I pretty much always have a crappy bus ride between my apartment on Queen Anne and the Stranger offices here on Capitol Hill—wait, ride downtown, wait some more, transfer, ride to up the hill. All to travel about two short miles. But today I decided to jump on the #8 along Denny. No lolly-gagging downtown! No getting stabbed and robbed at Third and Pike! It would be way faster this way, right?
The bus didn’t show up on time. Or 10 minutes late. Or ever. I ended up taking the next scheduled bus after hanging around for half an hour. I could have walked faster.
I started thinking back—the #8 has been late literally every time I’ve tried to ride it in my life. So I’m hereby nominating it for Worst Bus in the City. Always late, always in traffic, and 6,000 stops along the way. It’s definitely up there with the “mobile patchwork” of crackheads and vomit that is the #7.
Let this legally binding poll decide the issue once and for all:
What d.p. said. Park Street station, a big transfer point for the always-mocked Green Line, generally sees a new train in a given direction every 2-3 minutes. The only place in Seattle that remotely compares is the ride-free area, but proportionally speaking, very few people live there.
As far as Seattle buses go: I think the 44 is on this list only because it runs frequently and through consistently-dense areas, which means [a] it’s slow, [b] it will get some weird riders, and [c] almost everyone who lives north of the ship canal has taken it at some point. You’re not going to hear a lot of people talking about how much they hate the 30, because it’s just not as heavily trafficked.
I think the 358 is the clear winner (loser?). It was originally the 359, but they retired that number because the bus driver was shot!
kinda off topic..but does anybody know that middle aged woman that wears a tiara that drives a #14 or #36 ?…a different tiara every time i see her….
…. child…a tiara.
Seriously, HOW is the 358 NOT on this list? Every time I’ve ridden on it, it’s nothing but mentally/criminally insane folks…the end stop should transit to Western State. It’s the WORST route by far!
Maybe it’s because I don’t have a driver’s license and thus have no choice, or maybe it’s because I used to live on the south side of Chicago, but I really like the 2, the 3/4, the 5, the 8, and the 48. I’ve ridden all of them extensively and have not had anything like the experiences of the other commenters. Except on the 174. I hope to never ride that bus again.
#48 – always too crowded. By the time it’s at 23d and Union, they often don’t even let you on.
THey’re all scummy…it’s why i drive and bought my wife a car so she wouldn’t have to sit on a Seattle bum-mobile ever again.
@ 101, no, they did not retire the number for that reason. See my comment @ 52 (second paragraph).
i’m with everyone else… 358 OBVIOUSLY! i’ve been physically assaulted 3 times riding/waiting for that bus.
Another vote for the 358. I’ve been riding it to and from work for 4+ years and it sucks. Some homeless guy hammer fisted the top of my head once for no reason. Luckily I’m moving to Columbia City next weekend and will be rid of the the 358 forever~~! Light rail here I come!
Am I gonna look like a hippie if I suggest we just call it a tie between the 150, the 174, and the 358?
@40 The 17 is the only route I’ve ever been on where a driver berated a passenger and then TURNED ON THE EXTERNAL LOUDSPEAKER to continue doing so after the passenger exited.
@107: According to the Metro web site, they did:
http://your.kingcounty.gov/exec/news/199…
‘At that hour King County Executive Sims announced that Metro would be retiring the number of Route 359, McLaughlin’s route, “so that years from now, people will ask why? And we can remember a person . . . we never want to forget.”‘
I understand what you’re saying about the route changes, but before the incident, they were probably planning on keeping the 359 number for the new route.
The only complaint I have about the 8 has to do with going east-bound during the evening rush hour. Sometimes the buses are crazy-packed-standing-room-only. I know, logically, that if it hasn’t happened yet it probably won’t, but I’m always afraid we’ll lose traction on Denny somewhere between Melrose and Olive and just roll the hell back down to Queen Anne.
@ 112, can you register so that your link works? Thx
Forgot to say thanks for that, Aleks.
oh look at matt from denver, a worthless pile of shit from another city now asking people to register.
you go girl!
Yes, 116, you ARE a worse loser.
Man, I shoulda registered as troll-pwner. You’d never know I wasn’t still a Seattleite then.
My aunt works for Metro ans apparently they are all in agreement that the 174 and 358 are the worst. I’ve never had the pleasure of the 174 but I’ve seen a girl holding her baby and rolling a blunt at the same time, and on a separate occasion, the driver had to stop the bus and open the windows because someone was smoking crack in the back of the bus.
Which routes I won’t ride: 358- I’ll take the 5 and hike or bike the distance; the 3/4 , the Pill Hill Express- I’ll take the 2 or the 27 , the 7- light rail plus a bike is more efficient and pleasant. The 174 doesn’t exist any longer. It is now the 124, and only rides out to the Tukwila Light Rail Station. The amount of security incidents has dropped since making the trailer trash transfer half way through the route.
