[Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
Bryan Schulz
b.schulz at sbcglobal.net
Sun Feb 17 02:32:56 UTC 2013
fyi,
i haven't said anything for at least 6 months so go rip on someone else.
Bryan Schulz
----- Original Message -----
From: "David Andrews" <dandrews at visi.com>
To: "NFB of Missouri Mailing List" <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, February 16, 2013 5:24 PM
Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
> Bryan:
>
> I for one am getting tired of your constant stream of messages, on many of
> our lists, about how the big bad rehab agency in Missouri favors others
> and picks on you. I am not from Missouri, so have no way of knowing what
> happened, but your harping about it here isn't going to change anything.
> Further, if you got a bum deal, maybe it is because of your constant
> negative attitude.
>
> Dave
>
> At 11:39 PM 2/15/2013, you wrote:
>>hi,
>>
>>if you want an example of a monopoly, a familiar state agency which uses a
>>certain vendor 90% of the time, has put other vendors out of business, and
>>sent one back to his original state is a monopoly!
>>Bryan Schulz
>>
>>
>>----- Original Message ----- From: <DanFlasar at aol.com>
>>To: <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 11:26 PM
>>Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>
>>
>>>Strictly speaking, a municipal or state or federal public service is not
>>>a monopoly since these are not for-profit organizations. If all the
>>>airlines combined into one big private or publicly (in the sense of
>>>stock
>>>availability) -ownership, then that would be a monopoly. Or if Comcast
>>>finally
>>>owns all the cable networks, then they would be monopoly. Classically,
>>>a
>>>monopoly restricts competition. A government-managed utility or transit
>>>system is a different category. The big difference - we have a way to
>>>change or modify a government utility - we have no way to do so with a
>>>private
>>>company.
>>> And yes, this all gets very complicated and far from clear.
>>>Dan
>>>
>>>
>>>In a message dated 2/15/2013 5:18:59 P.M. Central Standard Time,
>>>dickmorris at netzero.net writes:
>>>
>>>Hi, Dan,
>>>
>>>As far as I know, most bus companies are monopolies. Even back in the
>>>day,
>>>although the Delaware Coach Company was privately owned, it had a
>>>franchise
>>>to run all bus service in Wilmington, Delaware. Another company had the
>>>franchise to run buses out where I lived. And of course, you couldn't
>>>transfer between bus lines (sigh). So even back then, bus service was a
>>>monopoly. Of course now Delaware has a transit authority: there was a
>>>three-month drivers' strike in 1967 (I don't recall the issue), and a
>>>year
>>>after it was settled, Delaware Coach pulled out, and the city created a
>>>transit authority which eventually became DART First State.
>>>
>>>I think you'd have to go back to the early streetcar era to find a
>>>situation
>>>in which multiple companies ran transit services in a particular city. I
>>>don't know if there's a book that covers bus transit deregulation in the
>>>way
>>>that Hard Landing did for airlines.
>>>
>>>I guess it's obvious that transit and transit marketing are two of my
>>>favorite subjects. And it's probably also obvious that I should let this
>>>subject die until there's more action in Springfield.
>>>
>>>Dick
>>>
>>>--------------------------------------------------
>>>From: <DanFlasar at aol.com>
>>>Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 3:38 PM
>>>To: <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>>
>>>So much for the idea that the Free Market solves all problems.
>>>
>>>Without intervention by the will of the people (ie, our government),
>>>free market capitalism leads inexorably to monopoly - which is why
>>>government has had to intervene so continuously over the years - which
>>>leads to too
>>>much regulation which leads to too much deregulation which leads to...
>>>You'd think we'd remember this.
>>>Dan
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>In a message dated 2/15/2013 3:25:42 P.M. Central Standard Time,
>>>dickmorris at netzero.net writes:
>>>
>>>Matt and Gary,
>>>
>>>At least Springfield and Columbia have bus stations in town! Matt, I
>>>don't
>>>know about where you are. But here in Tahlequah, the bus depot sits
>>>abandoned; I don't know when the last bus rolled through here, but it
>>>was
>>>before I came in 2004. Our closest bus station is Muskogee, about 25
>>>miles
>>>away, and taking a bus from there is like flying out of Springfield,
>>>in
>>>that
>>>you'll go to a "hub" city like Tulsa or OKC and change there. And Tulsa
>>>is
>>>sixty miles from here.
>>>
>>>Isn't deregulation wonderful? Just for grins, if you want an analysis
>>>of
>>>what deregulation has done to the airline industry, read Thomas
>>>Petzinger's
>>>Hard Landing. Petzinger writes for the Wall Street Journal, and the book
>>>is
>>>both interesting and readable.
>>>
>>>Dick
>>>
>>>--------------------------------------------------
>>>From: "Matt Sievert" <matt.sievert at gmail.com>
>>>Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 3:10 PM
>>>To: "NFB of Missouri Mailing List" <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>>
>>>Now,
>>>
>>>Megabus and the michigan flyer have all been successes.
