Photo by yonas1

How long you wait for a bus before you just start walking is a question every D.C. commuter has asked themselves at some point, and now it’s the central theme of a catchy sing-along about the woes of one Metrobus rider.

In “Route 42,” named after Metrobus’ 42 line running from Mt. Pleasant to downtown and back, D.C.-based singer-songwriter René Moffatt sings of the usual frustration of riding just about any bus — multiple full buses rolling by in a row, the usual gridlock associated with the city’s traffic circles and people who chatter incessantly on their phones while on the bus. All the while, Moffatt wonders if it just might make more sense to walk.

In an interview with We Love D.C. last year, Moffatt explained how the song came to be:

I used to ride the 42 bus back and forth to work as well as to my girlfriend’s apartment. That bus essentially became my connection to the rest of the city as its route dissects a large portion of DC. One day, while riding the bus, a lyric popped into my head, “Love that 42, the one that brings me back to you.” I jotted it down but dismissed it thinking, “Why would I write a song about a bus route.” But a few weeks passed and I realized that it wasn’t just about a bus route, but it kind of represented a snippet of city life that we all endure. At this point it’s appeal as a song became evident as I figured many DC residents would relate. I soon began working on the song and am extremely happy with how it came out. I get a great response when I play it within DC. But if I play it in Virginia you can hear the crickets chirping … while VA residents have great public transportation, riding the bus isn’t as integral to their livelihood as it is to DC folk.

The video, which was filmed by American University film student Alex Bryant and released today, came to be with $1,057 raised from a Kickstarter campaign and a grant from the D.C. Commission to the Arts and Humanities.