It often seems there’s a stigma surrounding people who use public transportation. A person cruising by in a car might be inclined to feel superior to the stranger waiting at the light rail stop. One might feel bad for the pedestrian who walked a half-mile after missing her bus. And a large majority of people avoid using any type of public transit or non-car options — such as a bicycle or taking a longer walk — to get where they need to go.
Dianne Barker, a 67-year-old Phoenician, believes the stigma became “indoctrinated in our society, conveniently after World War II.” During the war, use of public transit was at an all-time high. By the time soldiers returned home and the automobile industry began to boom, the perception of people who remained on streetcars turned negative.
Barker has several years’ worth of experience working professionally with the bus system. She is also a regular attendant of city council meetings and is known as an avid advocate for the improvement of public transit in the Valley.
There are a few corporation culprits who could be to be blame for the image decline. Barker is among many other streetcar conspiracists who believe that tire and oil companies such as General Motors played a role in removing tracks, which forced people to find new means of transportation. Barker also blames the advertisements on Madison Avenue that depict public transit usage in an unfashionable light.
Bus routes, light rail tracks and bicycle lanes have been designed to get people from point A to point B at an affordable rate. Some might view these as inconvenient, last-resort forms of travel; however, Barker finds the concept of getting where she needs to go by bus or bike to be liberating.
After her divorce in 1991, Barker moved to Tempe, Arizona, to live with her parents. Barker found a job that paid a low wage but was still able to afford a moving place of her own: the bus.
“I could use the affordable bus system,” Barker said. “I didn’t need to have to support a car, and I could be independent! I thought, ‘This is great!’”
She feels just as passionate about biking from place to place.
“Fundamentally, a bicycle represents freedom,” she said. “It’s when you don’t need a ride from mommy or daddy and you don’t need the oil companies to support you. You can get there on your own.”
Between the Metro bus system and light rail, the Valley has enough modes of transportation for people to get where they need to go. Unfortunately, many don’t take advantage of these options because of the social stigma that says people who don’t use cars are dependent.
When looked at from Barker’s perspective, it is quite freeing to not own a car. People won’t constantly ask you for rides, you can travel while intoxicated, you’ll never be stressed out looking for a parking space and there’s one less expensive possession to be responsible for.
Contact the author at SierraLaDuke@gmail.com
