Seattle Forrest

I wonder how many people actually saw this blog entry, though? Obviously a lot more have seen it once the cyclists discovered this ... but what could this guy's readership really be to begin with?

canopus 

The cyclist apparently was messing around doing something other than taking the lane and apparently caused the driver to have to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting him and causing the bus to throw around the passengers that were riding at the time. You can grab that from the Mea Culpa post and from the lines in the original post. Unfortunately he indicates that it happened a while ago.

Simply not the best writing probably and not something that should have been made public but not something to fire some one over either in my mind. Humans have to let tension and anger go. Best way to do it, no. But at least it wasn't done by hitting anyone. So the driver is ahead of the curve. A better thing to do would be to give the drivers some way to talk about their job so that tension doesn't build up and manifest itself at the wheel, or in a blog.

If you think it is easy, day in and day out to drive a 20 ton bus while watching out for cars, peds and bike riders who think you can turn on a dime and stop on one also then maybe you should not be riding a bike, walking or driving, you are the problem.

Digital_Cowboy

Who knows, but it is safe to presume that some had even before all of the publicity it received. And sadly it is also safe to presume that given that he was asking specific groups to kill this cyclist that something needed to be done about him. And that if anyone did injure and/or kill this cyclist that the writer does bare responsibility for putting the idea into their heads.

I mean any DA worth his or her salt is going to point to this paragraph:

Attention Criminals: If you are a murderer, drug dealer, violent criminal or your your life is empty and you are at a dead end, don’t think of suicide when you can do one last act that will have a lasting positive effect on our city. KILL THIS BICYCLIST. Don’t throw your life away for no reason. Fill your empty heart up with a righteous cause and use your violent and homicidal tendencies for the good of mankind, Portland and the World. Then you can kill your self with a smile on your face having done one last good act.

And say that makes him responsible in part for their actions. And likewise I am sure that any defense attorney would likewise point out that if it hadn't been for the bus drivers blog that their client might not have taken the action that they did.

Now if anything does happen to this (or any) cyclist as a result of that blog entry he is responsible for it, at least in part.

randya

the key word is 'apparently', and until the bus driver himself actually explains what he remembers observing the cyclist doing, it's all pure speculation. Besides, people cut each other off on the road all day long, doesn't matter what kind of vehicle you're driving; as long as there is no contact, some would say no harm no foul.

canopus 

Agreed and I said it wasn't the smart thing to do for the blogger and it wasn't well written.

Which is B.S. when it comes to a bus with passengers or even everyday driving. Your no harm/no foul crap is where accidents happen and cyclists get run over. Its where anger comes out and rage begins. Then we have to go through this "Its all the motorist fault." or "Its all the bicyclists fault" when in reality the truth is usually in between. Personally I will put stock in being visible and showing other vehicles respect and trusting that I can stop faster than a 20 ton vehicle or 3 ton car. It doesn't matter to me, who did what, or who's fault it was, if I'm dead.

njkayaker

He was put on "administrative leave" (according to the second link). That doesn't mean "fired". What says he was "fired"?

Keith99

Bolding mine.

Better learn a bit more about the comparitive stopping power of cars vrs. bikes or you will end up in someones back seat.

randya

Uh, no one dies if there's no contact

Keithmj

As a bus driver in florida I get the impression that the Portland driver has a major problem..I went to the Portland Transit webpage and wrote to them, they need to know about this guy..Here is what I wrote them.."I was visiting a forum named bikeforum.net and I found this article that I thought your company should know about. Your company have some very disturbed drivers. Read the story and you will see what I mean.. https://www.ecommercepdx.com/stage/callformurder/ I am a bus driver in Florida and drivers in your area that post this need to be fired, people like this are dangerous..I hope that your company can get this taken care of and I am going to post this on the forum that I contacted you and that I am awaiting a reply..Thanks"
If this guy does ever hurt a bicyclist the company will be paying out millions of dollars because he was stupid enough to post this on the net. A lawyer would have a field day with this. This guy might be a nice guy but anyone that would post this is mentally ill..I see that he was put on leave but this is serious stuff and his troubles are not over yet..Cheers.

lubes17319

Methinks he wrote that blog as part of his application to get hired on as an RTD driver.

The Human Car

@Keithmj, Thanks! We really do appreciate the good bus drivers out there.

wsbob

The Oregonian has done a bunch of stories about this driver and his controversial blog posting. Here's a fairly recent one:

TriMet driver offers mea culpa, explains 'Kill This Bicyclist' post/Joseph Rose, The Oregonian/Published: Friday, July 23, 2010, 7:48 AM

Trimet is putting him back to work driving the bus. He's dropping his Trimet Confidential Blog for another, different one. Apparently, lots of people in Portland find him to be a great person and a great driver. Search for and read the stories in the media besides and including the Oregonian. Decide for yourself what kind of person is behind the wheel. Read some of his blog. He seems to really like to tell stories in an incessantly joking manner. Plenty of people seem to go for that sort of thing. Not me, but that's o.k. since I don't have to read it, and choose not to.

