Thursday, September 3

Transantiago: Before and After.

Transantiago started on February 10th, 2007. Before that day, we could see yellow buses on Santiago streets. This new transport system was very controversial, because many things were unfinished when it started.

It consists buses that have different ways to operate, some of them are locals and the others are “troncales”, which crosses a great amount of the territory of the capital. The idea of this system is that now we pay with a card in change of the coins, so, it’s faster than before, or that supposed to be. Also, the system operates with the subway, where the card can be used too. And when we want to change of bus or go to the subway, we just pay once if we did it already in other bus or in the subway, but it’s with limited time of course.

Since that day, everything changed. We could see long lines of people who wanted to go home, but they couldn’t. They had to wait for hours to get on the buses. Everybody was angry, because they felt absolutely humiliated. The system changed the way to travel in the city, because in the past, people could get on one bus and arrived to their destiny, but now, it is not possible. People have to get on a bus, and then, they have to get off and get on another bus. It has been my experience. Really, I didn’t use that means of transport, because usually, I used the subway, but I could feel the change, because suddenly the subway turned into the most important means of transport, so everybody use it. I have to wait a long time to get on the train and we were all squashed together in the tube and it is so uncomfortable.

The old system wasn’t a great system, but it was easier. We didn’t have to change from a bus to another, so we took a shorter time to arrive to our destiny. But everything isn’t so bad. I think the bip! card is a good way to pay the ticket. Now, drivers can concentrate on driving. Also, now drivers earn a basic salary independently of how many people get on the bus. I think that is great.

I think Transantiago has changed for better. Now, there are more buses than in the past, and buses frequency has improved. Obviously, it is not enough, and I hope problems can be resolved soon, for example, buses frequency has to improve everyday, because people are all squashed together yet.

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