What are these Edmonton Transit Service fan accounts on Instagram?

Recently on Instagram, there’s been a surge of fan pages for the Edmonton Transit Service (ETS).

From fans of Route 4 to those taking Route 121, there are endless accounts for these ETS routes. They create memes, spread information about transit, and highlight the importance of accessible transit within the city.

I got the chance to speak with one of the people behind these accounts, specifically @iloveetsroute4, or Tee, whose profile blew up in just a few short months.

How did these accounts start?

Tee was not the first one to create one of these ETS fan accounts. However, they were the ones who thrust these accounts into the limelight.

“My motivation mostly stems from my love for ETS,” says Tee. “I really love Route 4. It’s a really specific thing I admire from ETS.”

“I saw a lot of transit fan pages from Toronto, Halifax, Vancouver, and so many other cities. I was like, Oh, there’s no ETS fan pages, and no fan pages for any specific route in Edmonton, so I might as well create it and spread the love for transit and especially Route 4.”

They knew Route 4 was a common route for university students, as it goes from Lewis Farms to Capilano daily, looping around the university area.

What they didn’t know, however, was how quickly their account was going to bloom.

The humanization of ETS Route 4

Recently, Tee has been making posts about changes within the ETS system, making information more accessible to students and users.

“Instead of making the post look like a generic PSA post, I make it look like it’s giving you the lecture,” explains Tee.

With the humanization of the ETS system, Tee is allowing people to give more grace to the service, the service workers, and the people who rely on transit on a day-to-day basis.

“Be nice to the transit workers and the transit operators,” says Tee. “Don’t look down on transit riders. At the end of the day, we’re all humans. We all deserve to be treated with respect.”

The community’s response

“I did not expect the response I got from the community. Even to this day, seeing that the page has almost 4000 followers after only 60 days is something I never expected to happen.”

The account currently has around 3,700 followers, posting updates almost every single day. It’s especially popular with university students and the queer community, as Tee is a trans woman themself.

“There’s still a lot of scrutiny, there’s still a lot of negative perception towards transit,” they said. “Unfortunately, those negatives actually come from people who don’t take transit, or hear one bad story and assume every transit trip will be terrible.”

“I want to keep spreading as much positivity as possible, that transit is not actually bad,” Tee tells me.

As well as continuing to want to spread joy, they want to bring recognition to how car-dependent the city is and how transit can be improved. Instead of focusing on just fun memes, Tee is dedicated to making a change in the system and how transit is viewed.

Since there’s been so much support from the community, Tee is even looking into making merchandise for fans of Route 4. Those fans out there, stay tuned! It’s coming your way soon.

Tee just hopes everyone starts changing their approaches to transit for the better.

“We need to think of it as a real mode of transportation instead of just a band-aid to car dependency. I’m just one person trying to spread positivity, trying to combat that negativity.”

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