Mei would have loved Hop-A-Bus

March 19, 2018 3:12 PM

Dallas Texas in the 1980's had a transit program called Hop A Bus that was literally busses painted as bunnies.

Even the route map was adorable

posted by Annika Cicada (18 comments total)

That's awesome! but all I can think about is how humiliating it would be to step out in front of one and die. otoh I also think about that every time I see a CTA bus with a front-mounted ad for MeTV Seinfeld reruns, which is just a picture of Jerry making a face like WHAT'S the DEAL with MASSIVE BLUNT FORCE TRAUMA
posted by theodolite at 3:31 PM on March 19, 2018 [16 favorites]

I WANNA BUNNY BUS!
posted by jenfullmoon at 3:35 PM on March 19, 2018 [3 favorites]

#TeamCatBus4Life
posted by Fizz at 3:43 PM on March 19, 2018 [11 favorites]

Was half-expecting that route map link to show routes that delineated a bunny upon the streets of Dallas...
posted by Seboshin at 4:16 PM on March 19, 2018 [11 favorites]

I love the photo with the women wearing the huge fur coats. I would love to know more about what was going on there. I would also like a wider crop on that photo. Fantastic color though!
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 4:30 PM on March 19, 2018 [4 favorites]

Hmm.
posted by lagomorphius at 4:41 PM on March 19, 2018 [5 favorites]

Here are some cute buses from Tokyo.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 5:08 PM on March 19, 2018 [2 favorites]

#TeamCatBus4Life

It's funny that I can think of two different Meis who would both be stoked for a bunny bus.
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 5:53 PM on March 19, 2018 [4 favorites]

Next stop Little Sister!
posted by Mei's lost sandal at 5:54 PM on March 19, 2018 [6 favorites]

Seboshin: Was half-expecting that route map link to show routes that delineated a bunny upon the streets of Dallas...

If you look at it right, the routes map did resemble a Picasso cubist rabbit.
posted by Harvey Kilobit at 6:50 PM on March 19, 2018 [6 favorites]

Next stop Little Sister!
posted by Mei's lost sandal

Epony-not-tragic-thankfully
posted by filthy light thief at 6:52 PM on March 19, 2018 [4 favorites]

The bunny buses are kind of adorable. I would love it if the buses here were anthropomorphized like that, maybe with a different species for each route. "You take the bunny to 45th and Main, then you can catch the panda or the bonobo to the park."
posted by Dip Flash at 7:16 PM on March 19, 2018 [8 favorites]

That first article was unadulterated garbage. Oh, it was informative, it cited sources, it was refreshingly non-clickbaity... But who the hell writes an article about buses that have bunny ears, are painted pink, and NOT INCLUDE A PICTURE? How did that process go down in the newsroom... "Well, we described them, that should suffice, no point in showing a picture..."
posted by el io at 9:06 PM on March 19, 2018 [5 favorites]

They have bunny ears! That's a level of awesomeness I did not expect.
posted by kitten magic at 2:25 AM on March 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

Even the route map was adorable

I was a little disappointed as I thought you meant the route the bus took traced a bunny outline. Like, who cares if this doesn't suit the population's needs, the bunny bus drives the bunny route!
posted by kitten magic at 2:31 AM on March 20, 2018 [4 favorites]

Until now, it would not have occurred to me that “1980s Texas kawaii” could have been a thing.
posted by acb at 6:07 AM on March 20, 2018 [1 favorite]

NOT INCLUDE A PICTURE
This article is a great reference of how news gets kind of passed around. The only picture in the article is from the Milwaukee Journal, and the NY Times reference in the Lawrence (Kansas I think) Journal World has a quote from someone who thinks the pink bunny buses are a "Playboy advertisement and a promotion of a promiscuous lifestyle".

Also because I love looking at old newspapers and comparing prices, $1.19 for Dairy Queen treat is $4.74, but it actually only costs $4.39 today. A Dairy Queen hamburger for $.25-.40 is the equivalent of $1 to $1.50 for a cheeseburger today. Dairy Queen doesn't sell $1 hamburgers, but McDonalds does, and their cheeseburger costs $1.00 today, which cost DairyQueen $1.50 in 1978.

McDonalds is also hiring in that Lawrence Kansas newspaper. They offered $2.65 an hour which is $11 today. Kansas minimum wage then was $1.60.

Movie tickets on the other hand have increased right along with inflation $2.75 then is $11 now.
posted by The_Vegetables at 7:14 AM on March 20, 2018 [3 favorites]

i think this is freaking adorable. but i wonder what sullen waiting-for-septa-in-the-heat me would have thought about it. something mean i'm sure. but it is adorable and they need them everywhere.
posted by misanthropicsarah at 9:07 AM on March 20, 2018 [1 favorite]