BART

If you are like me you love the thought of public transportation, but in practice, I am more of a "case-by-case" advocate. The reasons for my teppid support is by no means philisophical or astheticly founded - it purely economic.

Please, do not misquote me, I love BART (the same cannot be said about AC Transit). I refuse to drive a car into SF and as a North Oaklander the MacArthur BART station is my portal to downtown Oakland and the A's, Warriors and Raiders games. But regardless of my destination, riding BART is not a fun experience.

Now, now, I am not complaining about the loud music that my neighbor is blasting in our ears, or the ominous "HMMMMMMM" that accompanies the trans-bay tube, nor do I shun the bums that panhandle their way from car-to-car. There are a myriad of other less-than-ideal situations one runs into while utilizing public transit (whether it be AC Transit, MUNI, BART, AMRAK, etc.), but the one issue that really grinds my gears is seating.

Some seats are comfortable, some are too skinny, some are still warm, and in many cases there are no seats. But in the off chance you do get a well fitting seat, it is most likely filthy. I am not a germaphobe, but as a matter of public health, public saftey and basic economic principal, I can no longer idealy sit on these cloth seats!

1. Cloth is the more expensive option
2. Cloth attracts and retains filth, much like a sponge
3. Cloth requires extensive maintenance

So while I could continue my diatribe, for the sake of time, I will let the readers add to my list of the unpleasantries of cloth seats in the comment section below.

Over the next few months (or more realistically, decades) BART will begin to redesign their trains, and thus seating. The time to get involved is NOW.

If there were ever a public safety issue to rally behind - this is it! If there was ever a public health cause to fight for - this is it! (they can repeal Health Care legislation, but it is a helluva lot more difficult to repeal the upholstery of an un-upholstered seat)!

Join fellow East Bay residents as we fight for plastic seating - this is not about comfort, this is not about ergonomics - this is about simple dollars and cents.