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When I lived in Arizona I got a job with a bus company that did local para-transportation (transporting elderly and physically impaired folks to and from medical appointments) as well as normal suburb-to-city bus routes. I did the para transit work until I was offered a spot on one of the bus routes. (with healthy raise and better hours)
The driver I was replacing, Jeff (no real names used in this reflection) was fired because he was breaking the county contract by diverting from the route to pick up passengers at their home (a big no-no) and bypassing certain low-ridership areas of the route to make up time when he was behind schedule or just to give himself a cigarette break between round trips and for being constantly behind schedule, probably because of the above. The reason for my predecessors firing is important later.
After a few round-trips to practice (using my car, paid for by the company of course) I headed out to the beginning of the route a bit early. With me I had a county-provided cell phone, (the radio in the bus didn't have the range to reach the base at the far end of the route) route map, timetable and a copy of county rules which I read while waiting to leave on time.
I got about ¼ of the way through the route when the cell phone rang. Not knowing that my predecessor had given out the number, (another no-no as any questions were supposed to go through my base) the following ensued:
SFC: Sucky Female Customer
SSS: Sucky School Student (maybe 10 years old)
SSSD: Sucky School Student's dad
ME: Humble, rookie route driver.
ME: Hello, This is...
SFC: (cuts me off) Jeff, where the hell are you?
ME: Sorry, Jeff doesn't drive this route any more. My name is Jim. Who is this? (not recognizing the voice)
SFC: This is SFC, you're late picking me up.
ME: I'm sorry, but I am not allowed to divert from the route. You have to be along the route to get picked up.
SFC: WHAT?!? THAT'S BULLSHIT! Jeff has been picking me up here for 3 months!!
ME: I'm sorry, but that was one of the reason's he's not doing this route any more. I have to stay on the route. Nobody is getting picked up at home any more.
SFC: I HAVE to be at work by 8. You're going to turn the bus around and come get me. You have a responsibility to pick up all passengers.
ME: I have the responsibility of picking up passengers who are waiting along the route. If you weren't along the route, it's not my fault. I'm not turning around. I'm sorry.
SFC: You HAVE to get me. It's the LAW! (it was this phrase in another post that reminded me of this tale of suck)
ME: Ma'am, I'm not turning around. If you have a complaint, please call my supervisor at XXX-XXX-XXXX and ask for Jerry. I have to go. I don't like talking on a cell phone and driving. Good Bye.
No sooner had I hit the end button on the phone, it rang again.
ME: Hello?
SSS: Is this Jeff? (at least he recognized a different voice on this end, unlike SFC)
ME: No, this is Jim. I'm the new driver.
SSS: I just saw you pass. You forgot me.
ME: I'm sorry, but if you weren't along the road, I can't pick you up.
SSS: But...but...Jeff always picks me up. My dad doesn't want me standing along the road.
ME: I can understand that. Your dad or mom is probably going to have to bring you to the road then. I'm not allowed to stop at anyone's house and I can't turn around. Sorry.
SSS: (yelling into the phone) DAD! THERES A NEW GUY. HE WON'T PICK ME UP!
SSSD: What do you mean you can't pick my son up? He's been getting picked up here for the whole school year. (It's late September so basically a month)
ME: (explains rules again)
SSSD: How is he supposed to get to school then?
ME: Don't you have a car?
SSSD: Well, yeah, but...
ME: There you go.
SSSD: Ok, just for today. You'll be here in the morning then?
ME: No, sir. I cannot divert from the route. Your son is going to have to come out to the route to get picked up. It's against county rules to go off the route.
SSSD: I'm not letting him stand out along that road. He could get killed!
ME: You're probably going to have to stand with him then.
SSSD: I don't know why you can't pick him up. Jeff did it every day.
ME: That's probably the reason he got fired. I'm not willing to risk my job.
For the most part this continued for the first week I drove the route. My supervisor told me that in that first week, he received probably 20 complaints that I had not picked them up at home. About 2 weeks after I took over, my company changed the number on the phone so the only time it rang meant it was my supervisor or the county.
I can't say as I blame the riders too much. It's not their fault that the last driver was doing something he wasn't supposed to do, (although the riders that he did this for probably coaxed him into doing it the first time and because he was a nice guy and since he did it for 1 person he had to do it for everyone who asked) and they just took advantage of his niceness.
Surprisingly, (or maybe not too suprisingly) ridership increased about 25% once people realized that the route was now on-time and all parts of the route were being serviced as it was intended. I never got to meet SSS. He never did come out to the road, probably because dad was too lazy to walk out to the road and wait with his son. SFC began walking out to the road but never spoke to me or apologized for her behavior in the almost 3 years I drove the route.
