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Huge shoutout to all the city bus drivers who think they don’t need to stop at designated stops to pick up riders, your day will come within 10 years when all buses will be driven by computers!!!! —a rider who has seen way too many buses sail on by bus stops
This article appears in Sep 22-28, 2016.
17 Comments
You literally have to jump out in front of those fuckers to get them to stop. That, or use spike strips.
Were you actually at a bus stop? Were you holding up a wall and not looking like you wanted a bus? Bus drivers don’t read minds. If you are not at the bus stop, if you’re holding up a wall, then you deserve to be left behind. Just sayin’.
I’ve seen drivers not pick people up but they have either just ran in front of the bus almost killing themselves and scaring the hell out of the driver or they aren’t standing at the stop ready to get on the bus. If you’re sitting in the bus shelter or looking at your phone don’t blame the driver for thinking you don’t want that bus. They have a schedule to be late for people!
I seen a bus driver blow past me because he was he’ll bent at punishing the stranger next to me who had his head buried in his cellphone.
I thought about stopping every other bus for a week to tell them about the fuckface onn bus x that didn’t stop for me
I’ve seen too many people with their head buried in their phone, a long line of buses at a stop (think Barrington) and the bus picks up 3 buses back then people get huffy because the bus didn’t stop again, 25 feet ahead. Sometimes you gotta walk over to where the bus is, not directly at the stop. It’s called RUSH hour for a reason, many people trying to get home on time. Don’t expect a bus driver to stop 4 times around a bus stop. Then there’s the idiots that stand AT the bus stop but when a bus drives by they don’t wave it on (if it’s not their bus) so the driver has to stop only to have the idiot stare vacantly at them.
If you’re standing at a bus stop, the driver should stop. It’s not your job to ‘look’ like you want that particular bus. You’re standing at the goddamn bus stop. This is the only city (and I’ve lived in a bunch) where the drivers seem to think if you don’t make eye contact with them they don’t need to stop. It’s ridiculous.
junebug, get your head out of your arse.
If a bus is 3 buses back, how the hell do you expect everyone – everywhere – to see the front of the bus?
Furthermore, if the buses aren’t allowed to stop and pick up a passenger once they’ve left the bus stop, then picking up passengers before they reach the bus stop is equally wrong.
I suggest you don’t spend another minute thinking about this.
Great value, it’s called paying attention at the flow of buses and watching what is coming in behind another bus. If that is too difficult for the masses then maybe they should walk, take a cab, get a vehicle or a bike. Just sayin’. Junebug has it right. At least he/she knows how to take a bus, compared to the thousands of idiots that think the world revolves around them.
Rubyjaye as well seems to know what’s up. What is wrong with the others? Too accustomed to getting everything they want when they want it. If that’s the case get your Mom or Dad to be your bus, because they are most likely the reason you are feeling so entitled. What’s wrong is that most people in this city are a bunch of bellyaching, sniveling cry babies. Nothing will ever be good enough for these ingrates. Just sayin’.
The point actually is that the bus stop (let’s say Barrington south bound) is shared by over a dozen different routes. If the driver of an articulated route 1 pulls in and 2 or 3 other buses are before it and it is late because it arrived late due to an accident or whatever or any other route for that matter, he/ she should not wait around after letting people off and people on who are in front of the front door. But the facts are quite the opposite of what most people think of what really goes on with this city concerning transit drivers. How they run transit, treat their employees and allow their employees to be treated by the public is tyrannical. Most bus drivers do the best they can and many go above and beyond what most people would ever do. So until you’ve driven a kilometer in their seat shut the fuck up all you lazy bellyachers.
At least computers don’t have feelings so they won’t care when you assault them physically, mentally, and emotionally. Just sayin’.
I forgot to mention verbally as well.
One just sailed by a stop…
I have a theory here, mind you it is just a theory.
Some Canadians are so plain and boring that they are actually invisible. I don’t mean to disrespect those who are plain and boring because, hell, they aren’t the ones causing problems in the world. However, they may appear invisible to others especially city bus drivers who deal with the more animated characters of the world. As we all know public transportation is for losers.
I take public transportation, but I’m not a loser nor a winner. I chose not to play the game. Besides, I like staring out the windows of buses and trains as the world passes by.
Might I suggest, to those who keep getting passed-by, to dress flamboyantly and don loud colors(colours – what’s with all the extra ‘u’s people. Time to cut those ties to Great Britain).
Also, wave a bag of delicious Tim Horton’s pastries and a large bottle of Kasser’s Premium Vodka at approaching buses. No bus driver can resist a doughnut and a few shots. And, actually, that’s all they might see is a bag of Tim Horton’s and a bottle of vodka hovering in the air. But that will get their attention. Remember some of y’all are invisible.
Maybe if you wave shredded top transit managers or city councilors in the air they would stop and only be too happy to do so to get a good look at the cause of most of their torment and lack of decent treatment. They will slow down for that for sure, but once stopped will tell you to leave the garbage behind.
If I can manage to arrive before the bus and be standing at the curb “looking like I want it” when it approaches even with my three kids then I’m sure anyone is capable of putting their phone away and staring in the general direction the expected bus for 5 minutes.
If you all know they’re not going to stop if you’re not paying attention you now have the required knowledge to avoid this tragic event and failing to do so leaves you 100% at fault.