America’s Sorriest Bus Stop: Englewood vs. Munhall

Final Four action is in full swing at Streetsblog’s 2017 Sorriest Bus Stop tournament.

Bus stops in Seattle and Chapel Hill are still duking it out in the first semifinal match. (Go vote!) Competing for the other slot in the championship are these two sorry bus stops in Englewood, New Jersey, and Munhall, Pennsylvania.

All four bus stops are terrible in their own way, and we wish all of them could reap the whirlwind of bad press that comes with the title of America’s Sorriest Bus Stop. But only one gets that prize.

So, which of these bus stops deserves a shot at eternal infamy?

Englewood, NJ 

This stop, submitted by Michael Klatsky, easily bested stops in New Haven and Pittsburgh in earlier rounds.

It’s along Route 4 just outside New York City, with frequent all-day service provided by New Jersey Transit and private jitneys. To catch the bus here, people have to climb over a guardrail or walk in highway traffic.

Judging from the desire line worn into the grass by this stop, it looks like a lot of people opt to go over the guard rail:

Agencies responsible: New Jersey DOT, New Jersey Transit.

Munhall, Pennsylvania

Historian and author Peter Norton nominated this bus stop, which went on a tear through the bracket, taking out Indianapolis and Omaha.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette‘s Julian Routh described it this way:

One foot forward, and there’s the high-speed traffic of Route 837. One step back, and there’s a 20-foot sloped hill leading to railroad tracks. There’s no bench, it’s littered with trash and the only place to stand is on a 2-foot-by-2-foot gravel patch.

One reader wrote in to say that she and her husband, both seniors, have no choice but to use this stop to get to doctor’s appointments, and that she was once hit by a driver at this location.

Responsible agencies: Borough of Munhall Public Works, Allegheny County Port Authority.