To ask you to be nice...

[BusDrivers]

... to bus drivers.

I am a young woman bus driver.

A lot of people complain about and to bus drivers...

1. We have no control over traffic, if we're late then 99% of the time, it's not our fault.

2. If a bus breaks down, there's nothing we can do about it. We are drivers not engineers.

3. We don't know every timetable for every route. Not even the timetable for the number we are on... we have a 'running board' with our specific bus times on it, that's all.

4. We have so many rude people getting on the bus all day long that the smile that was there at the start of the day probably won't be there by the end of the day so please don't take it personally if we are a bit grumpy.

I think it depends on the bus driver.

When a double decker bus decided to pull out on me at a t junction and then proceed to squash my brand new stationary car I must admit I didn't feel like being particularly nice to him.

Although I was very proud of my self that I did not raise my voice or swear, which I think was very nice of me.

*Today 11:42 pinkstinks

Always say “cheers drive” grin*

Do you mean 'cheers driver!'? As cheers drive doesn't make sense to me!

On the York P&R (which is the only bus I ever use these days) EVERYONE says 'thank you' to the bus driver as they get off - it sounds a bit llike a school bus trip some days!

Everyone does this in Ireland, it's considered basic courtesy. Even if the bus driver has tried to run you over in the act of getting on, you still always thank them getting off

'drive' is the shortened version of driver, less formal as it's intended to be friendly. That's my understanding anyway. Passengers say that here too.

I always thank the bus driver and, it seems to be, most people do?

Personally I've always believed in thanking a bus driver when I get off but I doubt that happens much these days

I always do and it is common on London buses. I do it out of habit when I get off the tube, which makes me look a bit of a prawn!

Actually, the other week, I was running late for something and resigned to not being on time. The driver managed to make up the time and I went and thanked him because he deserved that.

I knew I had officially turned into my dear mum when I started saying 'thankyou driver' as I left the bus (with my Simons Cat shopping trolley).
A smile, a nod of Good Morning to the driver costs nothing.

I can't think of a time I've ever been rude to or had someone be rude to me as a bus driver.

With all service industries I find life is a little easier if we're all just pleasant to each other (sniffs hippy flowers in her hair)

I used to live in Birmingham where you had to have correct change for the bus before moving to somewhere you could get change. I'm too well trained to have anything but the right money and get a great deal of satisfaction from how pleased it makes your average driver

4/

Be grumpy with the person that put you in the mood. don't take it out on other passengers.

And round here most drivers are "grumpy".

A n older woman was hurrying for a bus. The driver drew up a bus length forward from the normal position so she didn't have so far to run, and gave her time to sit down before setting off. I emailed the bus company, but found I couldn't specify how he had been so helpful (the way bus companies are now, he might have got a bollocking for deviating from procedures) so just specified the bus - so there's probably a bewildered driver wondering what on earth he did for someone to email praising it! But yes, despite the very real complaints about the inadequacy of the service as a whole, individual drivers are usually for more pleasant than could be expected for such an unrewarding job.

Move to my village there are no set routes or stops more a rough guide which was fine until a development of new builds popped up and lots of commuters arrived, horrified at being told yes it is out policy to drop the local pensioners off at their front door making the rest of us late

I'm always nice to bus drivers. My bus was late once and as I boarded I gave the driver a big smiley hello. She screamed, "hurry up for fucks sake I'm fucking late!!" at me and my small (dyspraxic and not always the speediest at big steps) child. For some unknown reason, that particular bus firm went out of business not long afterwards.

pinkstinks "cheers drive!"

welsh?

I do try to let a few drivers out through the day, it's nice to be nice. Lol.

Ppeatfruit - haha, always. 😛 We really need some new buses though, a few of the old buses have terrible brakes!

Matilda - I would say good morning! 😁

Ubercorn - true but it is disheartening and I wouldn't blame nhs staff for being grumpy either tbh!

Bigted - I do sing, but I try to keep it quiet and to myself; my passengers don't need to hear me squarking away on their way to work 😂

I'd say it's 50/50 here with polite customers! 😬

No need to be grumpy, you are the sort of bus driver we take the piss out of miserable fuckers.

When we get a bus, my ds always calls out loudly ‘thank you driver!’ And if he’s not told ‘you’re welcome!’ In return, he tells me how rude they are 😂
Mostly drivers are brilliant with him, and wave as we walk away- but when they don’t I just explain they’re busy and some people don’t hear as well as everyone else. But we are always polite to our drivers- living in London we are lucky for cheap bus fares and regular buses. Last thing drivers need is rude people!

Lola - I'm pretty sure I don't care if you take the piss It's jobs like this that teach an abundance of patience and tolerance for arseholes... well it has done for me anyway.

Actually thinking about it, we’ve made ‘friends’ with a lot of drivers, if they see me trying to catch the bus (on crutches) they always wait if they’re ones we know. Lovely people.

Ellen - that's adorable! I love it when kids talk to me, it brightens my day. Some kids are really shy and hide and I think it's so important for them to know bus drivers are people they can approach if they are in trouble!

I’ve come across only one or two unpleasant bus drivers.

I always say thanks when I get off the bus.

Don’t often catch them these days but it’s very deeply ingrained in me to say “thanks drive” when I do.

I always say a cheery hello getting on and then thank them as I get off.

People really don’t do that which I find weird and rude.

"Always say "cheers drive"

Haha yup!

On the York P&R (which is the only bus I ever use these days) EVERYONE says 'thank you' to the bus driver as they get off - it sounds a bit llike a school bus trip some days!
Restored my faith in humanity! Maybe it's just the south east where people are miserable as a default setting

I don't often get the bus but the last time I did I smiled and thanked the driver again as we got off as did dd1 (well dd only at the time) and was really sad as he smiled and said we were the only people to thank him all day