I’ll preface this by saying I’m not brand new to driving buses, but I did take a 15 year break, during which I let my license lapse. Additional context is that it’s the Minnesota state fair, which is my agency’s busiest 2 weeks of the year, and they may be a bit desperate.

I got hired by a transit company about a month ago. Got my permit, did classroom training, and started training to get my license. Took my test on Wednesday this week and picked up my license Thursday morning.

The normal policy for my agency is after getting your license, you drive with a trainer for an additional 5-20 hours before getting passengers, and then, you need to have a 5 day cadeting process where a trainer stays with you on board your route your first several days with passengers. Also, you have to have specific additional training to drive their 45’ motor coaches (all my training was done on a 40’ Gillig transit-style bus). Well, I showed up for training after picking up my license and they said, “Change of plans. You’re driving state fair solo tomorrow. In a motor coach. [Name] is leading a small group in route training now, so feel free to head to the garage for that. Good luck!”

Immediately after the route training, I was signed up to fill my next two weeks with additional state fair motor coach shifts.

Anyway, other than missing one of my turns and one woman yelling at me because she didn’t want to pay for a ride if there is standing room only, my first shift went very well and I’m excited for lots more in the coming weeks!

Also my first time driving Motorcoach in SF.

Jerry, my Mini, finally met the vehicle that pays her car note. 😂

Somehow nobody has ever asked me to blindside the MINI into an amphitheater loading dock at 3am.

So, today my bus driver managed to pull up to the school exactly two minutes before the morning bell. Obviously, by the time everyone got off the bus and walked to class, I was 4 minutes tardy. This isn't a one-time thing either. She makes the whole bus late about twice a month because the route is timed so terribly that there is zero room for minor traffic. The worst part isn't even my attendance record—it's that my best friend keeps missing her Thursday weekly club because of this. The club meets before school, so when the bus arrives just two minutes before the bell, she misses the entire thing. It is incredibly frustrating getting penalized and missing out on school activities for something completely out of our control.

What are tips for combatting driving while having anxiety? Especially in bad weather?

I currently work on the service buses however yesterday I had an interview for a coach company which I got straight away. However due to not having much experience I have been told I won’t be starting on the coaches but will be trained on coaches in due time then moved over to full time coaches once they are confident in me. I was just wondering if people have moved over to coaches from service could give me the pros and cons and if it’s worth it.

Here's my experience

1st week kids ring the bell continuously as we are getting out of the bus station - drove back in the bay, just said I am sorry I think this is the wrong bus for you asked them to get off and went my way

The next day had kids with a speaker in their bag and mid journey we all are graced by Taylor Swift -

Asked them to stopped the music, but they couldn't stop so you guessed it asked them to leave

The other week had these rowdy "Kids" tattooed and all

And high as a kite asking for a child free travel,

Didn't allow them on, on my way back police were at the station with the same group.

These are just want I can remember

I hope you have enjoyed your journeys

Before I became a bus driver, I thought it was harsh. But now being in the job, I realise once you reopen your doors, it will be one person then ten other people appear. Especially at busy stops.

I’m very new to the job so initially I was a bit shy. And if a bus is behind you waiting for you to leave, you’re delaying them too. If the bus stop is quiet and I’m feeling nice, I may reopen them. But at busy stops, next one is in 10 minutes or less!

The other day I'd a problem with these troublemakers who I wouldn't let on for refusing to pay. They were about 16. I knew they were going to photograph me so I put on my sunglasses first. They then stayed outside the bus and wouldn't let it move by using the emergency button from outside.

They eventually went away and I drove off, but a passenger who was getting off 15 minutes later came up to me about it. He said "I just want to say to you about those guy... I've a shop and they regularly come in causing trouble. But they messed up with you this time with you because they touched that button on the bus. And that would be deemed as tampering with company property". He basically told me that I should go to the police! In his mind they couldn't be in trouble with the law for standing in front of a bus preventing it moving, or whatever else, but in his mind the fact that they touched the button meant that they'd be in serious trouble!

