AC Transit Line 12

This bus is not always on time but it gets the closest to my home and work. So what choice do I have? Some times it dosent come at all, so plan to be early where ever your going, if you plan to be on time and the bus dosent come you’ll be sad.

As someone lucky enough to not own a car, I rely heavily on public transportation. As I don’t live anywhere near a BART station, the brand of transport I find myself using most frequently is AC Transit. And, for the most part, it does me fine. Unlike other naysayers, I think that AC Transit actually has its act together pretty well, or at least, as well as can be expected for a public transit system. For the most part, the schedules are accurate and the buses on time.
And then there is the 12.
The 12 is never on time, and that is exacerbated by the fact that it only runs every 20 minutes (30 minutes on the weekends). Therefore, you must ask yourself, «at what magical time can I arrive at the bus stop that will ensure that I don’t JUST miss the bus, nor have to wait for 45 minutes?» The question is purely rhetorical, my friends. And although I cannot offer a solution to this problem, I can offer the reason behind its existence.
Old People.
Please don’t think I’m ageist. Please don’t send the AARP out after me. All I’m saying is that there are A LOT of old people that ride the 12. It takes the average old person a long time just to climb those bus steps, but add a walker or a wheelchair, and now the bus is running at a 5 minute delay. Multiply that by infinity old people, squared. Not to mention that this is just one half of the equation, because once the old people are on the bus, they have to get off again. Usually at the very next stop.
If you take the 12, and it is on time, try this experiment: observe the passengers. My guess is that no one will be over 70.