The driver I was replacing, Jeff (no real names used in this reflection) was fired because he was breaking the county contract by diverting from the route to pick up passengers at their home (a big no-no) and bypassing certain low-ridership areas of the route to make up time when he was behind schedule or just to give himself a cigarette break between round trips and for being constantly behind schedule, probably because of the above. The reason for my predecessors firing is important later.
After a few round-trips to practice (using my car, paid for by the company of course) I headed out to the beginning of the route a bit early. With me I had a county-provided cell phone, (the radio in the bus didn't have the range to reach the base at the far end of the route) route map, timetable and a copy of county rules which I read while waiting to leave on time.
I got about ¼ of the way through the route when the cell phone rang. Not knowing that my predecessor had given out the number, (another no-no as any questions were supposed to go through my base) the following ensued:
SFC: Sucky Female Customer
SSS: Sucky School Student (maybe 10 years old)
SSSD: Sucky School Student's dad
ME: Humble, rookie route driver.
ME: Hello, This is...
SFC: (cuts me off) Jeff, where the hell are you?
ME: Sorry, Jeff doesn't drive this route any more. My name is Jim. Who is this? (not recognizing the voice)
SFC: This is SFC, you're late picking me up.
ME: I'm sorry, but I am not allowed to divert from the route. You have to be along the route to get picked up.
SFC: WHAT?!? THAT'S BULLSHIT! Jeff has been picking me up here for 3 months!!
ME: I'm sorry, but that was one of the reason's he's not doing this route any more. I have to stay on the route. Nobody is getting picked up at home any more.
SFC: I HAVE to be at work by 8. You're going to turn the bus around and come get me. You have a responsibility to pick up all passengers.
ME: I have the responsibility of picking up passengers who are waiting along the route. If you weren't along the route, it's not my fault. I'm not turning around. I'm sorry.
SFC: You HAVE to get me. It's the LAW! (it was this phrase in another post that reminded me of this tale of suck)
ME: Ma'am, I'm not turning around. If you have a complaint, please call my supervisor at XXX-XXX-XXXX and ask for Jerry. I have to go. I don't like talking on a cell phone and driving. Good Bye.
No sooner had I hit the end button on the phone, it rang again.
ME: Hello?
SSS: Is this Jeff? (at least he recognized a different voice on this end, unlike SFC)
ME: No, this is Jim. I'm the new driver.
SSS: I just saw you pass. You forgot me.
ME: I'm sorry, but if you weren't along the road, I can't pick you up.
SSS: But...but...Jeff always picks me up. My dad doesn't want me standing along the road.
ME: I can understand that. Your dad or mom is probably going to have to bring you to the road then. I'm not allowed to stop at anyone's house and I can't turn around. Sorry.
SSS: (yelling into the phone) DAD! THERES A NEW GUY. HE WON'T PICK ME UP!
SSSD: What do you mean you can't pick my son up? He's been getting picked up here for the whole school year. (It's late September so basically a month)
ME: (explains rules again)
SSSD: How is he supposed to get to school then?
ME: Don't you have a car?
SSSD: Well, yeah, but...
ME: There you go.
SSSD: Ok, just for today. You'll be here in the morning then?
ME: No, sir. I cannot divert from the route. Your son is going to have to come out to the route to get picked up. It's against county rules to go off the route.
SSSD: I'm not letting him stand out along that road. He could get killed!
ME: You're probably going to have to stand with him then.
SSSD: I don't know why you can't pick him up. Jeff did it every day.
ME: That's probably the reason he got fired. I'm not willing to risk my job.
For the most part this continued for the first week I drove the route. My supervisor told me that in that first week, he received probably 20 complaints that I had not picked them up at home. About 2 weeks after I took over, my company changed the number on the phone so the only time it rang meant it was my supervisor or the county.
I can't say as I blame the riders too much. It's not their fault that the last driver was doing something he wasn't supposed to do, (although the riders that he did this for probably coaxed him into doing it the first time and because he was a nice guy and since he did it for 1 person he had to do it for everyone who asked) and they just took advantage of his niceness.
Surprisingly, (or maybe not too suprisingly) ridership increased about 25% once people realized that the route was now on-time and all parts of the route were being serviced as it was intended. I never got to meet SSS. He never did come out to the road, probably because dad was too lazy to walk out to the road and wait with his son. SFC began walking out to the road but never spoke to me or apologized for her behavior in the almost 3 years I drove the route.
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