According to the lyrics, the trolley should have gone clang, clang, clang, and the bell should have gone ding, ding, ding. And my heartstrings should have zinged. That’s what should have happened when I rode the Capital Area Transit (CAT) trolley for the first time. There was a clang and a ding, but definitely no zing.
This was my first time riding the trolley. Having seen it pass by and wondering about ridership and routes, I decided to ride the trolley and get the full experience in hopes of reliving some of my lost youth.
I became a proponent of public transportation at age 5. I fondly remember boarding the bus with my mother to go upstreet for some Saturday or holiday shopping. The bus would literally pick us up out front of our apartment. To me, this was the best thing since the Beanie Cap Copter.
I distinctly remember the bus driver, a little round guy with a Ralph Kramden bus driver’s uniform, greeting me as I boarded. Then I put our fare in the meter, exact change only.
What really impressed me was the change maker attached to the fare meter. It was a metal contraption that had tubes for quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies. Didn’t have exact change? No problem. Just give Mr. Kramden a bill and he would instantly change it to coins with one hand. One hand! No kidding!
A couple of years later, being trusted to take the bus by myself with a known and trusted bus driver, I was able to venture into the unknown land of Penacook. It cost a dime to make the foray into the great north with stops along Fisherville Road to pick up riders heading to the Giant store.
For one dime, I could start in the south end of Concord, go through Main Street, travel along Route 3 into the land that time forgot and make a circuitous route back to the bus stop across the street from my house. And I never had to get off the bus! I’d just sit and go along for the ride. Talk about the best bang for your buck!
These memories stuck with me throughout most of my life as I began to venture farther away from my home. Going to Boston for my 13th birthday via Greyhound and arriving at South Station. Heading to Montpelier, Vt., and Portland, Maine, during my high school years. Relying on public transportation while living and going to school in Minneapolis.
So, with those memories, I boarded the CAT trolley. I was told that the trolley picked up people at the Storrs Street shopping center but found no signage. Luckily, I was able to see the trolley turning in and flagged the driver down. He told me where the pickup point was but couldn’t explain why there wasn’t a sign. He then handed me a schedule with fares and stops mapped out.
Once on, I was asked if I was eligible for the senior discount. Anyone 60 years of age or older can ride for 50 cents instead of the customary $1.25. I have a conscious. I paid the buck twenty-five.
Boarding with me was a mother and her three children, the youngest celebrating her birthday by going for a trolley ride. Amazing! A truly unique way to spend a birthday while familiarizing your children with public transportation. The only other rider to be picked up on the route was an NHTI student.
We did pass other bus stops along the way, and while there were people at these stops, they were either waiting for other buses or just resting. Or both. Our route took us on North Main Street, down Commercial Street, over to NHTI, on to Fort Eddy Road and back down to Storrs Street, where the route started over. The approximate time for this ride was half an hour.
As I said, I support public transportation because it serves a population that need access to get from point A to point B without having to spend an arm an a leg. However, I still think that by adjusting the schedule, routes and incorporating a few of my off-the-wall ideas, ridership will increase and we may actually see full buses and trolleys in town.
One of the most obvious changes would be to somehow incorporate the downtown parking garage and shuttling people to area businesses and schools. It seems to me that Franklin Pierce Law Center, with its ongoing parking woes at White Park, would benefit the most from this route. Have the students park their cars at the parking garage, get shuttled to the school and VOILA! Problem solved. Not bad, huh?
Or, allow local civic groups to rent out the trolleys for special events and occasions. Got an outing planned? Rent a trolley. Having a political rally and need to go as a group? Rent a trolley. Tired of running your 10K? Ride the trolley (just get off before the finish line).
The trolley could also be used to take people back and forth from local parking lots to the annual fourth of July celebration at Memorial Field, using neighborhood landmarks as pick-up points. Prizes could be given to the neighborhood with the most riders. This will develop a much-needed sense of community and create neighborhood rivalries.
Pick up people at senior centers, take them for rides during the nice weather and call it “The Traveling Antiques Roadshow.” Well maybe that’s not such a good title, but it’s the thought that counts. Use the trolleys to visit area schools so that students can get a sense of history. Heck, use them as school buses as a reward for students who do well and have good attendance.
Really, the best thing you can do is just ride the trolleys! And appreciate what you have.