>>>
>>>Matt
>>>-----Original Message-----
>>>From: "Gary Wunder" <gwunder at earthlink.net>
>>>Sender: "Nfbmo" <nfbmo-bounces at nfbnet.org>
>>>Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2013 15:03:59
>>>To: 'NFB of Missouri Mailing List'<nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>Reply-To: NFB of Missouri Mailing List <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>>
>>>When I sometimes ride the bus I get the impression they will run their
>>>busses until they run no more and then they'll stop serving us all
>>>together.
>>>It is not the service-oriented company I used to ride regularly.
>>>
>>>-----Original Message-----
>>>From: Nfbmo [mailto:nfbmo-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Dick Morris
>>>Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 12:59 PM
>>>To: NFB of Missouri Mailing List
>>>Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>>
>>>Matt, the big problem with Greyhound is that they have had no real
>>>competition ever since they acquired Continental Trailways in the early
>>>90s,
>>>and thereby gutted the Trailways network. It reminds me of the old,
>>>before
>>>the breakup, AT&T commercial slogan, "We may be the only phone company
>>>in
>>>town, but we try not to act like it." Epic fail on the parts of both
>>>AT&T
>>>and Greyhound.
>>>
>>>Speaking of lack of competition, think of what air travel will be like
>>>once
>>>American and USAir complete their merger.
>>>
>>>Dick
>>>
>>>--------------------------------------------------
>>>From: "Matt Sievert" <matt.sievert at gmail.com>
>>>Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 7:40 AM
>>>To: "NFB of Missouri Mailing List" <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>>
>>>Dick,
>>>
>>>Thank you for correcting me. Mrs. Cruise did the best she could with
>>>the
>>>bus
>>>system. She even ran multiple buses on the same route during holiday
>>>weekends, because the mall was so backed up. I never used access
>>>express,
>>>because I didn't qualify, so I can't speak for that service.
>>>
>>>As for Norna Champion. She has a school and a park named after her.
>>>
>>>Greyhound is horrible for everyone. For blind people, for
>>>servicemen/women
>>>going to Fort Leonard, and everyone in between.
>>>
>>>Greyhound drives me to be a more successful person. So I can bypass
>>>that
>>>nastyness, by prtivate leased car trips or airline travel.
>>>
>>>I will NEVER advocate greyhound to anyone. They really don't care about
>>>their customers.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>-----Original Message-----
>>>From: "Dick Morris" <dickmorris at netzero.net>
>>>Sender: "Nfbmo" <nfbmo-bounces at nfbnet.org>
>>>Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2013 03:45:09
>>>To: NFB of Missouri Mailing List<nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>Reply-To: NFB of Missouri Mailing List <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>>
>>>Matt, her name is Carol Cruise, and she has retired--but she was always
>>>willing to listen to her customers. From what Gary tells me, the buses
>>>are
>>>full now, probably thanks to $3 gasoline.
>>>
>>>But...you are absolutely right about the "second class citizen"
>>>attitude.
>>>Maybe you remember Dr. Norma Champion. I had her in several classes at
>>>Evangel when I got my communications degree back in the dark ages. As a
>>>state senator, well...I was at a Jeff City seminar, I forget which
>>>year,
>>>and
>>>of course I met with her to push NFB issues. One was a transit issue,
>>>and
>>>her response was that public transit was for "someone like you". I
>>>think I
>>>bit my tongue till it bled. She was losing her vision due to macular
>>>degeneration, but I never could get her to see our side of things. Sad
>>>but
>>>true.
>>>
>>>And which Greyhound station were you referring to? The old one on St.
>>>Louis
>>>or the new one on East Kearney? My problems were more with rude
>>>Greyhound
>>>drivers than anything else, but the last time I rode the bus, about a
>>>year
>>>ago, I had a good experience--except for a bus that was three hours
>>>late.
>>>Oh, well...can't have everything.
>>>
>>>Dick
>>>--------------------------------------------------
>>>From: "Matt Sievert" <matt.sievert at gmail.com>
>>>Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 8:11 PM
>>>To: "NFB of Missouri Mailing List" <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>Subject: Re: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>>
>>>Sigh,
>>>
>>>I am glad I am not in Springfield.
>>>
>>>Public Transportation in Springfield, Missouri has always been a
>>>"second-class" citizen issue. "only poor people and the elderly ride
>>>the
>>>bus." is what I heard from most folks.
>>>
>>>Also seeing empty buses driving around town didn't help any either.
>>>
>>>Mary Cruse did a lot to help out the transit issue. I don't know where
>>>she
>>>went, but obviously by Gary's, account, things have not improved.
>>>
>>>The only thing worse in Springfield, Mo than the public transit system,
>>>is
>>>the Greyhound station.
