Nashville station investigates Greyhound treatment of passengers, driver comments on situation

Since Greyhound was sold in 2021, the Greyhound passenger experience has deteriorated considerably. Although they still service Erie, they permanently moved out of the Intermodal Center in 2022 without even telling landlord EMTA what they were doing.

A Nashville TV station recently did an investigation on the situation, and in their November 18th report they share comments from a Greyhound driver, as well as the awful response from regulating agencies. 

Intercity bus service is important to a lot of people, and to the country as well. Understood that the pandemic would have caused some problems but the new Greyhound owners need to be held accountable for some really irresponsible and negligent behavior. 

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Greyhound responds to FOX 17 News for the first time since passenger complaints by Kaitlin Miller WZTV November 18th 2024 Updated Tue, November 19th 2024  https://fox17.com/news/local/greyhound-responds-to-fox-17-news-for-the-first-time-since-passenger-complaints 

I take the Presque Isle Express and visit Beach 8

I took EMTA's Presque Isle Express last Saturday. I visited Beach 8, which I can't ever remember ever spending any time at. I have never been into hanging out at the beach, and this is a really "beachy" area. But it was a gorgeous day and the lake was beautiful. I wanted to check out a few things, especially related to accessibility, here you go.

 Click on photos to enlarge 

Beach wheelchairs available at Beach 8 and Public Safety Building (Ranger Station), Free, first come first serve, ID required. Info: Ranger station 814-833-1495 or Park office at TREC 814-833-7424  https://www.discoverpi.com/projects/beach-wheelchairs  

Concrete ramp and deck at east end of Beach 8, near lifeguard chair. 

Soft ramp at east end of Beach 8. I don't know the story about the tent at the end, if the park put it there or if some less than considerate person set up camp there.

New solar panels in parking area provide electricity to the park and shade keeps vehicles cooler

Food Trucks They've had trouble with the concession stands since COVID, now they are allowing Food Trucks. Call Ranger Station for which trucks are where. 

Sign heading east toward Beach 7: cars etc. stay left, pedestrians & bikes stay right. 

Accessible beach area at Beach 7 (just east of Beach 8). Paved pathway (above) and accessible large shady deck area (below) 

Other areas on Park:

 Accessibility at Waterworks area at Presque Isle July 31, 2022 A couple years ago wrote about accessibility at the Waterworks/Cookhouse/Beach 7 area a couple years ago, if you want that sort of into:

Beach 11: Quick look at Accessibility  posted on Facebook June 2023. I checked this out because EMTA Presque Isle Express was running a bus shuttle to the Wednesday concerts at this beach. 

More Presque Isle info:

Presque Isle  info from DCNR

Accessible Erie: Presque Isle State Parke from Accessible Erie A project of Voices for Independence

New Bike lanes start and end at 10th & French stop

 

The lanes go from 10th & French westbound over West 10th. There is a separate eastbound lane that goes back over West 10th and ends at 10th & French. 

Apartment hunting for transit users

Apartment hunters, here are a few words and tips about the Facebook marketplace features for walkers, bikers, and Transit users.

These are helpful but sometimes not exactly accurate IMHO

For example, I've chosen an address right by 8th and Cherry, (which I've highlighted in yellow.) I'm very familiar with the area so I'm also familiar with the transit situation. See screen capture below.

Transit Score™ (highlighted in green) offers a score that sometimes doesn't seem to be that accurate. I would actually rate this address pretty high in terms of transit availability, yet the score they give it is only 41 out of 100. For instance from 8th and Cherry address there are four bus routes: Routes 4 and 30 on West 10th and Route 31 and 32 on West 6th. These are each very close by at least for my purposes. It seems to be a very transit-friendly location (.2 mile/4 min on foot) and I would think deserves a higher rating than they gave it

Below the scores is a "Nearby Transit" feature (in red highlight).

This is very helpful and usually quite accurate in telling you what which routes are near an address. 

