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. 

Holidays

This comment is beyond ignorant. 

It was left on the the EMTA Facebook page, in response to the announcement that there would be no Easter service.

Anyway, by all means good to consider limited holiday service, especially on holidays where people want to be with their loved ones. A skeleton crew providing some really basic coverage would be welcome to those who need to be with family or  who have to work on holidays. Would people actually use it? That would be good to find out. (By the way, I am not sure the person who posted the gripe-message is even a passenger). 

No reason to mandate anything. Drivers deserve to enjoy a full holiday too. Some people prefer to work on a holiday--more hours, maybe no family in town, maybe they welcome getting away from  family. My family is all far away, so I often welcomed the chance to work holidays and pick up some extra $$$ No need to ruin the holidays of those drivers who cherish them.

Just tossing some thoughts out there. Worth a careful look.

31 & 32 schedules still not changed 16 days after permanent change in routes.

Routes 31 and 32 were moved off West 4th permanently on March 7, 2018. There are still no schedules reflecting the changes.
The following screen caps were taken from the Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority website on March 23, 2018. As you can see, they still show the route going over West 4th.
The communications about this change has been a total failure. The company failed to tell people they were doing a winter detour onto West 4th, which started during Snowmaggedon. There was nothing on Facebook, on Twitter, on their website, nothing affixed to or near the bus stops. No signs in the shelters or buses. The only notification came when they decided to make it permanent on March 7. All winter the MyStop app incorrectly showed the buses going over West 4th, all the while they were going over West 6th!  All winter long there were people been waiting for the bus that never came. I see they just now (past few days) changed the West 4th bus poles  so that they no longer say they are bus stops.
What is wrong with the people responsible for this sort of thing?

Schedule from EMTA website 3/23/2018 note date in lower right corner

Schedule from EMTA website 3/23/2018 note date in lower right corner

Letter to editor regarding EMTA communication during Snowmageddon

The text of my letter to the Erie Times-New/GoErie, published January 18, 2018. Title is theirs.

EMTA’s communication was terrible during snowstorms

Kudos to Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority bus drivers, who showed up for work during the New Year’s weekend snow emergency and did the best they could getting riders to their jobs and other important destinations.

As for EMTA management, they deserve a big bag of coal cinders.

During this emergency there should have been a live person available from start to end of the bus operations for those days to provide desperately needed information to riders regarding detours, stuck vehicles, tracker glitches, whether or not a route was still running, whether or not a driver would be able to get into a certain stop, or whether or not the buses were still running at all.

Riders couldn’t do that because there was nobody at the EMTA office — not on the Facebook page, not on the website, not on the phones. And the online bus trackers had their own shortcomings during the storm.

Also, during the Wednesday, Dec. 27, storm, dozens of desperate inquiries were left unanswered, and EMTA apparently stopped Facebook updates after the office closed at 4:30 p.m. Riders kept asking the Facebook page what was going on, only to be answered with silence.

For people desperate to find out how to get to work, or where they should wait, or wondering why their bus never came, this must have been beyond upsetting. In many cases, it could have had real consequences regarding work, pay or physical health.

Earlier this year EMTA management seemed surprised when the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation found that EMTA had a significant loss in ridership. This sort of unconscionable disregard for the people relying on EMTA should help to clear up that mystery for them.

— Deb Spilko, Erie

Link: http://www.goerie.com/opinion/20180118/emtas-communication-was-terrible-during-snowstorms-letters-to-editor

EMTA riders posts during Erie snow emergency

From the Facebook page of Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority on two heavy snow emergency days. Most requests for information went unanswered.
I suggest strongly that arrangements be made to never let this happen again, as it has real consequences for the people who are relying on EMTA for their transportation to work, medical care, and other important destinations. The company needs to make arrangements for events like this. It is understandable that they might not want to share their main online platforms with many people, but at least a "situation page" needs to be available so riders can know what is going on.
Note: Most screen grabs were captured after Facebook removes the time stamp. For time stamps check text-only posts after the screen grabs.