>>>
>>>My primary means of transportation in Springfield, Mo was a cab or
>>>walking.
>>>Only when I worked at St. John's was the bus useful, that is because
>>>the
>>>#2
>>>S. National went past the hospital on weekdays, and the #5 went by on
>>>weekends. Besides that, the bus was a headache I did not want.
>>>
>>>Matt Sievert
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>On Thu, Feb 14, 2013 at 9:02 PM, Dick Morris <dickmorris at netzero.net>
>>>wrote:
>>>
>>>>Good job, Erin and Gary! I wish I were still in Springfield so I could
>>>be
>>>>part of this. You're dooing the right thing in trying to garner
>>>publicity;
>>>>sometimes the only way to get action is to embarrass somebody. Go for
>>>it!
>>>>
>>>>Dick
>>>>
>>>> --------------------------------------------------
>>>>From: "Magoon Erin" <magoone at gary-springfield-mo.net>
>>>>Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2013 6:11 PM
>>>>To: <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
>>>> Subject: [Nfbmo] The bus Saga Continues.
>>>>
>>>>The Bus Saga Continues.
>>>>
>>>> Gary and I went to the City Council meeting on Monday. He spoke
>>>> about
>>>the
>>>>fixed route buses and I spoke about Access Express. Access is the
>>>>para-transit door to door service that I'm riding for now because of
>>>>my
>>>>surgery last October.
>>>>
>>>>It is getting pretty rediculous trying to get a ride on Access. They
>>>will
>>>>only let you schedule a ride up to one week in advance and it's
>>>>getting
>>>> difficult to do so. They also have a 20 minute window either side of
>>>your
>>>> pick-up to come and get you. I had a pickup at 6:00 pm and they
>>>> didn't
>>>>have
>>>>the person come on duty who was going to get me until 5:55 so he
>>>>didn't
>>>>arrive until 6:20.
>>>>
>>>>I had another person drop me off at the wrong entrance to my building
>>>in
>>>> my
>>>>apaartment complex. I couldn't get a ride home from my job developer
>>>until
>>>>two hours after the end of my appointment. I couldn't get a ride home
>>>>from
>>>>the gym at all, I could get there but not home. I also called one
>>>>week
>>>in
>>>>advance of the City Council meeting to schedule my ride. I scheduled
>>>>it
>>>> for
>>>>10:30 pm because I didn't know how long the meeting would go and they
>>>set
>>>>it
>>>> up. The lady called me back ten minutes later and said she looked
>>>> at
>>>the
>>>>schedule wrong. "It's written in military time and I have trouble
>>>reading
>>>>and understanding it. The latest we can get you is 8:30 not 10:30."
>>>>
>>>>I told the Council most of what I've just told you and they sent the
>>>> following questions to City Utilities telling them they wanted
>>>> answers
>>>by
>>>> Friday, February 22.
>>>>
>>>>1. Why did you make the bus route changes?
>>>>2. Why didn't you have the schedules and maps ready before the changes
>>>>took
>>>>effect?
>>>>3. Why didn't you hold a public hearing or have public comments before
>>>you
>>>>made the changes?
>>>>4. Why did the routes change 3 and 4 times after you made the original
>>>>changes?
>>>>5. Is it true that you didn't want the passengers to know the changes
>>>were
>>>>coming? If so, why not?
>>>>6. Why are people having so many difficulties scheduling an Access
>>>Express
>>>>ride 6 and 7 days in advance?
>>>>
>>>>I called the City Council yesterday to find out what was the next
>>>>step,
>>>>that's when I got told those questions were sent to City Utilities and
>>>as
>>>>soon as they received a response they'd call me.
>>>>
>>>>Today a reporter from The Springfield Newsleader called. He talked to
>>>>both
>>>> me and Gary about what has been going on. I told him all about
>>>> Access
>>>and
>>>>that some of the buses arrive downtown five minutes early now because
>>>>of
>>>>the
>>>>new schedule, and the bus route that was added sits in the Social
>>>Security
>>>>parking lot for 15 minutes. No one has explained why this is.
>>>>
>>>>The paper got a report from City Utilities telling them that the
>>>>number
>>>of
>>>>riders on Access has increased and that they have 5 buses. I told the
>>>>reporter that several people I have spoken to said they are taking
>>>Access
>>>>because of all the route changes.
>>>>
>>>>He said that City Utilities has responded to City Council and said:
>>>>"We
>>>>should have had the bus maps and schedules available when we made the
>>>>route
>>>>changes, we will hold public hearings in the future for any change we
>>>want
>>>>to make whether it's small or big."
>>>>
>>>>I noticed that they didn't answer any of the questions City Council
>>>asked.
>>>>
>>>>The article is supposed to run in tomorrow's paper. I hope it makes a
>>>> difference.
>
>
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