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An analysis of the physical and social characteristics of the public buses that run through Pittsburgh, and which I rely on slightly too much.
Physical Attributes:
- Seats facing each other in the front of the buses
- Many have a raised back area
- Buses are single-decker
- Some bend at the middle
- Buses can kneel to admit disabled passengers
- Commuters pay when getting on in the bus is headed towards the city, else they pay when getting off
- Each bus has a route number
- Walking down an accelerating or decelerating bus is difficult
- Driver has a mirror facing the cabin
- Driver relies on a GPS
- No Smoking
- No Food or Drink
- Bus population is highly variable
- Highly unreliable time-wise
- People pay by a variety of methods
- If a bus is ahead of schedule, the driver has to wait at a stop until they are back on time
- Objects may be brought onto the bus so long as they do not obstruct the walkway
- Pull a yellow string to request a stop
- Buses are slow to accelerate and decelerate
- Often have advertisements on the inside
- Sometimes have advertisements on the outside
- There is an area next toe the door where you are not supposed to stand
- Buses run less frequently on the weekend
- Chairs hard but not uncomfortable
- Stop buttons on the poles
Social Attributes:
- Relied on by many students and professionals
- Large percentage of users are black
- Character of the drivers are very various, and have an effect on the atmosphere of the bus
- Most socialising happens near the front of the bus
- Some people talk to the drivers
- A good atmosphere in a bus requires only a small group of people to be taking
- If people talk, others listen
- Some choose to disengage with the environment via headphones
- Buses contain people from all walks of life in Pittsburgh
- There are small children in this city who know the bus routes better than I do
- Buses provide an excellent stop in which to watch others
- When on unfamiliar routes, people disengage to focus on navigation
- The length of your transit is heavily dependent on when you want to get off
- riding the bus for only a short period of time is viewed as wasting others’ time
- Drivers will smoke in the bus when when on the way to a garage
- Waiting at a bus stop often involves a curve of hope and disappointment whenever a bus what is not yours appears in the distance
- People sometimes get sick on the bus
- Buses have special privileges on the streets
- Most drivers are black
- There are very few clear instructions for first-time users of the bus system
- The interior of a bus feel safe at night or in bad weather
- Socializing is not more common in very crowded buses
- Standing in the area where there are chairs facing you on either side makes you a focus of attention in the bus
- People sometimes do personal things on the buses i.e. adjust their hair
- Older people are more likely to talk on the bus
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