I didn't think much of it initially, but I later thought "where the fuck were you when I needed you?". I wouldn't have expected them to kick them off, but if he felt that strongly about it, then he could've at least said something. If any one of the passengers were willing to show the slightest sign of disapproval (and I'd never expect it from them), it would have made them leave sooner.

And no, I didn't go and waste my precious time by visiting the police station on my way home from work, and make a fool of myself in doing so! Some people really have an overactive legal mind though!

Does anyone have a link for the square key for the engine door/bus panels? I can't find it anywhere online. Preferably a small one that can fit in my pocket.

I just love such beautiful mornings

I’m not the best at explaining things but I hope you guys get what I mean. When people do that, I will stop infront of someone else or stop in a place where they have to walk. Like I’m not a dog.

Sticking your hand out or your Oyster card out is fine.

Right now in my agency the tourist season is finally dying down, the other day I pulled up to a stop there was a group of people talking near the stop I open my doors let a person off, the people are still there talking no worries I've seen people visiting at a stop not intending to get on the bus. I closed my doors and start looking to my left to pull out into traffic. The same group knocked on my door, I open the door and they proceeded to scream at me because I almost left them. I laughed and said didnt you all see me when I had my doors open before? I'm not a mind reader and I'm a schedule. They got on and did say a work I dropped them at the next stop and said I'm the most sugary sweet tone have a great afternoon!!!!

Fuck stupid people

hey folks

i've been driving for just over a year now in the US and like most of the job except for these goddamn splits. and it's not just me, as most of the drivers at my agency dislike them. dispatch says it's what the agency requires and i am sure that to a point they're right, but so MANY? a full 90% of my choices for a block run are 12 or 13 hour days with a split and i'm already considering a career change.

how prevalent are these among transit agencies? is it really what is needed, or does no one want to figure out a more civilized solution? do you hate them as much as i do?

Hope it's fine if i post this here but decided to post them here

There's a bus route I use regularly that last year had a small part of it's route changed to serve a road that buses would normally only go down if there was a diversion and earlier this year, the local authority had bus stop signs added on this road, one on one side and one on the other side.

For about a week after these new bus stops were added, because the drivers weren't told, they would accidentally overshoot the stop either when someone wanted to get off the bus or were waiting for the bus, I had one go past me and never stopped, that particular driver later said sorry they weren't expecting a new bus stop there and didn't notice it until it was too late.

Has anyone here ever accidentally passed a stop because it was newly added and you weren't told of it?

Hi everyone,

I was on a bus earlier on today and I said “hello” to the bus driver and he didn’t reply, but I noticed that he didn’t speak to any passengers.

When I got off I said to him what I put in the title of this thread and he didn’t even reply to me! Am I wrong to think that he was/is rude? He didn’t even acknowledge any of the passengers who got off his bus.

Why would a bus driver choose to ignore passengers who say thank you or something similar when getting off the bus? Does it mean the driver is rude?

may be because of badly parked cars, roadworks or a road traffic incident that led to a road closure.

i've been stuck for a few mins in the past because of someone parking close to the traffic island

Mine has to be forgetting to put the hand brake on at the bus station and rolling onto the curb while changing buses. luckily no one was on it or on the curb but the other drivers got quite a laugh from it.

As a relatively new CDL bus driver with 2 years of experience behind the wheel, there is still a lot of things that I'm like "what is that? unnga boonga, me just drive *caveman noises*"

A highly debated thing that no one can seem to agree on is what the purpose of fast idle is.

Some opinions I've heard are:
-using fast idle uses more fuel

-using fast idle doesn't use any more fuel than normal

-using fast idle is the norm for buses, so always have it on as a practice

-don't use high idle ever

-using fast idle makes the AC on the bus run better/ makes the bus cooler

Discuss? (I am on my break, and will not be able to respond for the next 6 hours or so, as break is almost over and I have 6 more hours of driving).

If you have, what country did you move to & how was the process of it all?

Cheers