Even if Dan Christensen is a good guy, and sane, which it sounds as though he is...what he did with the smartypants blog headline and following remarks in the content of that particular post seemed to me and a lot of other people to be stupid and dangerous. Live and learn.

K'Tesh

OK folks, hows this for a followup...

According to a tweet from Bikeportland, Dan Christensen is back behind the wheel of TriMet's buses.

Keithmj

Reading his writings I can see how he is and he might be a very nice guy who is making a name for his self but these day you have to be careful when someone talks like that. To each his own I guess. Life goes on and some days you might feel like doing it to someone but to post it on line is dangerous. At least he isn't going into the bus company and shooting his fellow employees to make his self famous. He got what he wanted..People like him still scare me though..Cheers

Digital_Cowboy

Keith,

As I've told PSTA drivers, Dispatchers and Supervisors you all are some of the best drivers out there on the road. As I can count on you all to give me my 3' and more. When passing me. As I can usually count on them moving over into the left hand lane anywhere from a car to car and a half length behind me and returning to the right hand lane with the same distance in front of me.

And I agree with you that the driver in the OP needs to be removed his position as a bus driver. I mean according to his first words he'd been dwelling on this for weeks or even months before he wrote his piece. Doesn't that show premeditation, as well as a lack of mental stability?

It's just frightening to think that he's still on the road driving a bus. I would also have to think that if this particular driver should end up hitting either this or any other driver that they would have no defense. As they know that he has a problem with that particular bike rider, and possibly cyclists in general.

And I've gotta say that as a cyclist I don't like the idea of sharing the road with a driver like that.

randya

Bus Driver Returns to Work

Digital_Cowboy

Keith,

Again, I've gotta agree with you. His post and his manner scares me. And as I said in a previous post given that his employers know about his post and his problem with this particular cyclist if not cyclists in general you'd think that he'd be a big liability for them if he hits any cyclist in the future.

Digital_Cowboy

Sorry, but I'm not buying his "explanation" in the linked to article. I mean from what I read in what is suppose to be his ordinal blog posting he wasn't "informing" the public that "we" all share in each others safety on the road. He was calling on specific segments of the public to kill this particular cyclist.

I think that we all know/realize that there is way more to this story then what we've seen so far. And I think that we all would like to know what really happened on the road that fateful day. But sadly, I don't think that that is going to happen.

Keithmj

I always give the three feet or more even if I have to wait for the bicyclist and follow. But here is a time when I won't give them the required distance and that is when they are in my lane and coming at me. Then I will pull to the right and stop the bus making them get out of the road. A couple of times I have even opened the door and told them they are on the wrong side of the road, which ticks them off.

The bus company he works for as you said, he is a liability. If some nut does decides to kill a bicyclist and says that he was just doing what Bus Driver said to do. Then what will happen. There was a piece on the news about the Clearwater Causeway and a scooter driver going the 30 mph posted speed limit and a driver said that if he did that again that he would run him over. These days you have to take talk like this seriously or someone might be dead.

You also said that a cops told you to keep to the right? Was that on 4th or 9th? I have been coming down 9th about 11:30 pm just about in the middle of the road and cops pass by without saying anything. You just probably tick him off because he was late getting to DD's outside of Sweetbays, and we can't have him miss his donuts break now can we? That is why they wear white shirts..to hide the powered sugar they drop on them....just kidding..Cheers

Digital_Cowboy

Yeah, isn't it funny how they're the ones who are doing something wrong yet they try to make it seem as is if they're the "wounded" party???

That's a good question, I can see a lawsuit against the driver, the bus company and the city because they all knew about this particular driver. When was this, I missed it. Was it a regular driver, bus driver, or a cab driver? I know that this question has been asked "hundreds" of times before but when are drivers going to learn that the posted speed limit is the fastest that they're suppose to go under optimal conditions? You're right about that, these days the law enforcement community needs to take such talk seriously or as you said someone might end up dead, leaving the company that they work for open for a lawsuit. Particularly if they serve teh public in some capacity.

It was on 4th St. right around where the produce stand is located. Earlier in the month I had another one indicate to me to move further to the right while I was on 9th St. Two different cops. The one 9th was a female cop and the one on 4th was a male. It'd be funny if that was the problem. I like that, white shirts to hide the powered sugar.