The last stand of the Sound Transit light rail after the Apple Cup led to a public discussion about communication with public transport customers. Hopefully this conversation will continue. This is an important one.
Have you ever felt a touch of fate? A few weeks ago I decided to travel by public transportation from Seattle to visit the Kinsey Collection Exhibition at the Tacoma Museum of Art. (A fantastic show for a more in-depth understanding of African-American history. Gone now but you can check out Kinsey Collection Website.) It turned out to be a crazy look at the destination, a real look at communication with public transport customers.
It all started with my smug self meeting reality with a trip back to Seattle.
Observation # 1: We are very rebellious.
On the way home in the soft privacy of the Sound Transit bus buses, smugness raided me. Doing good to the environment and it was a breeze. Technology is revolutionizing the ability of public transportation customers to plan travel, make connections and get off at the right station. No glitch. Beyond the aisle I hear the two friends who had not seen each other for years but encountered each other as they boarded the plane. They really enjoy catching up. The new and timeless virtues of public transportation in full display.
So, deep into my small and pink world I settled down sufficiently. Then behind me comes this loud and combative voice. “Shut up!” Apparently, the good old days the friends are going through didn’t work out with everyone on the bus.
Humanity is the truly messy part of public transportation. Public transportation is one of the most complete public services. We the people are what makes the job difficult. The equipment, the programming, the planning, the timing, even the driving. easy. You will look so brilliant when you determine the reason for the stand on Apple Cup Day.
But customer service? This is not a world of certainty. I once tried to convince a planner that spending time and money on customer service would save the agency money in the long run. They did not buy it. Maybe they saw the reality of lack of control good from me and thought it would just throw good money after bad. Not an uncommon opinion. The practice of blaming riders, as was initially done by Sound Transit after the Apple Cup stand, is one of the typical results of holding this opinion.
Observation No. 2: Pat patty while rubbing the abdomen.
Back to riding. Now, of course, Sound Transit Route 594 travels at 1-5, so when that loud, belligerent voice penetrates my self-satisfied thoughts, we travel the freeway at 60 miles per hour on a bus that weighs a lot. And the rain came back. My arrogance diminishes as the check increases, lost friends do not take it well, and the driver remains focused on driving. Or at least that’s what I hope the driver does.
Which comes down to one of the biggest realities in communicating with public transportation customers. Things happen and it does not matter if you are running at the top of a long train of light rail carriages or a released bus driver on the highway. Harnessing the mass of metal in the space is your responsibility. Your mind must be driving. Safety comes first. Making time behind it. The two biggest factors in evaluating an operator’s work. And whenever an operator interacts with a rider, safety or timely performance can be compromised. A compromise that drivers are very aware of, and as a result a byproduct of this compromise. Accommodation in tension in the very human body of the drivers.
Observation # 3: “Do not step on me!”
At this point, the driver decides they need to do something. And so they lean against the microphone, their eyes still on the road, and say confidently, “All passengers have the right to speak on the bus. You can not expect your ride to be completely quiet.” Based on the Book of Laws.
Taking straight the number of rules is the driver’s choice. Makes a lot of sense. But it also opens the door to refute the driver’s understanding of the situation. The rider has his side in the story. Annoyingly, the narrative has a point of view.
You will notice that this driver takes it a step further, stating that the situation is a matter of individual rights. Now it’s wrapped up in something else that will not help. As Covid has so amazingly brought home to the world. For in this world, claiming a right is never without cost. I wonder if there is an alternative universe where this is not true? Because it means that in our world, right is a very precious thing that will never be yours. It will bring you face to face with others. And for all the uncertainty and complexity, anger and passion that will be released as a cost to whom or what works. In other words, standing up for a right will not get you anywhere fast that the driver really needs at this point.
Observation No. 4: Respect
Then the war of rights begins. Without a beat barely skipping, the loud and belligerent voice behind responds, “I have PTSD !!”
At this point, you can not help but feel sorry for the driver, but they turn around quickly, moving away from the number of rules to another alert. The driver moves on to a safe statement of rules for sedation. “Just sit back and we’ll get off the highway in 15. You’ll be fine.” Repeated several times in an attempt at a soothing mantra. (Quick reality check here. We’re probably a good 25 minutes away from hitting this ramp.) The rider shoots back, “**** you! Release me from the bus now!! ” (Emphasis of the rider.)
Insincerity can be sniffed by all of us, especially those for whom respect is a lack. Both sides are now throwing away the goodies. We are approaching dissolution. No one will lose respect on this bus, God. The driver makes one more axis.
Observation # 5: “Stretch your tent curtains sideways.”
In a last-ditch attempt to keep this bus rolling, the driver finally says the obvious. “Hi. I’m trying to drive this bus and keep us all safe. If you do not keep quiet, I’m going to get off at the next exit and dump you all Get off that bus! “(Emphasize the driver.)
Cubid put me in a biblical mood. It just looks like the Bible era. The quote above from Isaiah, read literally, refers to raising your offspring, but I have never been one for verbal interpretations. I see this as an act of community in a completely real world.
No more calling him. Be present and see what you have that can support life. Now this particular driver has fallen for this truth out of desperation, but who among us has not been late to understand it? The driver creates a temporary “bus village”. (A bit of a channel, but at this point, who cares.) In creating this village, the driver speaks from the depths for the first time. We’re all going to lose if we do not connect. The driver brings us back to reality and the need to think as a community.
Shalom prevailed for the rest of the trip.
Thoughts on these observations
We often try to solve messy human problems in cladding rather than structure. With a drop of powder and not with a warm smile. But the solutions lie deep. I remember interviewing a metro driver training manager many years ago. He intended to retire soon and summed up his biggest riddle after years of working with drivers, “You can teach people how to drive a bus but you can not teach them how to work with customers.”
And as the need for Sound Transit to improve their support for riders in times of emergency has become public, it’s clear that not only drivers can not be taught how to work with customers. So how then, a transportation agency ensures good communication with customers if the solution is not just another training module. Could it be as simple as faith? Belief in the possibility of a hidden seed for the community lurking in the rebellious part of humanity in the same car, bus or boat? Every day drivers cultivate the power of the community. Or run into him like my driver.
Simple, of course, is not the same as easy. Beliefs are deeply held and require cultivation within a trusted community. So the transition agency will have to be the same trusted community of believers in humanity.
Are these again just pink worldly things? If so, we need it. Our present world discovers that the soft arts are essential to our control if we want to hold on to our humanity. Recognizing the truth that humanity is made up of mind and soul and eliminating one or the other puts us in danger. But enough talking. D. H. Lawrence says it best in his poem, thought*.
Thought, I love thought. But not the haggling and twisting of already existent ideas I despise that self-important game. Thought is the welling up of unknown life into consciousness, Thought is the testing of statements on the touchstone of the conscience, Thought is gazing on to the face of life, and reading what can be read, Thought is pondering over experience, and coming to conclusion. Thought is not a trick, or an exercise, or a set of dodges, Thought is one person in their wholeness wholly attending. *The last line is modified to make it easier for us all to identify with the poet. Apologies D.H.L.