For this particular address, however, I was surprised because it tells readers that for that -- although both 31 and 32 stop at West 6th and Cherry, the feature tells them to go to the Gridley Park shelter corner (.4 mi/9 min)

The scores and the transit info come from a national organization so I guess they could miss things that a local concern wouldn't. For me it wasn't a biggie just be aware.. it's still pretty helpful. (click/tap to enlarge)

 

Map

Also if you want housing on a particular route, open up the map (next photo) and click on the addresses being offered on that route. Click on a listing for further info and photos

Erie's Transitway Mall 1973-1993

Erie's Transitway Mall was built in 1973, and demolished in 1993. If you'd like to know more, check out these sources:

Lou Tullio's Transitway Mall  by Debbi Lyon, Old Time Erie Feb. 14, 2014

The Complicated Saga of Downtown Erie's Transitway Mall  Ed Whitbred, B..S. Presentation at Jefferson Educational Society July 19, 2023

Transitway Mall  Erie's History and Memorabilia 

Flashback Friday – April 1993, Demolition of Transitway Mall (YourErie June 2013) 

Transitways   National Association of City Transportation Officials

A month's worth of EMTA email rider alerts

I have been trying out the EMTA email rider alerts that you can sign up for in MyStop. 

The alerts are the same as those posted on the MyStop site, except they come to your email.

There is a text option but it was not working in the three times I signed up. I'm not sure what the problem is, but if it is available, EMTA needs to activate it, since a lot of riders would find it more useful than the emails.

I tried it out in three different email accounts. The screenshot below was from an account I signed up for January 26, 2023, and I stopped it at February 26. As far as I can I received them all, though it seemed like there was a curious gap for a couple weeks, maybe everything was running smoothly. 

Delivery issues

Alerts coming to each of the three email accounts had delivery issues. Outlook and Gmail sometimes delivered the alerts to another file. Yahoo Mail is still posting every single alert at 12:00 AM. ... every single one. None of them ended up in Spam so far. Again, having the text alert option might eliminate this goofiness.

Another advantage to alerts delivered to your device

Having an alert delivered to your device gives you a record of an issue that might have caused you a problem with getting somewhere. Your employer, instructor, doctor, etc., might accept your excuse a little more readily if you show them the alert that made you late. The alerts on the MyStop page disappear as soon as they are over, but you have the alert as a record. 

Click here for instructions on how to sign up for alerts

Click to enlarge  

GREYHOUND TO OPEN TEMPORARILY

 With an extreme storm headed our way, EMTA and the county have made arrangements to open the  Greyhound terminal temporarily. The county will provide security while it is open.

Greyhound's new management shut down the terminal earlier this year and since they are still paying on the lease EMTA (which owns the property) has been unable to access the lobby. 

Below is the press release.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Contact: Chris Carroll December 22, 2022 Phone: (814) -860-0794 Email: ccarroll@eriecountypa.gov

 

ERIE COUNTY EXECUTIVE AND EMTA STRIKE DEAL TO TEMPORARILY REOPEN GREYHOUND BUS TICKET OFFICE 

ERIE, PA – Erie County Executive Brenton Davis and EMTA CEO Jeremy Peterson have reached an agreement that will temporarily reopen the Greyhound bus ticket office.

 Ahead of the winter storms and the holiday season, neither the County nor EMTA wanted to see anyone stuck out in inclement weather waiting for a bus. The County has offered to lend its security service from the Blasco Memorial Library to provide regular security patrols during business hours. 

Greyhound's local office has remained locked and closed because Greyhound no longer has a ticket agent in the office. Greyhound Lines is currently a tenant in the Intermodal Transportation Center.

 “This is something we needed to get done. We simply cannot have our residents sitting outside in below freezing temperatures with no access to facilities. I commend EMTA for their efforts in helping to solve this problem,” said Erie County Executive Brenton Davis. 

