Buses, Trains, and Automobiles

Growing up, trains were something special.  Trains took you to special places like New York City.  Buses, on the other hand, were commonplace.  We learned this early on with the school bus.  Our family lived in a new community and the school district seemed not to know what to do with us.

For two years, we were bused to Schirra Elementary School.  At the time, NASA was cool, and honoring astronauts was in vogue.  I found out later in life that Wally Schirra was from New Jersey, a little over an hour from home.  After Schirra, it was a year of bus travel to Madison Park School.  There was nothing too cool about Madison Park.  Most of the people were great, but I had my Little League team catcher’s mitt stolen at that school.  My mother had to buy the team a new one.

The next year, we were all in a brand new Middle School, and yes, we took the bus there too.  Then on to high school and another bus.  College was another time for buses – around campus, to town, and another bus home on breaks.  Buses were basic transportation to summer jobs.

The train was a commuter line.  In South Amboy or some place around there, the train would stop to switch locomotives.  The switch from diesel to electric could take minutes, but sometimes more time.  My dad said that the liquor store near the tracks did an incredible amount of business from the trains.

The auto was everyday travel and mom was the pilot.  There was nothing exotic about the car, but it sure beat any bus I had ever been on.

How many hours do we spend getting from one place to another?  I don’t think any of us could add up the hours, but one thing I do know – I’d rather take a train.  How about you?