IamA former Public Transit Bus Driver AMA!

Genuine question; how do drivers feel about people who say "Thank you" to you before they exit the bus? I've always wondered.

I always try to thank my driver because I know he/she probably has or had a long day ahead of them, and I always hope that it may make it better if they might've recently come across an asshole passenger or if they're having just a rough day. I wanna just let them know I appreciate them doing their job and bringing me to my destination.

Whether we show it or not, it makes our day. The people who go out of their way to say good morning or thank you will always be remembered. If you ever forget your pass or wallet, we got you ;)

How about a wave as we exit the through the back?

I usually give a thumbs up or point to acknowledge it.

How much does it annoy you when passengers don't have their fare ready?

because it annoys the shit outta me as a passenger as we have to wait 5 minutes for someone to fumble through their purse.

It's infuriating. Especially when there's any sort of weather going on outside, people who aren't ready always seem to push to the front of the line and then load their cards in pennies. If I'm in a shitty mood, I'll tell them to get off and hit the back of the line.

How do you feel about the common stereotype of a bus driver? Ya know how in tv shows bus drivers are always fat gross slobs? Does that stereotype carry much truth from your co workers?

I gained like 40lbs working there. It's brutal. You sit in a seat all day with no movement, work 12-15 hour days, then get called for OT. By the time you get out, you just want to go eat whatever is the quickest and go to sleep. It's a pretty fair stereotype, and definitely for a reason.

How often did you have to call the police on someone for simply refusing to pay a fare?

Never.

If someone got on the bus and said "Hey man, I just don't have it today", I'd let them slide. 99.999% of the time, they'd be thankful and never ask again. For teenagers, I'd tell them everyone gets one freebie and that's it. After that, they wouldn't ask.

Do you have a good face memory? I mean, if you don't you could by mistake let someone do it twice, three times as long as they don't do it every day..

Extremely. Most of the people you pick up, you'll see more than once. The people trying to scam a free ride usually are habitual. If you're firm the first time, they'll wait on another driver to try and test.

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Mia Khalifa, yo.

Have you had any favorite regulars? What about least favorite regulars?

I had a ton of favorite regulars. They'd stand right up at the yellow line and just talk about random stuff. That always made the trip go by quick, and is always appreciated. I had one not-so-great regular that'd do the same thing, except she always traveled with a rolling suitcase. Not sure why, she didn't have a job or anything, but she'd clog the aisle and people weren't able to get out the front door. Tell her to sit, she pretends she didn't hear you. Sweet lady, total pain in the ass.

Hey. Fellow operator here. In the bay area. Do you participate in the rodeos?

I don't! I wanted to, but I valued my day off more. I will say, no better feeling than maneuvering a 40' beast through tough situations.

Yea. Did you watch the American Top Gear where they featured Big Rig driving? Tanner Foust himself said something to the tune "that commercial driving is tougher than driving a race car. It's a skill set that is so much more intense". I am most likely misquoting him.

I'm gonna have to watch that. What kind of equipment are you driving on a day to day? I really wanted to give the 60 foot DMAs a shot, but couldn't get into the garage that uses em.

My everyday is a 40 footer hybrid from Gillig. I really dig the degenerate braking system. Only two gears essentially. There is no lag from throttle to brake or vice versa. So, exceptional control. I hear other drives gripe about the turning, but it doesn't effect me.

The 63 footers are for our commuter routes. I was on it a few bids ago. We use them for our special assignments such as filling in for our subway system when they are making repairs. I just drove one yesterday for that scenario. They are good. They aren't low shelf though, so the elderly takes some time.

Those Gillig hybrids look damn sharp. I started out in the RTS, boy were those ugly. Fantastic in the snow, but that was about it. Moved onto the New Flyer buses a few years back. Those babies can move.

Do you get bored driving the same road every day?

Extremely, but you don't necessarily do the same route over and over. Most of the work is built so you'll do 3 or 4 routes a day.

While it can be monotonous, Boston traffic always gives you something new.

What was the strangest thing that's happened on your bus?

Had a junkie steal my paycheck out of my pocket once. Never found that bitch again.

Y u no direct deposit?

I was too lazy to take the time to go downtown and file it with payroll.

Did you deal with alot of pikeys?

Yes. I hate them.

Nicest person you have ever encountered?

I have this old poet named Bruce, he always chases my bus down to give me pens and calenders with his name on it. Awesome guy, plus his pens have a flashlight on the tip, makes 5am pullouts with no lighting in the garage easier.

When you park the bus and get off at the end of your shift, do you close the door from the outside or leave them open?

There's an air pressure dump by the driver's window that releases all air pressure from the front doors. At the end of your night, you pull the bus into line, dump the air and shut the bus off. I'd typically leave the doors open for the fuelers, they have to grab the bus a few minutes after you drop it and fuel/clean it.

Given that you did picks, were you in ATU?

Yep! ATU and Boston Carmen's Union Local 589.

I used to be in 1005. It sucked.

It all sounds great in training, once you get out there it feels like blood money. How long did you put in?

3 years, but I was on the clerical side. I moved to a non rep position about a year ago, and my pay and working conditions are much better. I never felt supported or valued by the leadership anyway, to be honest.

That seems to be the industry standard, not supporting the working people. Glad you got into a better position!

Did you ever have to deal with someone causing problems on the bus? What happened?

All the time. I've had one or two physical fights, for those you just pull over, open both doors so that people can get off if they want and call for police via radio. Most of the time, it was just people playing music on their phones or screaming at their phone on speakerphone. I liked to remind them that we're all just trying to get to/from work and that they needed to cut the nonsense. Normally, once the driver says something, a few of the passengers will give the person grief until they comply.

How do you drive for hours without feeling sleepy? Also how do you overcome the bus blind spots when you turn and back up?

Coffee, lots and lots of coffee.

As far as blind spots go, there's a million of em. Just have to bob and weave in your seat. As far as backing up goes, they train us to never have to back up while in service.

I've only had to three or four times. You're supposed to have a spotter back you up by waving you on, but I just beep the horn a few times and hope for the best. Most people won't get in the way of a 20ton sled moving backwards.

Ever have anyone famous or supposedly famous (ie saying "Don't you know who I am?")

A lot of "my dad is your bosses bosses uncle's sister" type of shit. Most "do you know who I am" types won't take the bus where I was driving ;)

Dot? Mattapan? Southie? Quincy?

First was Matapan, then I moved to Lynn.

As an office worker, how do you manage to stay seated for such long a time?

When driving a bus, I'd walk around the interior and exterior while on layover.

Why did you leave the job and what are you doing/looking for, job wise?

The environment was toxic. Ridership hates you, the management treats you like a child. I have a cushy office job with weekends off now.

Have you ever caught someone masturbating or a couple having sex in the bus? How did you handle it if so and what did they say when caught?

Never really encountered that. I do encounter a lot of smoking, drinking, and vaping. I just play the announcement and glare really meanly into the rear view mirror. Those problems take care of themselves.

How often do you uppercut women?

Is that some weird stereotype I'm not aware of?