Which routes won’t I drive? Yes, I drive for Metro; the 358-just goes without saying; the 7 and the 36 during the day- they are just too much of a work horse. These are the routes that passengers cry, “There is someone running for the bus!” If you stop- again, your time-loss will snowball. But mostly, any route that goes by any Seattle Public School that dumps 200+ kids on one bus at once. I still drive by them- just not when they are released on the unwitting public.
As for transit after 2am; there is quite a bit. They are called the Night Owls; 7, 49, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 120, 174 (124), 280 and I think a 180. They do loops through neighborhoods. they leave downtown at 2:15am and 3:30am all together. There are police present while the buses all wait together to make transfers. The reason that most people do not know of their existence is because Metro doesn’t want you to know. They discourage regular ridership because those using them for transportation purposes only complain about all the smelly, drunk, obnoxious, and down right scary people whom never actually have a destination that take up all the seats. The last thing Metro seems to want to do, is actually enforce their own code of conduct. You may find the N. Owls on the trip planner, but you won’t see their numbers posted hardly anywhere they travel.
Efficient, safe, and hospitable travel on Metro can happen. As a passenger, refuse to tolerate it. Tell a driver. Many of us care. How can we drive the coach safely if a race riot is happening on the bus? There are drivers whom don’t care. Don’t let them get away with it. I once called 911 from my own cell while riding the 128, after a teen sitting in the disability seat brandished a gun. The driver should of hit the EA, but refused because it would diminish his break time. Support drivers when they pull over and wait for the police. It may delay you this time, but if offenders understand that they will no longer get away with, you will find that they will ride right, or risk being 86’d from the system. Don’t forget that Metro is 100% responsible for what goes on in their bus zones. If you are being threatened or harassed- call 911. Metro has built this attitude of don’t ask, don’t tell, didn’t happen. Don’t let them get away with it.
If the light rail can’t even tell you when the next train is due, what makes any of you think that busses will be equipped with GPS any time soon? Rider convenience has to be the last thing on the minds of these planners, to whom Metro is a social service agency for Seattle’s homeless, sick, and indigent more than anything.
@52: The 6, 359 and 360 were *about to be* combined into a new route called the 359 when a passenger shot a 359 driver on the Aurora Bridge. This was a few weeks before the service change. As a memorial, Metro renumbered the new route to 358, which was previously unused.
The old 6 ran local full-time, and served Seattle Center, Stone Way, and west Green Lake as well as Linden and Aurora. The 359 ran midday and peak, and was like the current 358 but had two fewer stops. The 360 was peak-only and went straight up Aurora, stopping only at 46th until Winona.
When the 6 was eliminated, the 16 was moved from Stone Way-40th-Meridian to Stone Way-45th-Meridian, which made it slightly faster.
@114, here you go: http://your.kingcounty.gov/exec/news/199…
@114, one more try… http://your.kingcounty.gov/exec/news/199…
Hm. 174 is pure hell, 358 scares the shit out of me. But, if we are taking this ‘out of town’ why has the 106 not been mentioned? WannaB Gangbangers. SHOOTING OUT THE BUS WINDOW. The driver kept going, not even a slight notice. I mean, seriously, WTF? I will never ride that bus again, we were scared beyond belief and that is not easy. This coming from someone who rode a 3/4 bus every day, multiple times for 2 yrs. Seriously. Shooting out the FUCKING BUS WINDOW???
Thanks, sluggo and aleks.
@ 121 thanks, that is quite interesting. Any links?
These are the most entertaining posts ever. As for me, I would have to say the 174 is the worst. While most in-city routes can be irritating/smelly/urine soaked, the 174 often feels truly dangerous. Thank god light rail is a good substitute for me now.
So, one time I got on the #7, and at the next stop a fellow got on with a plastic bag full of stolen cigarettes which he was selling to pay for crack.
I know this, because when he got on the bus he loudly proclaimed, “Anyone want to buy some cigarettes?” before walking down the aisle muttering and apparently suffering from ciga-tourette’s. “Mumble mumble CIGARETTES? CIGARETTES? mumble mumble CIGARETTES?”
When he got to the seat in front of me, he sat down and loudly proclaimed, “I’m CIGARETTES? going to Capitol Hill to CIGARETTES buy some CRACK! And then I’m CIGARETTES? going to Chinatown to CIGARETTES smoke it! CIGARETTES?”
On the #8, an old and especially rank homeless guy once got on wearing some filthy and worn red sweatpants that were about 6 sizes too big for him, necessitating that he hold them up with one hand at all times while he painfully shuffled around.
When he was trying to shuffle to the front of the bus at the Greyhound terminal (they always get off at the Greyhound terminal), his hand slipped, thus precipitating the instant and terrifying plummet of said trou to his slipper-clad toes. At this moment, the entire bus discovered to our never-ending horror that said ancient and rancid smelling denizen of our beautiful city did not own a pair of underpants, and so the sight of his scrawny ass will forever haunt our nightmares.
