Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Urban transportation: Istanbul's Metrobus

There were many reasons why I quit my job, but one of them was that it was taking me more than an hour each way to get to and from work. From our apartment, we'd walk about 20 minutes to the metro, which I'd take two stops, then I'd get on the Metrobus for about 35 minutes, and then walk for another 5 minutes or so.

Ah, the Metrobus. Inaugurated in 2007, it runs on the European side, in its own dedicated lane in the middle of a highway. It's a great concept. And at some point in the spring, the IETT started running a TV ad on the Metrobus to remind everyone how great it is:



Doesn't that guy look happy? (If you didn't watch the video, you need to click on it, really.) And in the morning, it wasn't so bad. I got on at the first stop, so I almost always had a seat, and it really required only the slightest bit of aggression. In the evenings, though, it was hell on wheels...which is why a lot of people took exception to the ad. Some clever folks even spoofed it, and unfortunately for all of us who live here and have to ride the Metrobus, it's not so far off the mark:

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