How to Discourage Ridership

There are many ways to discourage transit ridership and promote the use of the automobile.  Here is a list of some of the ways that different groups or agencies can do their part in promoting the use of the automobile, especially the single occupant vehicle.

Local Governments

• Do not allow the transit district to install bus stops in areas where they are needed.
• Always insist that all buses only use certain streets.

Highway and Road Departments

• Force buses to stay off of the best roads.
• Require the bus stops to be totally out of the way of all traffic.  This slows the buses down so discourages people from riding.

Transit Management

• Never replace old equipment.
• Never update routes to reflect changes in demographics.
• Create passenger unfriendly fares.
• Allow schedules to get old and unrealistic.
• Force passengers to transfer too many times.
• Make no attempt to accommodate transfers between different routes and systems.
• Put either too many or too few stops on a given route.
• Waste money on things other than service, or directly supporting the service on the road.
• Do not provide any form of public schedule information.

Transit Workers

• Have a bad attitude.
• Do "your own thing" all the time.
• Never attempt to keep the schedules.
• Refuse to pick up passengers.
• Drive poorly.

Employers

• Always build plenty of auto parking.
• Do not allow employees to adjust their work hours to reflect transit schedules.
• Always insist on employees driving to off site meetings.
• Build you building in such a way that parking is always more convenient than the nearest transit stop.
• Pick sites for offices that are not served and cannot be served by transit.

Transit Riders

• Be obnoxious.
• Make lots of noise.
• Delay the bus.
• Always take up as many seats as possible, after all you are paying for them.