Advocacy & Safety - Bus Drivers Who Think They Own the Road

TriMet Drivers Caught on video by Portland Police:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/commuting/2009/02/trimet_drivers_gone_wild_the_g.html

I do agree, professional drivers do need to be held to a higher standard, I like this cop. :D

However, I'd like to know how many people in general are irate *******s, with how much I've dealt with the public, I wouldn't be surprised if this number is the same for people in cars, on bikes, walking, etc. People have a huge problem with officers for some reason regardless if they're just doing their job.

People have a huge problem with officers for some reason regardless if they're just doing their job.

It is possible for an officer to be an ******* within the duties of the job description.

A few days ago, I noticed a local bus with a sign on the back reading "do not make a right turn in front of this bus!"

It was on a busy, narrow laned, downtown street.

I was doing 23 mph IN THE RIGHT HAND LANE really close to an intersection! This is downtown.

My light was green, and I was going straight thru the intersection.

Guess what the bus did????

He cut me off, forcing his way into my lane, forcing me to the curb, as he right hooked directly in front of me to make a right hand turn!!!!!

I made a telephone call to the bus company, suggesting that they relocate those signs, where the bus drivers can also read them.......

It is possible for an officer to be an ******* within the duties of the job description.
Yeah but you often see people fly off the handle just because they're getting a ticket, not because he's being an *******.

Or most people think that because they're getting a ticket the cop is an *******.


A few days ago, I noticed a local bus with a sign on the back reading "do not make a right turn in front of this bus!"

It was on a busy, narrow laned, downtown street.

I was doing 23 mph IN THE RIGHT HAND LANE really close to an intersection! This is downtown.

My light was green, and I was going straight thru the intersection.

Guess what the bus did????

He cut me off, forcing his way into my lane, forcing me to the curb, as he right hooked directly in front of me to make a right hand turn!!!!!

I made a telephone call to the bus company, suggesting that they relocate those signs, where the bus drivers can also read them.......
Ever see the "caution wide turn" signs, I'd pay attention to those too.

Though I will admit they're not on many buses, they should be, but I always wondered why there was a need for a sticker thought it was obvious.

I hate bus driver, hate them, hate them, hate them. My life has been threatened by bus drivers more times than by ordinary motorists. I've been left hooked by a bus as he tried to blast ahead of me at a light as the light changed green and I've been right hooked numerous times by drivers blowing reds to get to a bus stop, just getting to a stop, and ones who are just too damned impatient to take 5 extra seconds to put some distance before moving right. Metro doesn't seem to do crap regardless of all the complaints they get.

I've seen bus drivers do all sorts of stupid ****, the least of which is speeding and red light running (their performance is usually based on their ability to keep on schedule), but I'm also actually surprised the cops give any tickets to bus drivers in the first place.

I have had problems regarding almost being taken out by a bus while riding down Scholl's Ferry.

My friend's dad also told me about his stories dealing with buses on his morning commute to work down Murray. He said the morning bus drivers are the worst, and they always seem to nearly merge onto him. He has made phone calls into TriMet about all of this, and they never seem to do anything about it, which is weird, especially considering the bus driver hit that kid a few years back. Since TriMet decided not to do anything after all of the calls he has made, he changed up his route to a less preferable one, but one where he does not have to fear a bus merging onto him in the morning.

Also, I like the fact that they showed bus 33 in that video. I used to ride that bus into Portland from Clackamas all the time. :lol:

I hate bus driver, hate them, hate them, hate them. My life has been threatened by bus drivers more times than by ordinary motorists. I've been left hooked by a bus as he tried to blast ahead of me at a light as the light changed green and I've been right hooked numerous times by drivers blowing reds to get to a bus stop, just getting to a stop, and ones who are just too damned impatient to take 5 extra seconds to put some distance before moving right. Metro doesn't seem to do crap regardless of all the complaints they get.

I hate cyclists. Hate them, hate them, hate them! They pass me on the right when I have my turn signal on, even though I have a big sign on the back of my bus warning against doing just that. They ride the wrong way on the sidewalk too fast, narrowly missing passengers I'm letting off. They fail to yield and pass my bus within inches as I'm pulling out of a zone. They cut me off - very frequently. (Hey guys, it takes a while to stop 48,000 pounds of bus full of passengers you don't want to injure).

There are actually a lot of bus drivers who also bike to work (I'm one - I'm happy to send a picture of the packed bike racks at the Seattle bases if you'd like). We're not all out to kill you. That said, I know there are a**hole drivers out there. One jokingly said I was wearing the uniform of the enemy when I showed up for work in bike gear. Nice guy making a not-so-funny joke.

For what it's worth, King County Metro does process every complaint you call in. We hear about EVERY complaint that comes in. If they are truly dangerous drivers, the complaints stack up and are investigated. It takes time and can be a frustrating process for management, but it is what it is. If a bus driver does something dangerous, call it in with a coach number and time. Better yet, if a bus driver is outstandingly courteous call in a commendation. Those make a better impression.

Also remember to yield to a bus coming out of a zone. It's the law in Washington (RCW 46.61.220) and designed to allow us, and our non-car driving passengers, to get back into the flow of traffic safely.

Can't we all just get along???

(their performance is usually based on their ability to keep on schedule), but I'm also actually surprised the cops give any tickets to bus drivers in the first place.

