Google wants me dead
Google Transit expanded their service to include Metro Transit this week. Apparently, it’s decided I should be dead.
Here’s a sample itinerary using two addresses that represent my home and work (not real home or work, of course). In Google’s mind, I should:
1. Ride south on Aurora on the mighty 3-5-8
2. Cross six lanes of highway traffic (and the Jersey barrier in the middle) that’s going 50mph when it’s at speed (tho some days isn’t moving fast at all)
3. Arrive at the other bus stop across the street
4. Ride the 74 north and east to the U District
5. Walk the last two blocks to my ficticious office
Or, in the short version:
Ride bus AWAY from final destination, dodge cars and SCALE A JERSEY BARRIER to dodge cars again, then finally ride a bus back towards the destination if I’m not crushed, smashed, or otherwise severely injured by a downtown-bound gas guzzling H3.
OK, yes, I could probably walk to the Dexter underpass, dodge that traffic, and come out on the other side. But still, why do that when I could get off earlier — at 39th — and walk under the overpass to the same 74 on Bridge Way without ever having to cross the Aurora Bridge?
And why do all that when Metro’s Trip Planner suggests I get off even earlier — at 85th — and take the 48 to a spot a block away from ficticious work? Oh, yeah, Tripfinder’s route is a laborious 48 minutes, a looong day out compared to the exciting and life-risking 34 minutes Google Transit’s route offers me. Of course, does that take into account the sardine-packed nature of the 358 most mornings or the sticky Aurora traffic? I don’t think so.
I can only reach one conclusion, then. Google wants me D-E-D dead. What did I do to it to deserve vehicular manslaughter, insult its puppy?
Related posts:
Not surprisingly, all of the cities on Google Transit are mid-sized cities not yet serviced by HopStop.com.
Google thinks I should walk to work, which I already do. They even think that it should take me about the same time to walk to work as it actually takes me to walk to work. Google likes me.
Google:
loves Zee
hates Dylan
What does Zee have that I don’t?
Google loves the 358 apparently. It told me to take it from Cap Hill to Pioneer Square.
Google also loves the 74.
This is how you get from Queen Anne to Group Health?
http://www.google.com/transit?f=d&saddr=650+W.+Olympic+Place,+Seattle,+WA&daddr=1619+E+John+St,+Seattle,+WA+98112&ttype=dep&date=9/26&time=11:36am&ie=UTF8&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1
Wow, Google really hates the rest of you! Why would you take such a long and convulated route from QA to GH when you could just get on the 8?
And doesn’t the 358 go nowhere near Cap Hill?
I really feel special now.
From North City to downtown. according to Google, I should walk over to 99 and then hop the #358. Seems the #73 goes directly from North CIty to Downtown. So does the #77. Google just wants you to get out and walk. They also want you to ride with the ‘interesting’ folks on the #358. Google wants your life to be spiced up.
My itinerary is FAR more bizarre — when did Metro start using heli-buses?!?
http://www.google.com/transit?date=9/26/06&time=3:50pm&f=et&ttype=dep&q=from:+4200+S+Ferdinand+St,+Seattle,+WA+98118+to:+3845+Factoria+Blvd+SE,+Bellevue,+WA+98006&ie=UTF8&z=12&ll=47.578147,-122.255859&spn=0.108852,0.314827&om=1
I’m trying to get from my home (Columbia City) to my work (Bellevue/Factoria). Normally I would just walk two blocks down to Rainier and catch the 7 running north which would take me to I-90 where I’d catch another bus across the bridge to Factoria and walk a couple of blocks to work.
Instead, Google has me walking about 10 blocks roughly NW, then catching a bus at Rainier and Genessee that takes me SSE to Rainier and Holly (”as the crow flies” rather than by following any pesky street grid) before taking an abrupt 170 degree turn to the NNW and flying (apparently) directly to Belltown. At this point I’m to transfer to a boring old terrestrial bus which takes me the rest of the way to my destination.
While this sounds like an interesting trip, it takes about three times as long as my, admittedly not as exciting, normal commute.
Beta indeed.
You know, at least we aren’t being asked to walk on water by Google like in Portland.
Google thinks I should scale a cliff, hack through forest, and cross a gorge to complete this trip. I admire the dedication to physical exercise, but I think this is beyond my current hiking skill level.