(Not to be confused with a “Party Bus”!)
Have a kid’s birthday coming up?
Already worrying about how to entertain them for the hours that feel like days?
Take public transit!
My daughter wanted to go skating at an outdoor rink for her sleepover birthday festivities, but the conundrum is always how to get the kids there. Even if we did own two cars, we wouldn’t have enough seats.
No problem. We walked to the end of our street and filed onto the 232.
Some of the kids had never been on a bus!
To kids, the bus is liberating and daring. No seatbelts. Sometimes you have to stand. You can sit by yourself or curl up next to mom.
They chatted and giggled and sat on their knees to look out. They wondered when the bus would come, how to pay the fare, and how to get off. They wanted to pull the string for our stop and they figured out how to open the back door.
Our bus trip became part of the festivities.
Taking the bus in Vancouver is convenient because it is well-connected, and it is getting easier all of the time. This year, Translink is moving toward a refillable fare card. The “Compass Card” will be a much more convenient means of paying for and validating fares, and the system automatically determines the fare rate based on where you “tap in” and “tap out.” No more guessing which fare applies and what time of day and for how many zones!
In the meanwhile, I keep passes on hand so we can hop on the bus anytime to explore our city! (Without having to hunt for change!)
HOT TIP! Get a transfer when you board the bus. Most transit systems validate fares for 90 minutes. You might be able to get there and back on a single ticket!
Live within limits without limiting life
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Environmentalist Egalitarian Engineer 
March 13th, 2013 at 1:36 pm
Love the picture of the delighted 8 year olds on a bus
Love,
M