On the Blue Line: You can't do this driving

We take another ride on the Blue Line between Long Beach and Los Angeles with our correspondent, Lauren A. Williams:

We all know the pitfalls of public transportation: It doesn’t take you exactly where you want to go, you might occasionally have to stand and, usually, it takes quite a bit longer than traveling in a car. But what are the things passengers can do on the Metro that they wouldn’t be able to do in a car?

"You can converse with random people," said Randee Simpson, who was taking the Metro to visit a friend in Inglewood. "I met my best friend on the Green Line three years ago." The two got to talking about relationships and hit it off despite the distance between where they live.

Sometimes, though, meeting new people doesn’t end as pleasantly.

"One time, I got in a fight," Simpson added, mentioning that a conversation with a friend ended up in a brawl between herself and another passenger.

Other passengers note you don’t even need to be conscious to ride the Metro.

"I can go to sleep, I don’t have to worry about stopping for traffic lights," said Michael Williams, who was reading a passage from Proverbs in the Bible on his ride into downtown L.A. "I read one passage a day and meditate on it."

Other passengers pass time by reading. Lucy Van Wagner spent her hours-long trip from Long Beach to Pasadena the other day reading Agatha Christie’s "They Came to Baghdad."

"It just happens to be timely," she said.

Loud talking is also discouraged, but that doesn’t stop many (and often most) patrons from chatting loudly with each other and shouting into cellphones. At times the loud buzzing disrupts reading patrons, but it doesn’t seem to disturb the napping ones.

The disruptions, though, don’t bother all patrons.

"Yeah, some people start talking too loud, fight," said Miriam Aguirre who works downtown but lives in Long Beach. But for her and other patrons, the loud chatter is still better than sitting in a car.

-- Lauren A. Williams

What do you think readers? Is riding the Blue Line or the bus better than sitting in a car? Hit the comment button below.

Photo: Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Donald Stanwood]

Compared to the Gold Line, riding the Blue Line requires a more philosophical attitude toward the foibles of humanity. Also, contrary to other recent comments, I would not ride the Blue Line late at night.

[BlogReader]

I do not know about the Blue line, but I would prefer the Gold line any day to driving.