So this actually happened last Saturday, and I’m just now sitting down to write about it because life has a way of doing that. But it’s been living rent-free in my head all week, so here we go.
Jason and I went to the Minnesota United game. Simple enough, right? Except it wasn’t.
The green line was down for maintenance, so Metro Transit had shuttle buses running between downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul. Shuttles on game days tend to get packed, so we decided to skip it and just take the 94. I take the 94 to work most days. I know the 94. The 94 and I are old friends.
Or so I thought.
Going: When the Bus Just… Doesn’t
When the 94 pulled up to our stop, it didn’t actually pull up. It stopped in the street. The driver leaned out and shouted that he was full, that he couldn’t accommodate me.
Does that happen? Yes. Is there much I can do about it in the moment if a driver says the bus is full? Not really. So I took him at his word. Everyone else at the stop stepped off the curb and boarded. Jason and I watched the bus go.
We ended up taking the green line shuttle after all. We made it to Allianz Field just in time for kickoff. I was a little annoyed, but the game was good, and I shook it off. Soccer helps.
Coming Home: A Different Story
After the game, I figured the shuttle would be the easy option heading back. It was not easy.
The shuttle loading area was right next to where a CVS had been torn down a few weeks earlier. Construction barricades were everywhere, and they were blocking the sidewalk. I couldn’t get through. I couldn’t load onto the shuttle. Just like that, the “easy” option was off the table.
Since I don’t usually take the 94 from downtown St. Paul, I wasn’t entirely sure where it picked up. Cue some finagling, some frustration, and, honestly, a little aggravation on Jason’s part too. But we found it.
This Time, I Spoke Up
Here’s where it got interesting. The same scenario played out: the bus wasn’t pulled to the curb. But this time, I decided to speak up. A little louder. A little more firmly.
The driver seemed to think I was just going to hop off the curb into the street. Power wheelchairs do not hop curbs. A few people nearby offered to lift me. They meant well, genuinely. I politely declined. One wrong move and someone gets hurt, I get hurt, or my chair gets damaged. None of those are great outcomes.
The driver eventually maneuvered the bus to the curb and loaded me on. I don’t know if he was having a rough day. Game days are chaotic, the green line was down, and everyone was stressed. I get it. But it still needed to happen, and it happened because I asked for it to happen.
Oh, and then the bus had a mechanical issue and had to pull off on the freeway. Which has genuinely never happened to me in all my years of riding Metro Transit. So that was a thing.
Even Advocates Need a Nudge Sometimes
Here’s what I keep coming back to: even those of us who do this work, who talk about disability rights, who know our rights, who have the language, sometimes freeze up in the moment. Sometimes we’re tired. Sometimes we’re just trying to get home after a long day and we don’t want to make it a whole thing.
I needed a gentle nudge from Jason to speak up on the way home. And that’s okay. Advocacy isn’t a switch you flip on and it stays on forever. It takes energy. And sometimes it takes a partner, literally or figuratively, reminding you that you’re allowed to take up space.
Even if that space is at the back of the bus, waiting for the driver to pull six feet closer to the curb.
We got home. Minnesota United lost 0-1 to LAFC. And I’m still thinking about that ride.
Have you ever frozen up in a moment when you knew you needed to speak up? What helped you find your voice?
As for today: no bus rides on the agenda. Minnesota United is playing the Columbus Crew in Columbus tonight at 6:30, so I’ll be watching from the couch.
Good thing too, because Metro Transit is doing more maintenance on the green line this weekend. Shuttle buses again. I’ll be staying home, thanks.
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