“Due to the unfortunate condition that Greyhound has left us, EMTA and Erie County Executive Davis have collaborated on an idea that will help Greyhound customers utilize the existing Greyhound station and it’s facility starting Friday morning. Facility hours will be announced today,” said EMTA CEO Jeremy Peterson. 

The agreement is currently only temporary and there is no timeframe as to how long this will last. Talks are still ongoing about how to solve this problem permanently.

 Any questions regarding the material in the release can be directed to Chris Carroll at ccarroll@eriecoutypa.gov or Sarah Morrison at smorrison@ride-the-e.com

New shelter schedules easier to read

 The printing on the new shelter schedules is a lot clearer.

Routes that were out of order have been corrected as well.

These schedules are helpful, especially for people who might not be familiar with how the buses run, so making them easier to use is very important. 

Erie Greyhound station update

The Greyhound station is still closed, though still served by Greyhound buses.. At least to the best of my knowledge, Greyhound has not communicated their plans in Erie, or if they have any plans to speak of.  

Efforts to address situation

At June EMTA board meeting Dave Robinson EMTA (Community & Governmental Relations) said he was working on the issue with with City Council President Liz Allen, and City Councilwoman Jasmine Flores, city council liaison to EMTA.

Haven't heard if Visit Erie has been involved, but they should be. Not a good first experience for visitors or newcomers. 

Change in status

The Greyhound site now describes the Erie stop as a "Curbside stop" and carries the message "Effective May 1, 2022 this location will no longer have local staff available. If you need to purchase a ticket via Credit Card or Cash, go to Greyhound.com" Here is the Greyhound Erie PA page. The page  states that the stop is open 24 hours a day, which is a tad misleading. 

Shelter, restrooms and safety

Several local people have suggested at least at this point the need for porta john and some sort of shelter for passengers waiting for buses. This was also discussed at last month's EMTA board meeting.

Also, it seems to me that if Greyhound has no intention of returning to the Intermodal Center, it would be worth considering moving the stop elsewhere. As pleasant as a bayside stop is in the warm weather, that will soon change. Also there might be other locales that could provide shelter, restrooms and safety ... all of which are problematic at the present location. 

Customers also need to know how to buy tickets without having to go online. I see the info sheet inside the Intermodal door says you can buy tickets at: CVS, Family Dollar and Walmart (local stores) and others that are not available locally are 7-Eleven, Ace Cash Express, and Casey's. I also saw cash pay info on their website, but it flashed so quickly (literally a fraction of a second) that I had to video it to get a screenshot (see below). The cash pay information flashed after I clicked on "Buy Tickets" After some very specific searches I did find the info online here ... dated March 3 of his year, so I guess this move away from staffed locations goes beyond our local situation. 

Backgrounder:

Greyhound bus ticket office closed in Erie; buses are still running

Greyhound's Erie PA page 

Photos of building are from June 23, 2022 and July 5, 2022. Greyhound website screenshots from June 28, 2022. Click to enlarge

Editing notes:

Slightly edited for clarity 7/23/2022

CLICK PHOTOS TO ENLARGE

Current waiting area. Two benches, some rain protection, pay phone removed long ago. 

Looking through window, east wall, signs still up

Looking through the locked doors from inside the west side of the building. 

Information from website could be confusing. "Open 24 hours"?

Notice on Greyhound website 

Company website offers where to buy tickets with CASH, but it literally flashes so fast (literally a fraction of a second) I had to video it to be able to get a screenshot.

Buses still arrive and depart but station now considered "curbside" 

I am assuming it was EMTA who had to post these notices advising Greyhound's confused customers

One letter sized notice on back door. Tinted glass makes it hard to see, easy to miss 

Not much of a welcome. 

Alcohol abusers hanging out at bus stops

10th & Peach bar stool, 3pm weekday. Riders had to stand.

Let me just start with this. I struggled with alcohol abuse for 15 years. It did not take this public  form, but I know very well what it is like to have an addiction and not be able to just walk away from it. I also know that I would not have wanted to spend time around the drunken me…not then, and not now.

