Yesterday, we did our annual May Day SMRT 2 Viroqua ride. There
were only three of us on this trip and the weather was a bit drizzly,
but it was well worth the trip. Both buses I rode on were almost brand new! It was so great to have a much smoother ride (part of that is also due to road work done in 2024). Alas, there is no wifi on the buses now. The La Crosse to Viroqua bus had an American flag pinned up over where the wifi password used to be. The return bus had nothing. The return driver noted that wifi is difficult in that terrain and never seemed to work well anyway. This is true! Neigher bus had a bike rack either, though if you bring a bike, they will put it inside the bus. I didn't bring my bike on this ride as planned because of the drizzle.
Both rides were smooth and on time. The drivers have a tablet that tells them when to be at each time-point stop and this seems to work well.
There were some new and ongoing challenges:
We learned that the Vernon Memorial
Hospital stop was changed in November, but no one has noted this on the
schedules or website at
RideSMRT.com. Had we not learned about the change from our
morning driver, we might have missed the return bus. While there is a
sign on the door of the hospital (that someone waiting for the bus might
not even notice), there's nothing on the sign that says where to go to
catch the bus! Fortunately, our morning driver told us where to stand (on Hickory Street just south of the hospital between (Kwik Trip is on the south side of the street). There is no "CATCH THE SMRT HERE" sign anywhere near there.
The UWL stop continues to be a puzzle. There's a
SMRT sign in the shelter by Newman Center (south side of State Street
near the Campbell Road intersection) and the schedule says "State St -
Cartwright Center" but there's not SMRT sign on the north side of State
Street which is where the westbound SMRT would pick up. It would be nice
if they could place as sign exactly where the bus picks up on State
Street (I caught it just at the 17th & State Stop sign in front of
Wing.)
The Western TC stop (on the east side of 7th Street at the MTU shelter) is well marked as is the Mayo stop (MTU shelter outside the hospital). The stop at Gundersen Lutheran - outside the East Building - is not marked, and with people dropping off and picking up patients there, you may have to stand in the road to see the bus and make sure the driver sees you.
Despite these glitches, the ride is great and very worthwhile. This bus especially, mid-morning to Viroqua - is often relatively empty and is a great opportunity for folks to go shopping and eating for the afternoon. With four return options (from 12:15 to 3:40 leave times), you can just do some quick shopping or make an afternoon of it.
LATA will do another SMRT ride this fall.
