Our adventure began at the westbound stop for Bus 166, right across from the Des Moines Senior Activity Center, and \u2013 as it turned out \u2013 right beneath the flight path for planes descending to SeaTac airport.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ll pay the driver when you get on,\u201d explained transit instructor Lisa Johnston, shouting to be heard over the roar of jet engines.<\/p>\n
A year ago, waiting to catch a bus wouldn\u2019t have been on my Kent-to-Seattle travel agenda. But now, with gas prices creeping toward $5 a gallon, a $1.50 bus ticket looked pretty attractive.<\/p>\n
So here I was, along with 11 Des Moines-area seniors, ready to learn the ropes on Day 2 of a bus-travel training class, offered free for seniors through King County Metro. Day 1 was a seminar session, during which Johnston walked the class through the steps of reading the bus schedule, planning a trip, paying the bus fare, and making sure to catch the right bus.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re not sure (if it\u2019s your bus), ask the driver,\u201d Johnston reminded us. \u201cSometimes they forget to change their signs, and you don\u2019t want to wind up on the wrong bus.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a group transit instructor, Johnston regularly makes trips like this, taking groups of elderly or disabled adults on day trips to experience the system first-hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cMetro\u2019s idea is that people will learn how to ride the bus, and want to do it themselves,\u201d Johnston said.<\/p>\n
One of my fellow travelers was Des Moines resident Donna Ehrhard. Ehrhard said she wanted to learn how to use the bus system so that, once she\u2019s on a fixed income and can\u2019t afford her Honda Accord anymore, she\u2019ll still be able to get around.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m practicing so that I can take care of myself and be independent,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s an adventure. I haven\u2019t taken a bus for 20 years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Neighbors Donna Woods and Bronson Berg also came along for the trip. After yesterday\u2019s class, they were eager to put their newly acquired knowledge into practice.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m ready to go,\u201d said Woods, adding that Johnston had made the complex bus system \u201creal user-friendly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Berg agreed. \u201cShe gave us the keys to find things fast.\u201d<\/p>\n
Our bus came, and we boarded. Minutes later we hopped out again, switching onto Bus 132 across the street from the Des Moines QFC. It\u2019s not the quickest route into Seattle, but simpler than changing buses again in Burien, Johnston told us.<\/p>\n
I had almost forgotten what an interesting experience it is to ride a bus. One meets all sorts of people \u2014 nurses, airport staffers, sous chefs, young parents and old beggars, all crammed together cheek-by-jowl as the bus fills up on the way into the big city.<\/p>\n
Exciting, too. A fight very nearly broke out in the back of the bus over a girl playing her music too loud, but one of the antagonists got off the bus before it came to blows.<\/p>\n
We reached our destination, the corner of Fourth Avenue and University Street, without further incident.<\/p>\n
Johnston walked us to our rendezvous spot for the homeward bus \u2013 Third Avenue and Pike Street \u2013 and then we were free to roam the city.<\/p>\n
A few people took off for Pike Place Market immediately. Others headed out to find lunch and shade. I dined with several of the seniors in the Westlake Center food court. Over pizza and salads, the older women relived history for me \u2014 eating cereal with Karo Syrup drizzled on it in place of sugar during the Great Depression; rationing gasoline; growing all one\u2019s own produce.<\/p>\n
After lunch, Des Moines senior Cordy Barney toured me round Pike Place Market. We saw the fish merchants throwing fish, the street musicians singing out \u201cUnder the Boardwalk\u201d in a cappella harmony in front of the original Starbucks, and the rows and rows of fresh flowers and produce lining the street for the organic market.<\/p>\n
And then it was time to come home.<\/p>\n
Johnston had paid for the whole group herself on the way out; this time, she had us all pay for ourselves with pre-paid tickets, being sure to ask for a transfer pass at the same time.<\/p>\n
On the way into the city, we\u2019d paid as we boarded the bus in Des Moines. On the way back, because we were boarding in the downtown Seattle \u201cRide Free\u201d zone, we would pay when we disembarked. (Bus routes in downtown Seattle are free 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.)<\/p>\n
Thanks to a speedy trip back on express Bus 121, we made it to our last bus stop with ten minutes to spare before Bus 166 was due to arrive. We waited, keeping eyes peeled for our bus. Right on time, a bus drove up the hill \u2014 but it was Bus 164. Not our bus. We waved to it as it swooshed by. And then we waited. And waited. And waited.<\/p>\n
\u201cI bet that was our bus,\u201d Ehrhard said. She guessed that the driver might have forgotten to change the electronic sign.<\/p>\n
A half hour later, the next Bus 166 came, and the driver confirmed Ehrhard\u2019s suspicions. Bus route 164 doesn\u2019t come up this street, so it had to have been our bus. Well, we\u2019d learned our lesson: always, always ask.<\/p>\n
Minutes later, we were stepping off the bus in front of the Des Moines Senior Activity Center.<\/p>\n
We\u2019d done it: ridden the bus all the way to Seattle and back. And it was both easy and cheap. For me, the ride out cost $1.50. The ride back, during peak travel hours, cost $2.25. For those seniors with senior bus passes, the cost was only 50 cents each way. And no parking fees.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith a few pointers, this is easy,\u201d Johnston said. \u201cBut those few pointers can make all the difference.\u201d<\/p>\n
I wish I could say that after this excursion, I\u2019ve parked my car permanently and started taking the bus everywhere. I haven\u2019t … and for everyday travel, I probably won\u2019t. My comfy, air-conditioned car, and the flexibility of being able to drive anywhere at any time, is too convenient to give up for the sake of saving a little cash.<\/p>\n
But the next time I want to take a day trip to Seattle, or go somewhere when I\u2019m not pressed for time, I\u2019ll be looking at the bus schedules.<\/p>\n
Bus travel tips<\/b><\/p>\n
\u2022 Use Metro\u2019s online trip planner to plot out your route ahead of time. (Go to www.kingcounty.gov\/transportation, and click on \u201cTransit\u201d)<\/p>\n
\u2022 Buy packs of pre-paid bus tickets at most QFC and Bartell Drugs stores. They come in 20-packs of 50 cent to $2.25 tickets.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Take a class. Anyone 65 or older, or younger with a disability, can get free bus training (group or individual) through King County Metro. Info: 206-749-4242.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Find a bus-buddy. Riding with someone who already knows the ropes makes learning the system much easier.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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