Found hairs on my coat

Just had to write quickly about this. I know my hair length, texture and color. I found 3 strands of hairs: one thin blond hair, one curly red hair, and one short thick white hair stuck on the back of my gray wool pea coat. I'm fairly certain they came from the seats on BART because that's the only time/place I wear a thick coat-- to work in the mornings. Time to hit the dry cleaners.

Should a station agent assist a vision-impaired man??

That should be a pretty simple question. The logical answer, of course, would be YES! But believe it or not, a man who is blind or vision-impaired loudly asked for assistance near the station agent's window. The station agent saw him but did not run out to assist. The vision-impaired man continued to ask for help, and finally, I, along with another passenger helped direct him towards the exit.

Perhaps the station agent was busy with some critical work? Maybe he didn't see the cane and didn't recognize that the man could not see? But wouldn't the agent offer help to a passenger pleading for assistance?

What is the job of the station agent? We all know they do not give change (so says their sign) and they love to point to the BART route map whenever someone asks them a question. They manage the station to some degree, I'm guessing?

I'd love to know what they do exactly and what qualities BART looks for in a station agent?? We already know that they make a good salary based on the salary reports-- but what do they do for us?

Bad mistake-- chose to drive over BART, and out of gas!

I had an early meeting that I joined by phone from home and by the time I was done, it was around 9:45am. I could have taken BART but with the limited shuttle connection that ends at 10am, I didn't want to deal with a bus or pay for a taxi, so I thought I should drive into SF instead. Without traffic, my ride across the bridge is 23 minutes, not bad! But today, with the heavy fog, the bridge traffic was even worse than indicated on 511.org, which generously marked the flow as yellow to red. It was more like black all the way until after the toll.

To make things worse, I thought I had 2 bars of gas left on my Prius but for some DARN reason, 2 bars went to flashing zero warning within 3 minutes. This never happens, it must be another Toyota malfunction, even though our model year was not recalled. What the heck????

I had to jam my way to the West Grand exit and find the nearest (not so close!) gas station with my husband's help over the phone since the GPS was down.

Finally, with gas, the bridge traffic was even worse. All in all, it took me over 70 minutes today to get to SF.

Looking back, I should have just taken BART, and pay for the $5 taxi ride.

So lame...

When you know you are too sick to ride BART

5) When you are sneezing so much that you need to use your sleeves to wipe up the drips under your nose every few minutes.
4) When you have an eye infection and your eyes are red with sticky discharges
3) When you are sucking snot and fluids back into your nose every 3 seconds
2) When your chest is so congested that each cough sounds like a small 2.0 earthquake and produces phlegm that you need to spit out or swallow back
1) When continuous strings of coughs from you prompts passengers next to you to ask you if you need the paramedics...which is what I saw today!!!

Please, all, stay home if you are contagious and ill. Work from home or call in sick if you can.

Flooding and broken escalators at Civic Center Station and

When it rains, the stations seem to fall apart. With this week's down pour, the Civic Center station (as well as many others I'm sure) was flooded with about an inch and a half of water all around the stairs and escalators. The water, intermixed with the dirt and stains on the station floors, was brownish yellow and thick. Quite a nasty sight and smell. I guess if we can't count on the janitorial staff to get the floors cleaned, might as well let the rain wash out the urine, food, and everything else that's been stuck on the floors.

The flooding caused 2 out of the 3 escalators I usually take to be out of service. Or perhaps the excessive rain was just a good excuse to not fix the elevators for awhile and put up the out of service signs?

This week will no doubt be brutal for BART commuters!! I'm mentally prepared for longer rides, delayed schedules, wet umbrellas and coats jammed in my face, flooding, more homeless inside the stations...etc.

Have fun!

Pants Liberation Front - No Pants 2010 Project?

I guess if there's any place to do it, it's in the Bay Area. Those in support of Improv Everywhere, a NYC based performing arts group, paraded free of pants while riding BART yesterday. Call me whatever you wish but I find stunts like this extremely inappropriate. If they want to show their support in public by not wearing pants, do it in a plaza, like at Embarcadero or Union Square where people have the choice to walk another direction, but not on the trains where space is already a premium, where there are little ones around, and fellow passengers are forced to be within inches of you.

Carolyn Jones of Chronicle reports: "Some wore frayed cotton boxers, others opted for pink satin thongs, and a few forewent underwear entirely."

It's ridiculous. Thank goodness it didn't happen today.

iBART LIVE iPhone app: Expensive but cool

If you're willing to fork out $4 for up to the second tracking of train arrivals, iBART LIVE is worth the investment. I've had iBART (the free version) for quite some time and found it very helpful, however, to find out about delays, I needed to open up the "advisories" notification and read about them.

Well, with iBART LIVE, you will have the same info as the scrolling ticker that we see on the platform right on your iPhone. Very convenient for someone like me who does not have the patience to wait around on the platform for delayed trains...I do wait, but you'll read about it for sure here or on Twitter!

