The bus lane on Main Street is not a suggestion, people.

I take the 7:15 bus downtown every morning. For the last three weeks, I've watched the same thing happen. Cars keep using the bus lane to make a right turn at Maple Avenue. It's a solid white line, not dashed. The sign says 'Bus Only 7-9 AM'. I timed it once, and a guy in a blue sedan held up three buses for a full minute while he waited for a gap in traffic. The bus driver just sighed and shook his head. It backs everything up and makes my commute longer. I don't get why people can't just wait in the regular lane like everyone else. Has anyone else seen this spot get totally clogged because of this?

3 comments

3 Comments

ellis.susan1mo ago

People love to act like the bus lane is sacred, but let's be real for a second. That spot at Maple is a nightmare because the city designed it to fail. The lane sits empty for blocks while everyone else sits in a mile of bumper-to-bumper traffic. A few cars sneaking through to turn isn't the problem, it's a symptom of bad planning. If the city actually cared about buses moving faster, they'd fix the intersection instead of relying on drivers to play nice. Handing out tickets is just a tax on people trying to get home, not a solution.

kevin_west1mo ago

It's pure selfishness, plain and simple. They see the empty lane and think the rules don't apply to them. That minute they save ruins it for dozens of people on the buses. Someone needs to park a cop there for a morning and just hand out tickets. The total lack of respect for other people's time is infuriating.

uma_ellis1mo ago

Look at the road design first. That lane is empty for a reason, because the city built a bottleneck a mile ahead. People are just trying to get to work and the traffic flow is broken. A few tickets won't fix a bad system.