The Joys of Public Transportation

Earlier this year, one light rail line serving south Minneapolis opened with limited stops. This weekend in Minneapolis, five more stops opened, including a stop at the Mall of America. To celebrate the Hiawatha lines new stops, the Twin Cities Metro Council chose to make buses and the light rail free both Saturday and Sunday.

I work part-time at the Mall of America and enjoy public transportation because it means I don't have to compete for parking spaces with all of the holiday shoppers. However...

Saturday night, I got off work around 7pm, and foolishly forgot that all of those people who had taken the train to the Mall Saturday morning would now be taking the train home. The trains and buses were free, so they were more crowded than usual, and they were populated with people who don't usually take the bus or train.

Public transportation is always an adventure, but a crowded train, packed with the kind of people who would only ride a free train, for fun, is beyond words.