SCREEN GRABS

Wed. Dec. 27, 2017

Saturday December 30, 2017

 

TEXT FORMAT

Text of threads from two snowstorm days in Erie. I may try to clean up the formatting of this for easier reading. The advantage to this is that I copied it at a time when time of day still appeared. 

DEC 27, 2017

DEC 27, 2017
December 27, 2017 at 4:56am ·
****UPDATED****
CURRENT DETOURS:
ROUTE 31 & 32: 4TH STREET CLOSED- USING 6TH BETWEEN PEACH AND LIBERTY
... See More
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Deb Spilko

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Adam Weber Is the 30 running normal times today

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· December 27, 2017 at 10:14am
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Richard Gomolekoff Call EMTA I think the number is 452-3515

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· December 27, 2017 at 10:24am
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Michael Daugherty Yes I am on the 30 right now.

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· December 27, 2017 at 11:34am
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Adam Weber Michael Daugherty thanks

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· December 27, 2017 at 11:35am
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Michael Daugherty No problem.

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 11:50am
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Richard Gomolekoff Oh ya you're welcome

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 12:46pm
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Radell Gregory Can someone let me know if route 3 is running

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· December 27, 2017 at 5:51am
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Bobbi Michael Pretty sure i just seen route 3 go by my house while shoveling out my driveway on 38th n peach.. but don't hate me if in wrong.

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· December 27, 2017 at 6:59am
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Radell Gregory I just made it to work. It's only going up and down peach.

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· December 27, 2017 at 7:10am
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Randi Brewer Is it going on state st at all

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· December 27, 2017 at 7:14am
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Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority It's currently running.

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 8:14am
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Vince Miller Is 14 on time?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 10:15am
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Kirsten Lazar The link isn't providing any information?

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· December 27, 2017 at 5:35am
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Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority This was early in the morning, if the buses haven't started running yet the buses with not show up on the app.

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 8:14am
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Jessica Bachmaier 21/28 cancelled today

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· December 27, 2017 at 5:15am
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Deja Tierra Barnes Is it ?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 8:04am
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Jessica Bachmaier Deja Tierra Barnes yes just on a delay

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 9:21am
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Diane Himelein Cancelled or on delay?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 9:30am
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Jessica Bachmaier Delay

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 9:37am
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Jessica Bachmaier



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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 9:38am
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Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority Buses are running late but they are running

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· December 27, 2017 at 10:43am
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Debbie Zielonis Flickner Is route 32 running?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 8:04am
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Mike Ford No

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 8:39am
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Elizabeth Crawford Yes, detour look at their page

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 8:44am
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Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority Yes we are running

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· December 27, 2017 at 10:43am
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Jamie Lee Winkelman Is the 21 running

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 8:37am
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Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority Yes

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 10:44am
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Deja Tierra Barnes Is the 21 running

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 8:12am
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Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority Yes

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 10:43am · Edited
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La Reina This my stop app is crap I can't barely use it

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· December 27, 2017 at 6:53am
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Nicole Byrd Is the 27 going to Casino today?

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· December 27, 2017 at 9:25am
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Cindy Scheid Bannister Does anyone know if the 21 is running on time today Thursday Dec28th?

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· December 28, 2017 at 6:45am
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Patricia Zeigler I need to know if route 27 will be going south of the VA today.

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· December 27, 2017 at 6:06am
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Diane Himelein Are you servicing Agility Marketing today? Bus 28?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 9:31am
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La Reina Where do I catch the 22 going inbound

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 11:14am
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Mindy Gunns Is the lift still operating for only medical appointments? Or is it back to full service

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· Reply · January 2 at 1:34am
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Bruce Arkwright Jr. Are they closing on the 29th I only see two buses on Route 3 and its 8:30 p.m.?

