Airport bus service

I'm at the airport, through security, an hour and fifteen minutes early for a flight to Seattle. It was either this or take the next bus and arrive at the airport just a half-hour before the flight. That's never a good idea, even here at BOI.

Fortunately, with free, easy-connect Wi-Fi (thank you, Idaho Business Review) and the spacious food court area - complete with lovely natural light and the awesome "fire fountain" - BOI is a perfectly good place to wait for a flight. Still, if we're ever able to get expanded bus service, more people will take transit. Think of the parking fees and cab fares you can save - but not if the buses don't run when you need 'em.

As always, my top gripe is the lack of evening service. Last week, I flew home Friday from another trip and arrived 15 minutes after the last bus had departed. Of course, when I get home from this trip Sunday, there will be no service at all. Oh well - at least the taxi companies are happy. (Or maybe not: My cabbie last week told me that the city has licensed way too many rigs and he'd been waiting in the queue three hours.)

Better bus service would be an even bigger boon for visitors. Think of it: When you go to "real" cities, there's no need to rent a car because you can either take transit, hail a cab, or walk everywhere you need to go. For now, Valley Ride could do a better job promoting the bus to visitors, perhaps through an airport display or information in the city visitors guide. But in a city where "nobody rides the bus" is a constant refrain, even the transit company sometimes seems to believe it.