The city bus system along the 6th of December Avenue is called the Ecovia.

Eco (Economical/Ecologically friendly) Via (way)

This map is oriented so that West is UP, and NORTH is to the right.

We live to the west of the bus route just off the Carolina Park, in-between the stops of Benalcazar and Naciones Unidas.

Simon Bolivar Spanish School, where we go every morning for class, is to the South from us.

It’s just off of the bus route on the East (that’s down on this map) of the stop Manuela Canizares.

So we take the Ecovia every day to school, and every day back to the apartment from school.

We’ve also taken the Ecovia to meet up with people in the Mariscal district, an area of Quito with lots of good restaurants and bars (which is also close to the school).

Quito has about 3 million people crowded into a very small space.

These people all need a good way to get from North to South.

The Ecovia really is a good system for a mountainous city (difficult terrain), where earthquakes can happen (difficult to invest in elevated roads or trains), and which has lots of underground reservoirs (expensive subways).

Along the 6th of December, the Ecovia has it’s own lanes. No one else (except emergency vehicles) are allowed in these lanes).

This means that if traffic backs up in the regular lanes, the Ecovia buses can go right through.

However, because the Ecovia is so cheap and effective (25 cents takes you from the North to the South of the city (or just one stop if you get off earlier)), lots of people use Ecovia.

As a result, it really gets SUPER crowded at times, especially during rush hour.

It’s at these times when, like in any big city with crowded spaces,  it’s a good idea to keep your wallet in a zipper pocket you can hold on to, and keep any purses/bags held close.

It’s not always crowded, but when it is, people really do pack in VERY tightly to make sure they catch the bus.

Here’s Carrie during rush hour in the afternoon yesterday.

The picture doesn’t do it justice, but people really are packed in like sardines in a can.

There ARE also seats on this bus… somewhere.