A Skeptic Rides High at Market

By Larry Thomas

Furniture Today, April 21, 2002


To his surprise, Larry Thomas liked his trolley ride.
AT THE MARKET — I've used the shuttle system sporadically during my 13 years covering the High Point market for Furniture/Today, and I must admit I've never been too impressed. The volunteer drivers and parking lot attendants did the best they could with the resources at hand, but my experiences frequently were highlighted by long delays and surly drivers. And at least once eachmarket, I managed to bang my head on the roof of those 15-passenger vans that were the vehicle of choice — even if 30 people were waiting for a ride. So I ventured onto the market's newly overhauled shuttle system with a healthy dose of skepticism. In the weeks leading up to market, I wrote several stories that quoted market organizers saying how great the new system would be with its paid employees, larger buses and more frequent stops. I wanted to believe them, but I kept remembering the time I waited nearly 45 minutes for a shuttle to take me to a satellite parking lot, as more than a dozen vans sat idle on Commerce Street. "That's not my route," one driver told me. But after giving the new shuttle system a good test Thursday and Friday, I have to say the optimism of market organizers was justified. No, the new system isn't perfect, and there have been glitches, especially on Thursday, the market's official opening day. But the new system, which is being run by Raleigh, N.C. based McLaurin Parking Co., clearly is a huge improvement. And I would urge other shuttle skeptics like myself to give it a try.
"Every indication is that our ridership numbers are up substantially (over April 2001)," company President Steve McLaurin told me Friday afternoon from his downtown "command center."

A rare moment when the trolley wasn't standing-room only.

Thursday: Oops, they made the bus too small

On Thursday, I decided to sample the shuttle service from the satellite park-and-ride lot at Kagan Furniture on South Main Street, which is closest to my home. When I arrived at 7:40 a.m., the 318-space lot was about two-thirds full, and about 30 people were waiting for a shuttle ride. The vehicle arrived at 7:44 but, alas, it was a 20-passenger mini-bus. "Another coach is on the way," an attendant carrying a two-way radio tells those of us left at the curb.


At 7:57, after the line has swelled to more than 50 people, a full-sized motorcoachowned by a local tour company pulls up. Nearly everybody in line gets a seat, but a handful are still standing at the curb as we pull away. "It's a real joy and delight to have you visiting with us," the coat-and-tie clad driver says cheerfully over the coach's P.A. system. "We hope you buy a lot of furniture while you're here." During the ride downtown, several passengers grumble about how long they had to wait for the shuttle. "I hate being late," one woman said as we rolled up to the Commerce Street transportation terminal at 8:10 a.m. (I was late for Furniture/Today's 8 a.m. editorial staff meeting that, to my surprise, had started on time.)


During peak travel periods, as many as five trolley buses
were on downtown streets.


At 8:10 p.m. that evening, I return to the transportation terminal to get a shuttle back to the Kagan parking lot. A McLaurin employee, clad in a fluorescent vest and blue polo shirt, almost immediately asks me where I'm headed, and then directs me to the correct waiting area. As we're waiting, he continually walks around the area and asks people if they have questions about the shuttle system.

At 8:24 p.m., the Kagan lot shuttle arrives. It's the same motorcoach and the same driver who brought me downtown that morning. He's not quite as cheerful as he was earlier — understandable since he probably is winding up a 13-hour work day — but he does thank us for attending the furniture market.

Friday: Precise, flexible, and short on leg room


On Friday morning, I board hotel shuttle route No. 18 at the Comfort Inn in Archdale, and the motorcoach pulls out of the parking lot at 7:20 a.m., precisely the time listed in the transportation brochure distributed by the International Home Furnishings Market Authority. We stop at two additional hotels on the way downtown and, in each instance, the coach leaves precisely at the time listed in the brochure. (And I'm not late for today's editorial staff meeting.)

I spend part of the morning riding the trolley buses on the Market Express route that takes marketgoers to showrooms concentrated in downtown High Point. Most of the time, all available seats are occupied and passengers frequently are standing in the aisles, especially as we travel through the Hamilton Wrenn showroom district. Most like riding the trollies, but a few passengers complain about the lack of leg room. The driver greets just about everyone as they board, and he patiently answers numerous questions about the shuttle's 19 stops. At one point, he lets an elderly passenger get off the trolley at a non-designated stop that happens to be closest to the man's destination, the new Steel Street showroom building. "You didn't see me do that, did you?" he quips to another passenger as the man steps off. Yes, I did. A furniture retailer would be well served to hire that driver as a customer service representative.