Indianapolis, IN – My name is Will Hazen. As both a transit rider and a bus operator here in Indianapolis, I get to experience our transit system from a range of perspectives. While my boyfriend and I own a car, I take the bus to work every day because it’s faster than having to find a place to park downtown and then walk the remaining distance to work. It’s also so much less expensive than paying for gas and the insurance costs that come with driving a lot. My boyfriend would like to be able to take the bus to work as well, but as a teacher, he needs to get to work early and is limited by the fact that the bus doesn’t run early enough to get him there on time.
As a rider, I experience firsthand some of the barriers that may make it difficult for others to ride the bus, like inaccessible bus stops or a lack of frequency that can leave people with no option but to take an expensive rideshare service if they miss their bus or transfer. But it has some phenomenal upsides too: Back when I didn’t have access to a car and first started riding the bus regularly, I would look at my bank account and think, “Wow, there’s so much more money in here!” Prior to that I didn’t really think about how much driving was costing me.
What I did think about a lot—and still do—is the freedom and community support that comes with access to reliable public transit. My grandfather lived in Ottawa, Kansas, and when he forfeited his license, we were all worried that he was going to lose his freedom to get around. But thankfully, the city, for as small as it is at 13,000 people, had a decent city bus that could take him to the grocery store, to doctor appointments, or even just to sit in the park for a while. For my family and me, that meant a ton, because I obviously didn’t live anywhere near him to help him get around. But him being able to maintain his freedom up until he was 99 years old was huge.
Here in Indy, one thing I’ve learned in my five years operating the bus is that the bus is the most unbeatable “third place” in any city. People will get on there that haven’t seen each other in 40 years, will recognize each other, and suddenly they’ll have plans to have a cookout next week. The ability of the bus to connect people in more than one way is just unparalleled, and that’s what I love about it. It does a better job at that than a coffee shop, it does a better job at that than a park. It’s just the best community space in the city, and it’s phenomenal as a transit worker to be a part of that every day.
There are some real struggles, too. For an underfunded transit agency—which is pretty much all of them right now—not being able to run a good service that’s accessible is restricting the freedom of a lot of riders in systems across the country, especially working folks and families who rely on the service.
Since we launched our service improvements starting in 2018, I’ve heard from tons of riders who have said “this allows me to pick up overtime at my job” and “this means I can make it to a doctor’s appointment” and “this means I can make it to this job that pays me $30 an hour now.”
And it’s not just about new opportunities, but also making life easier for people in their current situations. In the case of the Purple Line (our newest Bus Rapid Transit line), I heard one rider say “this means I can sleep in now. I don’t have to wake up at 4 a.m.—I can wake up at 5.” The new rapid service means they don’t have to leave an extra hour early to make it to their job on time.
We’re so lucky at IndyGo to have programs like Wellness in Transit and Food in Transit that give transit riders easy access to health services and fresh produce. We also have Art in Transit and Music in Transit that not only expose riders to local arts and artists that might otherwise just be in a gallery or a concert venue but that supports the work of those artists too. All of this improves the lives of working people and provides support and dignity in all the ways that we deserve.
These are the sorts of things that don’t get reflected when you just look at the ridership numbers. It might be the same people riding, but their lives have been made easier because we’ve made these investments in transit funding. For working families, it’s worth every penny we put into it and more.
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This story is from our most recent report, Working Families Ride the Bus, which focuses on workers from across the country who rely on public transit to stay connected with their livelihoods, their families, and greater opportunities.