Wednesday, May 24, 2006

Busing in Massachusetts

Taking the bus in the morning is pretty nice. I do have to get up a little early. 4:40 AM to catch the 5:30 bus. It's a four mile ride that gets me to the terminal very much awake. The first mile of the commute is traversing the bike path. It's crazy how loud it is at five in the morning. The birds are going absolutely nuts. Little ones screaming for food, while the parents are racing back and forth trying to satisfy their hunger. Rabits, deer, fox, and squirrels are my normal companions, and people are no where to be found at that time.

I still haven't heard from the bus company regarding the bike fees. Those fees increase on June 19th, and if there is no relief from the bus company, I will return to driving my car to the mall and riding from there. I would rather bus commute, but paying double for that privledge is stupid.

The daily ride is up to around 30 miles. A couple of options either add or subtract a little bit. If I am really in a rush, I can take a direct route to the Galleria Mall where I catch the bus home. That takes me on the very busy rt140/rt24 junction where traffic is very heavy and fast. I have to ride one exit on the 65mph section of 140 and try to maneuver my way to the mall exit ramp by jockeying between vehicles entering the highway. It's pretty nerve wracking to say the least.

There is a small section of Rt140 I have to ride. It is the safest, or to say it better, the least dangerous, route to the mall.

Notice the shrinking bike lane



I did find a better route through the city that takes me over a couple of very worn side streets and through a crazy little tunnel.



Lots of potholes on this shorcut



No fighting traffic on this road



This tunnel is a shortcut avoiding the heavy downtown commuter traffic





END

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