Why $4 though?? That's a bit much for an iPhone app in my opinion. Can someone explain?

BART Parking Vendor is AWFUL!!!

What a way to start the new year. I have a monthly permit to park at the reserved area in the Orinda Station but I'm thinking of canceling it and buy daily instead since I no longer take BART everyday of the week due to my once a week commitment to go to San Jose and my ability to telecommute on Fridays. It just isn't cost effective anymore.

In case you don't know, BART parking is managed by Parking Carma. You are able to buy and print permits online, although you cannot alter or cancel the permit reservation! You must speak with a LIVE person.

What is the point of an online account management system then?? That's not all. Fine, I'll call a live person to get this done if I have to but my goodness, CAN SOMEONE PLEASE ANSWER THE PHONE????

The number 415-671-7343 has been BUSY for two days! Actually, one time, I got through, and waited for more than 10 minutes and suddenly, it went silent. I hung up.

What the heck??? Hire more people if you don't have enough operators or reps! Lots of people need jobs right now!

I refused to be charged another month because I cannot get through to Parking Carma.


I'll keep you posted on this!

New Poll: BART OAK Extension

Now that the BART Board of Directors have approved to go ahead with the OAK Extension (estimated completion in 2013), time to hear your thoughts? Do you think it's a good idea? Vote now!

BART sanitizer dispenser empty!

Budget cuts or just an increasing caution amidst flu season? Perhaps it was broken? Whatever it was, the sanitizer dispenser was on empty. I don't use it often but I had forgotten my bottle of Purell and decided to try it out for the first time. To my surprise, nothing came out. Perhaps it was just put there by BART to pretend they care about H1N1? Joking. I'll be trying again before my next BART ride-- hope they will refill soon. Maybe with union contracts, they are only allowed to refill within a certain amount of time otherwise it would require overtime pay? Ha, joking again.

Pick-up line of the day on BART

People generally don't chat with each other on BART, so when one strikes a conversation, my ears perk up. After all, it is my job as the writer of BART Musings to share with you all interesting things I see/hear during my commute, right??

A man, likely in his early 30s, was sort of looking at a woman, also likely in her 30s. She's cute, well-dressed and busy knitting. And because she was preoccupied with knitting, she wasn't aware that this man was totally checking her out. He sure didn't hide it. Then, there was some passenger movement in the train due to a stop at the MacArthur station, and he ended up standing next to her seat.

He then said to her, "I always thought knitting was one of the hardest things to do. How did you learn it?" She then said something about how she picked it up from friends, looked away and continued knitting. Then, he said, "Wow, that's so impressive. I'd love to see some of the things you've knitted some time."

Urgh, I felt bad for her. She said, "Oh, I don't have it with me. It's really not that hard."

The man should have taken that as a hint and just stop talking but he said, "No, it's really impressive. You look like you're really good at it too."

She smiled and looked down again. There really was nothing left for him to say after that, so he finally took the hint.

What to do with one empty seat and 8 people staring at it?

Interesting situation on the train this am. One seat opened up and there were at least 8 of us looking at it. Not that this means anything but I was the only female amongst 7+ men. No seniors, pregnant women or physically handicapped passengers in sight. 3 seconds have past and no one stepped towards the seat. Finally, I walked toward it and sat down. Then I hear two guys chuckling, "I guess she feels entitled."

What the heck?? Any of them could have taken the seat!!! I waited 3 seconds, I didn't take the seat because I'm female, I took it because if I didn't, someone new entering the train will!

I didn't yell back at them but I did turn my head and give a not so nice stare. If they wanted the seat, why don't they go then?? GEEZ!

No complaints...for now!

With reports indicating the state jobless rate at yet another record high of 12.5%, makes me think twice about complaining about BART, my shuttle mis-connections, and the worsening parking situation. At least I have a job to commute to, right?

While I shall remain appreciative that I'm not one of the 12.5% Californians that are unemployed, my temporary no complaint policy (**along with the jobless rate news, I am also about to head into a one week vacation, so I'm in an extra great mood) will likely cease after the Thanksgiving holiday, once I head back to work.

With that, I want to wish everyone a very happy Thanksgiving!! We all have much to be thankful for.

New Poll: BART Parking!

I'm noticing that BART parking has become an issue even in the reserved lot! Curious what everyone else is experiencing with BART parking?

Do not hold the train doors open!!

As many commenters suggested, I really should have included this in the top 5 etiquette blog! How could I have forgotten?!?!

I don't care if your friend or wife is just running up the escalator-- when the doors need to be shut, they need to be shut!!! Some passengers just don't realize the consequences when these archaic doors get jammed! It could cause a delay up to 10 minutes when these doors need to be fixed by a technician.

Someone held open the doors this morning as it was closing to squeeze in. Luckily, the train operator was open to close/open a few times to get it working normally again. This passengers was then scolded by the T.O. over the speakers-- GOOD! Glad that he was called out like that! He got so many stares in our train car that he walked over to the next one.

