Independence Day
Posted by Fred Jandt
Editor, Mass Transit
This Friday is the Fourth of July, celebrating Independence Day here in the United States. Of course, for a lot of people, this is the first big weekend of summer. Sure, summer usually starts when the school year ends, but all of those summer days are just leading up to the big show on July 4th.
Many cities across the nation are celebrating Independence Day with fairs, fireworks and usually a whole lot of fun. Of course, that usually flies out the window if you’re trying to drive to the local festival and a parking spot. I know I learned several new words from my father as we tried to find that ever-elusive parking spot as close to the local ballpark as possible.
Many of those same cities are planning options to get people where they want to go this Friday. Extra service is being planned, special routes and lengthened schedules are being put into play. With gas prices at $4, a holiday like this is a perfect time to get more people on board your system. But just make sure you don’t push them away in the process.
The influx of passengers can leave a bad transit taste in some people’s mouths if their first impression is of wall-to-wall sweaty (and possibly inebriated) people. That’s hardly the image you want prospective riders to have in their heads when they consider taking transit Monday morning.
And if making sure you have enough room for all the passengers this Friday, be sure you have the security you need as well. Last year our van got broken into on Fourth of July weekend. Nothing was stolen, but for the next month my wife had me investigating every noise she heard (or thought she heard). Rowdy riders returning from Fourth of July festivals have the potential to cause all sorts of problems. Be sure you’re prepared for all of them.
The Fourth of July can give most agencies a nice boost if they prepare themselves for it accordingly. Make sure your prospective customers are safe and comfortable on the fourth, and you may just have many of them return on the seventh!
Thanks for reading the MT Position updated every Friday,
July 9th, 2008 at 10:51 am
My children and I visited my family in Arlington Heights, IL for their 4th of July festival as we do every year. As we had the day free on Thursday, July 3rd, we decided to ‘hop the train’ to Chicago. For five adults and one child the cost for unlimited rides all day the 3rd and the 4th of July was only $15. My parents, who are senior citizens, were free of charge as was my 8 year old son since he was accompanying a fare paying adult. Had we decided to drive into the Windy City, the $15 would not have covered either the gas or the parking, let alone both.
Once we arrived in the city, we were able to take the free trolleys to any of the city’s main tourist destinations. As we waited in the very clean Ogilvie Transportation Center for our train back to the suburbs, we heard announcements of added trains out on two of the lines in their effort to reduce crowding on the trains. We had absolutely no complaints regarding either form of public transportation we took that day. Living in rural Wisconsin, with it’s lack of public transportation, we were even more appreciative of the excellent service we received at an excellent price.
Kudos to the transit authority in Chicago!!