BUS STORY # 85 (Bus Tales.com)

This is the first site that let me know I wasn’t out there all by myself. Somebody else (Rhett Martin, actually) was fascinated by what he saw and heard on the city bus and decided to put it out there.

Actually, Rhett lets the other riders of Minneapolis’ Metro Transit tell the stories. These are brief, and often include editorial comment. A wonderful design is the story’s featured route number displayed on the left margin of the story itself.

One recent post begins is titled “ His teeth were biting my . . .”

In the early nineties I was a student at the U of MN, living off campus and without a car. As a result I became a bus expert. I specialized in the teens – the 17, the 19, the 16 - and sometimes even graduated to the 21. I have a million stories, but my favorite comes from the 16.

One spring afternoon following class I was riding the 16 from the U of MN to downtown Minneapolis. It was a busy time of day and the bus was standing room only. I stood there hanging on, shifting my weight as the bus lurched along, crowded in amongst other commuters.

A few blocks into the trip I felt pressure on my right hip. Looking down I was stunned to see a wild-eyed, bearded man biting me. Seriously.

Be sure and read the comments afterwards. I laughed out loud.

Next week: Picking Up Strangers.

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“Thanksgiving 2007 Minneapolis Minnesota,” the fine photo at the top of this story, is posted with the kind permission of Randy Stern. It features one of the Minneapolis Metro Transit’s Gillag Low-Floor Hybrid Diesel buses. You can see the photo and a link to all of Randy's work on Flickr at: http://flickr.com/photos/65962456@N00/2055434835/in/set-72157603298827051/