Hey BART Newbies! Learn these rules of etiquette on BART

Daily BART commuters understand and abide by some unsaid rules on BART. It is very easy for us to spot who the newbies are. Now, don't be offended, take this lightly, you'll learn!

The past couple of days have really tested our patience, not just because of the crowds and lack of parking but also because of the disruption in etiquette and routine. There are many rules on BART but here are the top five than you must follow immediately to avoid dirty looks, curses or much worse:

1) Please keep to the RIGHT on the escalator if you choose to stand instead of walk up or down. If you feel like getting some exercise, or are in a rush, then take the left side on the escalator!

2) Whether on the right or left side of the escalator, NEVER come to a sudden halt just because you are near the end of the ride. When you suddenly put on the brakes, people in back of you will run into you, causing a domino effect. Keep walking when the escalator ends and continue walking on the floor.

3) AlWAYS have your BART ticket handy BEFORE you arrive in front of the ticket gates. Do not hold the lines but digging for your ticket in your purse, computer bag, wallet, pocket..etc.

4) Do not block the train doors when people need to enter the train. Step slightly outside of the train if you have to and let people in! The train will not leave without you. Not that close.

5) There's no need to make your way to the train door 2 minutes before your station, especially not in a crowded train. Your pushing and shoving prior to arrival make everyone around you extremely uncomfortable. There are others that will exit with you-- you will be able to get out!

I just read that the Bay Bridge will reopen by commute hours tomorrow am so newbies probably won't need to use these for awhile. Keep these handy just in case the bridge closes again (hopefully a scheduled closure, not a sudden breakdown!)

BART over-crowded due to Bay Bridge shut down-- my nightmare commute today

Where do I even begin? First, the parking situation! Everyone probably purchased a one day reserved parking pass and there were no spaces left by the time I got there! Good thing I set aside some extra time to circle the vicinity and found 3/4 of a space that I managed to squeeze into. My doors have little dents already so what's one more?? Then, the dangerously crowded platform. It was chaotic. Lines were forming from all directions.

By the time the train arrived, it was already max capacity. In the specific car I was lined up in front of, all 12-15 of us managed to squeeze on. Keep in mind that Orinda is usually not that crowded! I was practically hugging the woman in front of me-- thank goodness she was clean and pleasant, and even told me that if I needed to, I can grab on to her arms or her gym bag.

Every station was packed. The train got to be ridiculously over capacity but passengers kept on rolling in. To make things worse, it was stop and go the whole way. At the 30 minute mark (typically I'd arrive at CC station in 30 minutes), we were only at 19th Street.

Infrequent BART riders got up at 19th Street Station thinking that was Embarcadero, which caused more chaos with all the unnecessary pushing and shoving.

At West Oakland, those waiting on the platform could not get on and screamed inside the train for people to clear the path for them somehow. They managed to squeeze on and sat on the ground before there was more room by the legs than up top.

Once I finally got to CC Station, I lined up for my company shuttle. One arrived and it got to max capacity before half of us got on. I had to wait for the next.

It took me about 1.5 hours to get to work today.

CAN WE HAVE A BETTER WORK FROM HOME POLICY DURING THIS TYPE OF SITUATION?????

Bay Bridge closed indefinitely..again

BART riders beware-- go the BART stations early, claim your parking space early, pack light, be ready to stand and be pushed...because it is going to a crazy commute with the Bay Bridge closed after repaired cables crashed and struck three cars! Just now (9:30pm PT) KRON4 news reports that the closure is anticipated to be 24 hours. BART and ferries are prepared to accommodate extra riders but we know it's still going to be a mad house.

This is going to be nuts! I wish I can work from home tomorrow.

Why I will get the swine flu vaccine

I've never gotten a flu vaccine in my life-- I've always been able to fight off colds and flus within a reasonable amount of time. I'm not someone who is overly wrapped up in the swine flue pandemic scare but I will likely get the swine flu vaccine because I am a daily BART commuter; I have little control of the close contact that I have with strangers; I know nothing of their whereabouts; and most importantly, if I contract the virus, I do NOT want to give it to my 1 year old knowing the deathly impact it has on kids.

A friend of mine who works in the One Market building said someone in his office has the swine flu. How many people who work at One Market take BART?? I'd imagine a very high percentage!! We'll all be exposed to the virus at some point and I'd much rather be protected, if not for myself, for my little one.

I'm not about to wear masks any time soon but am certainly more aware of passengers with bad coughs and drippy noses around me. It is alarming although most people still do not take it seriously.

Do you care much about the swine flu?

Another great use of funding by BART management.

Awarding an "energy efficiency" contract to a company run by former Black Muslim Bakery associate. Is there really no other company in the Bay Rea that offers more experience and credibility in energy to upgrade BART's energy system? Especially when the "company" has already been tied to questionable projects under public scrutiny

Ridiculous.