And it can’t be said that I won the battle. I just aged out of it. My body changed, and with it, my ability to abuse alcohol.

So do not even start with me about being judgmental about their drinking. The only thing I am addressing here is people who use the bus benches and shelters for drinking hangouts.

Like most riders, I just don’t like the idea of people using the bus stop benches as bar stools and gathering spots. And it has become worse since the city has been routing inebriated persons from the parks.

The obvious issue is, if someone is using a bench as a bar stool, that is one less rider who can be comfortable awaiting their bus. And far too often it is not just the drunken butt taking up room. The 12 pack of high octane beer needs a seat as well. And the arms often need to sprawl in either direction along the back of the bench.

At 5th & State shelter, removed in 2017 as a nuisance

The takeover of the space isn’t just physical. The presence of a noticeably drunk person can make a space seem unpleasant or unsafe. A person who is drunk may be obnoxious, aggressive, sexual,  and/or loud. Also, their presence becomes a magnet for their drinking buddies, or some of the other downtown denizens.  Recently a guy at 9^th & Peach was enthusiastically talking about a great party they had  there, “Drinkin, getting high, there must have 25 or 30 of us that day!” Bet that was great fun for old people waiting on their buses too.

It also has a negative impact on how people feel about city buses. Riders whose stop has been turned into a bar stool can feel uncomfortable and unsafe about using the bus. For businesses or the general public, it can add to already unfair and stigmatized attitudes about “bus-people,” especially when there are multiples of people making it a party stop.  Just last year, the 5^th & State shelter was removed because it had been taken over by obnoxious non-riders, many of them inebriated, and had become a terrible nuisance. I had tried to use the shelter a couple time before it was removed; there were a bunch of guys just hanging out in there and it really was unpleasant and intimidating.

I don’t know what the solution is. I know it is complicated by the concern that taking action might be seen as picking on the homeless (FYI: bus stop drinking does not equal homelessness) or persons with mental illness, abuse issues, or lower incomes.  Those are all very important issues, but it seems to me you weaken their importance if you tie them to a substance abuser’s “right” to crowd out bus riders on bus property. 

10th & Parade. I tried to wake him up so I could sit down but he was conked out on Steel Reserve.

See also: Pickles, Butts, and PhDs

Pickles, Butts and PhDs

I got to the stop early and sat down on a bench at the 9^th & Peach stop. My phone’s battery is all but dead so I figure I’ll ask the only other person at the stop.

He is a neatly dressed guy about 60,  sitting there looking at the sidewalk.

“Are you waiting for the Route 31?” I ask him.

“I’m not waiting for the bus,” he tells me, “I like to sit here and observe people. Then he adds, “You know, they don’t usually say hello.”

“Who doesn’t?”

“PEOPLE! Only one in ten say hello back.”

I notice he has a beer can pretty well wrapped in cloth. As a young man walks by, he says hello, and then informs me, “They call him Butt Man.”

“Should I ask why?”

“Because he likes to go around picking up cigarette butts." he explains. "Of course me, I just like to look at butts.”

“I see.”

He notices me writing in a notebook and asks what I am doing. I tell him I write to keep from being bored while waiting at the bus. This changes the tone of the conversation, and he suddenly becomes serious..

“You know I have a PhD,” he tells me. “I suppose you want to know how a PhD got homeless,” he says.

“No, I wasn’t wondering that,” I told him. “Stuff happens.”

“Stupid,” he says. “I was stupid.”

And then he tells me his “stupid story.” It wasn’t really stupid, but it was long and detailed and not any more interesting than anyone else’s stupid story. Finally, mercifully, my bus arrived.

I saw him a few more times that summer. Same thing, sitting at the 9^th & Peach bus stop working on some beer and telling his story.

The last time involved pickles. He had found a huge unopened jar of pickles and was offering people a pickle as they passed by. He offered me one and I said No thanks, I’m good.