Michele is knitting a beautiful green and blue shawl while she listens to music. She’s on her way to work, commuting for 30 minutes to Coupeville five days a week.

Michele works for the Public Health Department – she has to drive around Island County all day for her job. After driving so many miles and talking to so many people while at work, she’s happy to plug in her earbuds, take out her knitting, and relax. She loves her job but needs time to decompress on her way home.

Michele is used to riding the bus – she rode the bus to attend school in San Jose. Compared to her public transit experience in the Bay Area she says, “This is cushy.” She described her bus rides in San Jose as “cheek to jowl.”

Island Transit is “spacious and reliable,” she says. “You don’t have to arm wrestle to get a seat.” No one talked on the buses in San Jose. Her early morning bus on Whidbey is pretty quiet too. Peaceful and relaxing, just the way she likes it.

She uses the Route Shout 2.0 App that shows her bus approaching in real time. “It’s seamless. I live five minutes from a bus stop and the bus takes me right to the door of my office in Coupeville. It saves on gas.”

She used to share the ride with her county co-workers but that all changed with COVID. Now many are working from home or have changed jobs. But her work requires her presence, all over Island County.

So, she uses her commute time wisely, knitting a beautiful green and blue shawl and listening to music. A great way to start and end the day.