Photo du Jour 516
Welcome Back! Um, Why Are You at Work Today?
Tiger Woods In "Serious" Condition After Car Crash
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Photos from Black Friday
Builder of Oakland's Fox Theater Once Imprisoned For 'White Slavery'
The East Bay's Casual Commute just got a little more codified with today's Chron cover story about the cheapest way to get across the Bay Bridge. We've never been able to find a website explaining the casual commute phenomenon (until today), or where exactly to pick up rides -- though we have seen groups of artists-working-day-jobs, slumming consultants, and other downtown denizens patiently lined up on various corners in Berkeley and Rockridge waiting on corners around 8 in the morning. Thanks to the Chron for publishing the definitive list!
So the trick with cas. commute is that East Bay denizens looking to get to San Francisco meet up at designated points with drivers who are looking to get three people for the free Bay Bridge carpool lane. Once in the car, the casual commute rules are famous: no chitchat unless the driver initiates; no cell phone calls; driver's radio should be set on NPR, classical, or jazz; no food. Riders are dropped off in SoMA (though sometimes a driver will agree to take you up to the Financial District if it's along their way).
But rule-breakers are legion. One friend who casual-commutes reports a lawyer blabbing on and on about his cases on his cell phone without ever figuring out one of his companions in the car was a federal judge, much to the snickerings of the rest of the people in the car (a carful of lawyers is apparently not otherwise notable, we guess). The Chron also reports that one environmentalist will open the door to SUVs waiting in line, shout at them for despoiling our earth, and then slam the door and move to the next car in line. Awesome.
Any good casual commute stories out there?
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I got a client via casual commute. FYI: the rules change slightly for two-seaters, since you only need two people in those to qualify for the casual commute. Chit chat is much more common in the two-seater scenario.
I once managed to wrangle a daily carpool from Oakland to Sunnyvale via AlterNetRides. Dude was so happy to have someone to qualify for the 880 carpool he even put up with me waking up late once in a while.
I play KFPA 94.1 in my car while driving cas. commuters across the bridge. Until we get halfway across the bridge. Then I switch the radio to Rush on KSFO, get on my cell and talk to my stockbroker, and turn the ignition on and off over and over to maximise the pollutants coming out of my car. I lock the doors, and the passenger doors have the child locks on them so nobody can get out. The passengers have to just sit there in my little red-state-on-wheels driving across the bridge.
Ha.
Hmm. I had thought it had something to do with Casual Encounters. Damn.
Who says it doesn't?
i commuted from Vallejo for 2 years, mostly casual commute, never once having to drive in. There's always the ferry or BART/bus, if i couldn't catch it.