the afternoon rush hour...no need to stuff yourself on a 97.
6. Don't stuff yourself on a bus unless you have to/check if there is another bus coming right behind before you stuff yourself on.
Example: If you're waiting with the hordes at Campus station going to Orleans, take the first non stuffed bus that comes along to Hurdman and wait for a 95 or 101 there. The buses empty out a bit at Hurdman. Instead of stuffing yourself onto a #76, take the 95 to Fallowfield and wait for the 76 or a local there. Before you stuff yourself on a bus, look and see if there is another one right behind. I once drove a full number 2 with an empty one right behind and stopped way past a stop so that I could let off passengers while allowing the empty #2 to pull up to the stop. The idiots at the stop all ran up to my bus, got mad at me for pulling up past their stop, shoe-horned themselves on my bus while an opulent, empty number 2 was right there for them.
I've realized that a lot of people don't know how to use the bus system properly and if they did, they would find it a whole lot less frustrating. Here are some tips and then other veteran drivers/riders can add to them. I'm only speaking of route navigation here, not etiquette.
1. Keep moving:
Don't wait for a specific route to come along when you have other choices that will take you in the right direction. Take that bus as far as you can to a place where you have more options. The bus you are waiting for might be late or full.
Example: If you want the #2 or #7 on Rideau and you're going to Bank st. take the 14, 18, 306 to the Rideau Center where you can also catch a #1 or #4. Or if you are waiting for a #2 Blair at Richmond and Woodroffe take the #18 or #87 to Westboro where the #2 leaves every 12 minutes instead of every half hour.
Another reason to keep moving is that sometimes if a bus is late or breaks down, OC control may insert and extra down the line from where you are waiting: let's say a 97 Airport breaks down at Lebreton station, OC control may only cover the trip from South-Keys station to the Airport, so you should always take the 97X South-Keys if it comes first and wait at the last stop for the Airport bus.
2.Don't wait for a bus that will take you right to the door if you can take one that will bring you within a few blocks:
Example: A lot of people wait for the #4 at the Rideau Center to go to the Bus Station when it's only a 3 minute walk from the #1 or #7. Don't wait for the #128 to show up if the #125 comes first and it's a 5 minute walk in from Innes.
3. Take the slower route to get to a destination if it comes first:
Example: If you're at Westboro going to Bayshore, the 97 arrives in 2 minutes and the 96 arrives in 10 minutes, take the 97 even though it takes 7 minutes longer to get to Bayshore.
4. Don't be afraid to backtrack:
Sometimes it's better to overshoot your destination and transfer than to take one route there directly.
Example: You're going to Montreal and Bathgate from downtown. It's probably faster and less exhausting to take any bus to Blair and then the #2 or #129 to Bathgate than to take the #2 all the way from downtown.
5. Alternatives:
There are lots of routes that will take you where you want to go but you don't know about them. Check out a route map or the OC website to see all the routes that will take you along the way to your destination.
Examples: The 101 follows the same route as the 95 from Hurdman to Orleans. It's also a fast way to go from west to east and vice versa. If you are waiting on Carling eastbound between Bayshore and Lincoln and a 182 comes along, take it. It's less crowded than the 85 and 97 and it takes the transitway from Lincoln to Lebreton & sometimes Hurdman. The 116 will take you from South-Keys to Hurdman during the afternoon rush hour...no need to stuff yourself on a 97.
6. Don't stuff yourself on a bus unless you have to/check if there is another bus coming right behind before you stuff yourself on.
Example: If you're waiting with the hordes at Campus station going to Orleans, take the first non stuffed bus that comes along to Hurdman and wait for a 95 or 101 there. The buses empty out a bit at Hurdman. Instead of stuffing yourself onto a #76, take the 95 to Fallowfield and wait for the 76 or a local there. Before you stuff yourself on a bus, look and see if there is another one right behind. I once drove a full number 2 with an empty one right behind and stopped way past a stop so that I could let off passengers while allowing the empty #2 to pull up to the stop. The idiots at the stop all ran up to my bus, got mad at me for pulling up past their stop, shoe-horned themselves on my bus while an opulent, empty number 2 was right there for them.