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· Reply · December 29, 2017 at 8:25pm
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Fred Smith What about the BPS bus for EPI? Still coming to 5th an State at 9:40pm?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 9:08pm
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Reina Cruz Good morning Jessica Bachmaier so the bus is not running today

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 5:17am
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Jessica Bachmaier Good morning Ok thank you I didn’t think so

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 5:38am · Edited
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Kelly Chelle What about the 31 or 32 heading downtown???

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:04am
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Mike Ford Is the 30 running tonight til 11:00pm like it's regular schedule?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 5:54pm
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Jerrol Getright Stevenson Yeah bro

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· Reply · December 28, 2017 at 3:01pm
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Jill Niemeyer Are lifts on a delay or running as close to normal as possible

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:48am
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Karie Karie Will route 22 be running today?

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· Reply · December 28, 2017 at 9:21am
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Sharde Muhammad $10 rides anywhere in are still available.
Round trip offered as well.

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· Reply · December 28, 2017 at 12:07am
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Sharde Muhammad Available for rides anywhere in Erie. Round trip IS available!!!

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:55am
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Missi Turner Is the 27 going to the casino today???

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 11:51am
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Diana Sutter What about the buses for temp agencys like BPS taking people to work?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 5:45am
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Michael Montgomery Yeah that's what I'm trying to find out as well. They are not listed

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 5:50am
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Philip Fassett Just seen that running. If that helps you out

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:25am
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Diana Sutter Too late missed it but thanks

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:33am
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TR Volk The 105 bus is appearing in the My Stop app.

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:37am
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Brandon Lewis 21/28

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· December 27, 2017 at 8:22am
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Gina Marie Frontier?

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· December 27, 2017 at 6:07am
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Nadya Jean Entley West 4th between chestnut & myrtle



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· Reply · December 30, 2017 at 4:50pm
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Amy Hiles Is 1 running to Millcreek mall

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 7:06pm
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Symone Mathis Are the temp agency buses running

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 10:38am
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Sammi K Serafine Is the 26 running?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 12:04pm
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Stephanie Hall The web site link has no info

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:14am
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Vil Villa Are the on board counts accurate?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 12:07pm
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Sierra Rae Haile Is 28 running today?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 1:37pm
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Michael Montgomery Infinity resources route bus?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 5:10am
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Antwan Sopaid Dupree That’s wat i need to know too

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:37am
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Michael Montgomery Yeah no one answered us. I missed work yesterday and today cause no ride. And u can't even look up the infinity route at all

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 11:29am
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Leann Landis Is 25 running

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 4:04pm
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Leann Landis Is 25 running ?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 2:33pm
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Shelley Bolinger Is bus 16 running tomorrow

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 3:46pm
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Ki Dominique Is the 14 running?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 12:43pm
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Jessica Dillen Is 16 running

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 2:45pm
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Sharde Muhammad Affordable rides available.
$10 anywhere in Erie.
Round trip is available.

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 7:03am
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Sharde Muhammad Affordable rides available.
$10 anywhere in Erie.
Round trip is available.

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· Reply · December 28, 2017 at 8:52pm
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K Dee Baker Amy

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 5:00am
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Amy LoParo Rodgers You take the 25 and 29 right?

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 7:06am
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K Dee Baker Jessie

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 5:01am
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Jessie Robinson The my stop.says the 29 is running

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 6:21am
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Amy Hiles Trevor Hiles

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· Reply · December 27, 2017 at 7:26pm
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Amanda Cochran Autumn Sky

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Liked

DEC 30, 2017

Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority
December 30, 2017 at 10:02am ·
Holiday Hours:
New Years Eve: Sunday, December 31st--EMTA will operate on a regular Sunday schedule.
New Years Day: Monday, January 1st--CLOSED: NO SERVIC

Deb Spilko Seems to me the company should have had a person or people on available today for snowmaggedon questions and info. I know it's a holiday weekend but the drivers are out in this and somebody besides those hardworking folks should have been available. Cold and frustrated riders unable to talk or get mystop to work... Not a very nice impression of the operation

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· December 30, 2017 at 12:36pm · Edited
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Lori Marie I know it's bad out for drivers, but if they're gonna take detours, they need to be listed on here or trackr. Missed a day of work because the 3 decided to take a detour through state St this morning. Called my job to tell them I was gonna be late, they said don't even bother. I don't know about you guys, but I need my hours and this is a bad blow.

