The Microsoft Bus
And no, it doesn't run windows, and it' not cheap, either:
"This is not cheap what they're doing," said Kevin Desmond, general manager at King County Metro Transit. "Microsoft employees enjoy good benefits that many employers would give their right arm to be able to provide."
Brad Smith, Microsoft's general counsel, acknowledged it is expensive but declined to say how much the company is spending.
The pilot program will include 14 buses, including seven large coaches with bike storage, and electrical outlets at each seat, in addition to Wi-Fi. Seven midsize coaches will be used for neighborhood pickups. There will be multiple runs in the morning and afternoon, Smith said.
Running one bus for one hour costs the Metro system about $110, which includes the driver, mechanic and fuel, Desmond said. At that rate, it would cost $9,240 per day to run 14 buses for six hours, or $2.4 million per year, not including weekends, the cost of new buses or Wi-Fi service.
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Just kidding. But 85% of that bus gets off at Overlake every morning, and every afternoon, we see how many Microsofties we can jam in the aisle. At least it will probably start running on time now.
Relieving the pressure on Metro isn't all good though. As gas prices rise and more people were taking the bus, it became more obvious to all that we needed to improve the system as a whole, long-term. By circumnavigating Metro, Microsoft takes the heat off of Metro/Sound Transit to address some of the bigger regional transportation issues at hand.
Good for the short term, dangerous for the longterm precedent it could set.