Berkeley Bus Bench Activists Shame City Into Action

A pair of ‘tactical urbanists’ in Berkeley, California is installing bus benches at some of the city’s bus stops to draw attention to the lack of amenities at many transit stations, reports Maylin Tu in Next City. The two men, Mingwei Samuel and Darrell Owens, used a template created by the Public Bench Project to build wooden benches.

The project worked: “On Dec. 17, he installed the bench; by Dec. 28, Berkeley had removed the bench and replaced it with an official metal one.”

Samuel and Owens have placed six benches around Berkeley so far, begging the question: why don’t these bus stops have seating already? “As thrilling as guerilla bus benches can be, everyone Next City spoke to agreed that this is a job for the public sector. The city or transit agency should step up and provide seating at bus stops for all riders, they say.”

Some cities, like Berkeley’s Bay Area neighbor Emeryville, are stepping up: in 2022, Emeryville Mayor John Bauters spearheaded an effort to place seating at every bus stop in his city. “The key, Bauters says, is to prioritize the city’s values — in this case, safety and equity — and to ask the right questions.”