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· December 30, 2017 at 1:57pm
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Deb Spilko Sounds awful. I agree that info should have been provided, but apparently the company didn't bother to have a live person available to make riders aware of what was going on in this mess. I hope you let the company know how this affects your hours, I know I will

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Eric Johnathan Are the busses still running today?

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· Reply · December 30, 2017 at 10:23am
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Leann Landis That's what I wanna know

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· Reply · December 30, 2017 at 12:22pm
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Deb Spilko Yes, just running slow and with difficulty

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· Reply · December 30, 2017 at 12:37pm
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Leann Landis Is the 22 running?

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Kayla Ortez Brandon Gruber

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· December 30, 2017 at 1:30pm
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Shelter leak fixed with no drama

This past fall I noticed that the shelter across from the ball park had a leak, where the roof had been damaged.
 Someone had duct taped it, but the tape was worn out and torn out.
On October 1, I contacted Meaghan at EMTA and she passed it along to maintenance department to check it out, and they fixed it pretty quickly.
If you see a leak or other issue in a shelter, you can contact her at 814-459-8922 x122
mcousins@ride-the-e.com
Suggestions

• Company can post a notice somewhere in each shelter of where to contact to let the company know about an issue with a shelter.
• Would be preferable to have sealant match the roof color

BEFORE

AFTER

New shelter a big improvement

New shelter on 10th & Parade is big improvement.

• “Watch-window” is kept clear so that riders can watch for bus. (very important in helping riders be ready for bus when it arrives, and this helps drivers keep to schedule.
• Schedules and other info are kept on the back and sides so they don’t interfere with bus-watching.
• Large ramp from street with gentle slope.
• Area for mobility device to wait.
• Dedicated announcement panel, which hopefully means no more festooning bus stops with announcements and info.
• Announcemement panel is translucent.
• Bright green and blue colors go well with the minipark that the Benedictine sisters maintain on that corner, and make the stop more attractive as well as being more visible.

A couple concerns:

• Front of shelter is wide open, which leaves riders more exposed to adverse weather. Maybe the open front has a purpose (crime and loitering deterrent?), just wondering.
• If they are considering color scheme for all stops, it might be worth consulting with businesses right near it who might find it overpowering their own schemes. Those bright colors work nicely on that corner and at 18th & State, but maybe not so much in other places.

Also worth noting is that there are two other places to sit... a bench on the corner, and a rock bench in the mini-park.
I am told the new shelter was installed to replace one that had been hit by a vehicle.
Before I learned this, I had asked the Benedictine Sisters if they were involved with the installation. Sister Pat Lupo OSB has given me permission to reprint her response:

The Neighborhood Art House Green Team has adopted the lot at the corner of 10th & Parade. We did not have anything to do with the new bus shelter itself, as far as I know that was routine maintenance by EMTA. The property is owned by the City of Erie Redevelopment Authority. We have planted 3 trees and prune all the trees occasionally with the City Arborist Sarah Galloway. We take care of the flower beds, we weed, plant new flowers and mulch them; we occasionally enlarge them. We try to maintain the path that cuts through the property. We also cut the grass when the City lets it get too long.
The Green Team would like to have trash cans at this Bus shelter and the one at 10th and Holland. We also care for the 7 trees in that block between Holland and French Sts  (Pat Lupo, OSB via email 10/10/2017)

~~~

Also worth noting is that there are two other places to sit... a bench on the corner, and a rock bench in the mini-park.