On the bus. →[More:] My brother and I rode the JTA bus down to the Jacksonville Jazz Fest this evening, and had a great night at Metropolitan Park, listening to George Benson and Al Jarreau, and drinking $4 beers in soft 73°F evening breezes on the banks of the St. Johns River. The scent of coffee roasting from the Maxwell House plant a half mile up river was pleasant on the night air, and the lights from the sport complex and the downtown bridges glittered off the river, and mingled with the stage lights and the fireworks. The crowds from the Jacksonville Suns game and the Jazz Fest mingled well, and good time seemed to have been had by all, as the fireworks lit up the river, on a Florida spring night.

For us, this particular trip was an easy single bus, no-transfer route, starting a block from our house, and ending at the central terminal in downtown, and then a 4 block walk to where we could pick up the free event shuttle that connects all the venues. But we actually walked over to the park, around behind the sports complex, through a section of downtown where the homeless shelter is based, and parking garages and office buildings are the principal land uses. For blocks, we were the only white faces on the streets, but our pedestrian presence was more a subject of remark to those we passed, than to ourselves. On the reverse route we did take the shuttle, to stay as late as possible before catching the last bus home. 22 miles each way, in about 40 minutes, with no parking hassles or cost, for $1.35 each, each way. We'd have spent just about as much as our fares on gas, and more, to drive, if we'd have had to pay parking. So, it was economically a break even proposition, although maybe we saved putting 4 or 5 pounds of carbon in the atmosphere today.

But this is a southern city where middle class people traditionally don't ride the buses, in any quantity, although there was a big to-do about that back last spring and summer when gas prices spiked to over $3 for a few weeks. But it passed, and the few folks that were typical downtown commuters that tried JTA, and had cars, trucks, and SUV's sitting in driveways back home, got back in them once gas prices drifted down 30 cents a gallon. Too bad, because the bus schedules are pretty convenient, the equipment is clean and modern, and it makes as good a time as we could, driving. Neither bus we were on this evening was even 50% occupied. Some people we met and talked with at the festival were shocked when they asked us where we parked, and we said we didn't, that we'd taken the bus down. They were even dubious that it could be done, when we we told them we lived out by the Beaches.

It's a class thing, and somehow, still, a race thing, to ride the buses, here. But we're doing it again tomorrow, 'cause we could care less about such. We'll walk right by Jenkins Quality Barbecue on our way to the event shuttle, and have some rib plates for lunch.