Nevertheless, I’m going with #7. The #8 has gotten markedly better recently. Though that said, I believe it was the #358 where I saw a woman quietly and very precisely vomiting onto the floor in front of her.
Congrats to Unpaid Intern for making the Top Commented Slog Post list for the first time(?)
Now, for your next move, a 174 vs. 358 poll. Blood will be shed. (As will booze.) (and eventually puke)
So many bus riders here; guess most SLoggers can’t get decent paying jobs.
@130 or a lot of sloggers who work downtown don’t want to pay out the ass to park downtown.
It’s not just parking downtown, it’s driving downtown period. My god. It can take 20 minutes to get from 1st Ave to Melrose on your way to Capitol Hill. You could walk it in that time.
am i too late to this thread? the 174. eek. especially considering we want people to commute from the suburbs to downtown. ever wonder why they hate buses so much down south? 174.
but the 131/132 are pretty bad, too. over an hour to get into town from burien or des moines. rarely on time. and, unlike most all-in-city routes, if you miss it, you have to wait AN HOUR for the next one. there is no alternative route to try. eek. not as grimy as the 174, but perhaps more frustrating routes.
cosign riz. 358 is hellish.
Guys, please note that this past September the 174 was split up. The end between Downtown and SeaTac was redubbed the 124 and the 174 now runs from International Blvd Station to Federal Way. So while the original version of the 174 really suck diddly ucked, the revised version is shorter and, while certainly unpleasant, not the anti-fantastic voyage it used to be.
I’m not saying that the 48 is as bad as the 358/174, but it has very nearly gotten myself and several people I know almost fired.
I wonder if there would be grounds for some type of lawsuit if the 48’s constant tardiness was responsible for someone losing their job?
@ 136, they’d just tell you to catch an earlier bus. How you get to work isn’t your boss’s problem.
Catching an earlier bus is kinda tricky when these buses are very often an hour plus late. Suddenly three of them will show up at the same time. There was the earlier bus I was supposed to catch!
I walk a couple extra blocks and catch the 66 in the morning now. It stays pretty close to it’s posted schedule in the morning. Going south, that is. Going north is a whole different story.
#137: You don’t ride Metro, do you? I do wait for the bus. And wait. And wait. And wait.
…and wait.
Thank you, @136/138!!
One thing that consistently cracks me up is the “instructions” on how to ride on Metro’s website and in various other places. They tell you to “plan to arrive at your bus stop five minutes early.” Really? How am I supposed to do that for the 2nd leg of my trip when you got me there so fucking late on the 1st leg?
It’s one thing to put the onus on the rider when service is at some acceptable level of unpredictability, but when it’s THIS unreliable…
The crux: Metro expects you to have 1.5 to 2 hours free for pretty much any non-direct-to-downtown trip you make in this city. If you make 3 or 4 such trips a day, for any reason, you can reasonably expend to spend 5 to 7 of your waking hours on the bus or waiting for the bus. And anyone wonders why people choose their cars?
I have a running joke about my time in Seattle — it reminds me of that movie, you know, that one you NEVER MANAGED TO CATCH THE BEGINNING OF BECAUSE METRO MADE YOU MISS IT EVERY TIME!
I don’t really ride scary routes, but dammit the 31/68 is always always late.
this is off-topic (hey its SLog aint it?) but what do people think of food on buses? I’m confused about that. Operators usually don’t say anything when someone walks on with a thermal mug that is obviously full (and still able to spill despite being covered). And operators usually don’t say anything about inconspicuous food.
but the other day I was about to get on the 31 with an apple in my hand that i had taken ONE bite out of. the operator wouldn’t let me on with it, so i had to throw this beautiful piece of fruit away. what a waste!
an apple is like the cleanest, neatest thing in the world someone could eat. doesn’t make a mess. and they let things like dogs on the bus! on seats even!
wtf is wrong with an apple? and how do they decide when to enforce the “no food” rule – seems like it is totally arbitrary
@ 138, I found the bus tracker thing at Metro’s site very helpful when I lived in Seattle. I guess it’s not actually GPS but repeated observation showed me that the bus placement was accurate (I could see my bus stop from my apartment window). Check it out before you have to leave and you’ll know if you have a long wait or not.
When I had to ride the 358, it often traveled in clusters of three like you describe. It sucked…
http://metro.kingcounty.gov/oltools/trac…
Um, the 106 has got the be the SCARIEST, MOST HORRIBLE ROUTE in the city. Runs from downtown into Renton, and uses all of the Rainier Beach back routes to get there. I takes about an hour and a half to go all of 12 miles. I used to skip school hop this bus, THEN transfer to the 7 to get to Cap Hill. Drug deals, fights, I once saw some guy “pleasing himself” like it was no big deal. Good times.
I was *just about* to mention the 106! Especially the midnight run, starting with waiting at the 3rd/Union stop for a half hour. Highly recommended.
Personally, the worst bus ride I ever had in King County was on the 110, which is a free local in Renton. Someone cut the bus off in traffic, and the driver chased the guy for four blocks until he remembered he had passengers.