Today, the start of an occasional series of transportation makeovers.
Our first subject: a bus stop. This is one of the two stops I can choose from for my bus ride home. What could we do to make it better?

(1) Destination signs. The sign on this bus stop reads “9 Gulfton.” The sign on the bus stop across the street reads “9 Gulfton.” Which stop do I wait at to catch the bus to Gulfton? The other one, it turns out. How about signs that read “9 Gulfton to Downtown” and “9 Gulfton to Gulfton”?

(2) Schedules. Speaking of destinations, wouldn’t it be nice if I could walk up to the bus stop and find out where the bus goes and when it’s scheduled to come? Like a printed bus schedule, but attached to the bus stop sign?

(3) Real time bus arrival information. Let’s get a little more high tech here. It’s useful to know when the next bus is scheduled to arrive; it’s far better to know when it actually will arrive. METRO buses are equipped with GPS units and wireless communication that reports their position. It’s not a big leap to use that information to predict arrival times based on where the bus is right now, then display the results on LED displays at each stop. If that’s too expensive, an alternative: a sign on each bus stop that gives a phone number and a bus stop code; call the number and punch in the code and an automated voice tells you which buses are coming. In either case, those arrival times should be on a web page, too.

(4) A bench. Let’s get basic again. Unlike many, this stop has a bench. But it’s behind a hedge; if you sit there the bus driver can’t see you until he’s at the stop. In other words, sit, and your bus may drive right by. Every stop should have a bench, and the bench should be placed so you can look down the road.

(5) A shelter. Because it’s not always a nice day in Houston.

(6) A sidewalk. The only way to get to this stop is to walk in the street. There are three large office buildings in the same block, but no sidewalk leading there. And there’s a middle school and an HCC campus a little further down; the only way to get to those is through a gap in a hedge.

(7) More frequent service. This is the best improvement any bus stop could get. If the buses run every 15 minutes instead of every 30, missing a bus is no longer traumatic. If they run every ten, you don’t even need to look at a schedule.

The theme of this series: this isn’t rocket science. A big part of quality transit is getting little things right. Posted schedules, real-time arrival times, and shelters won’t turn a bus into light rail. But they will make riding the bus easier and more pleasant, and make many people’s daily trips better.

Luckily, it seems METRO is starting to get this. There’s already a pilot program to post schedules on some routes, with more in the works. There’s been discussion of an advertising contract that would include new shelters at no cost to METRO. Real time arrival information at bus stops — either via display or via cellphone — is part of METRO’s FY 2007 budget (PDF). And the same budget includes much more significant improvements on certain heavily traveled “signature” routes. Meanwhile, “Project Grid” is underway, looking at how to restructure routes to make it easier to get from one part of town to another without going through Downtown. I hope METRO will tell us more soon. But it’s good to know that the local bus system is finally getting some more attention.

Give our forums a makeover with your comments.