I seriously doubt their performance is based on schedule. Any emphasis on schedule would mean making drivers rush. When driving a large vehicle around a crowded city, rushing is a very bad thing to do. Training for Metro drivers in Seattle goes out of their way to emphasize "Safety, Service, Schedule." They repeatedly tell drivers to not worry about the schedule - focus on Safety above all else. It may not always seem that way but that's Metro's policy and they are serious about it. (If I see one more "Outhouse Safety Journal" talking about "Safety, Service, Schedule" I'm going to pull my hair out. Oh wait, I'm already bald)

RE: Cop giving the ticket - I'm surprised about that one too. I spoke with one cop who was checking vehicle speeds at UW Bothell. She told me that they typically won't pull bus drivers over. Instead, they just call in the bus number and time to Metro. The driver gets a black mark on their record but no ticket. This is done to prevent inconveniencing the passengers (good logic I suppose).

Yeah but you often see people fly off the handle just because they're getting a ticket, not because he's being an *******.

Or most people think that because they're getting a ticket the cop is an *******.


Ever see the "caution wide turn" signs, I'd pay attention to those too.

Though I will admit they're not on many buses, they should be, but I always wondered why there was a need for a sticker thought it was obvious.

I was in the right lane, the straight thru lane.

He was in the left lane, the left turn lane - then he decided to push me out of the way to turn right " from the left turn lane" ---- sheeshhhhh!

No way he was in the right - he was dead wrong, almost at my expense.....

This person sure wasn't very professional.

Should be under very close supervisory scrutiny ---- we'll seeeee! Right!!!!

TriMet Drivers Caught on video by Portland Police:

http://blog.oregonlive.com/commuting/2009/02/trimet_drivers_gone_wild_the_g.html

I suppose it's possible that he had a nasty encounter with a cabbie, motorist, cyclist, or passenger right before this incident, but that's still no excuse for his behavior. That said, here's a "Mile in another's moccasins" moment: It's very easy to make a passenger fall or hit the seat in front of them if you slam on the brakes while driving a bus. Because of this, when you misjudge a yellow light you make a split second decision to run it (and possibly the red) or stop hard. Sometimes, it's arguably safer to run it than to stop hard. We're trained to look for "stale green" lights and approach them with the ability to stop smoothly, but it's a difficult skill to master.

If I were driving that bus, I'd continue to slow down while tapping my horn to warn pedestrians of the danger. Frankly, I'd also be apologizing profusely to the officer and would sheepishly accept the ticket.

Thankfully, nobody was injured.

I hate cyclists. Hate them, hate them, hate them! They pass me on the right when I have my turn signal on, even though I have a big sign on the back of my bus warning against doing just that. They ride the wrong way on the sidewalk too fast, narrowly missing passengers I'm letting off. They fail to yield and pass my bus within inches as I'm pulling out of a zone. They cut me off - very frequently. (Hey guys, it takes a while to stop 48,000 pounds of bus full of passengers you don't want to injure).

There are actually a lot of bus drivers who also bike to work (I'm one - I'm happy to send a picture of the packed bike racks at the Seattle bases if you'd like). We're not all out to kill you. That said, I know there are a**hole drivers out there. One jokingly said I was wearing the uniform of the enemy when I showed up for work in bike gear. Nice guy making a not-so-funny joke.

For what it's worth, King County Metro does process every complaint you call in. We hear about EVERY complaint that comes in. If they are truly dangerous drivers, the complaints stack up and are investigated. It takes time and can be a frustrating process for management, but it is what it is. If a bus driver does something dangerous, call it in with a coach number and time. Better yet, if a bus driver is outstandingly courteous call in a commendation. Those make a better impression.

Also remember to yield to a bus coming out of a zone. It's the law in Washington (RCW 46.61.220) and designed to allow us, and our non-car driving passengers, to get back into the flow of traffic safely.

Can't we all just get along???

Ok, I apologize for the generalization but it's just that I have had my safety threatened way too many times by buses that I no longer feel safe around one. My last incident was the left hook. I was waiting at a red when a bus came up behind me and the driver kept honking at me to get out of the way. When light turned green he just speed past me on my right and forced himself into the lane and effectively forced me to stop in the middle of the street with no where to go.

Never argue with a 10,000 pound vehicle. When your friends visit your casket there will be no return engagement.

Whether you are a cyclist or drive a TANK this is the best rule of thumb you'll ever learn. I'm uncertain as to how this should escape your thoughts, even in anger.

There are no bonus lives in life!

Ok, I apologize for the generalization

...

I was waiting at a red when a bus came up behind me and the driver kept honking at me to get out of the way. When light turned green he just speed past me on my right and forced himself into the lane and effectively forced me to stop in the middle of the street with no where to go.

Hey, no need to apologize. Just letting you know that we're not ALL evil. (Although, I do follow @EvilBusDriver on Twitter ;)

Ugh... That incident is seriously dangerous and inexcusable. If a supervisor up here saw one of us do that, I'm sure the driver would be nailed for a serious infraction (large point value - can't remember the exact term) if not an outright suspension or "retraining". I can't emphasize this enough: Call and complain, EVERY SINGLE TIME. The system works (at least in Seattle), albeit at a glacial pace. You'll probably never see the results directly, but if you don't complain then nothing will ever happen.

I was in the right lane, the straight thru lane.

He was in the left lane, the left turn lane - then he decided to push me out of the way to turn right " from the left turn lane" ---- sheeshhhhh!

No way he was in the right - he was dead wrong, almost at my expense.....

This person sure wasn't very professional.

Should be under very close supervisory scrutiny ---- we'll seeeee! Right!!!!
so he crossed two lanes, not just one?

In that case, I'd totally say he's in the wrong, but on narrow streets when you're driving a vehicle that large, you typically do need two lanes, and people need to pay attention to blinkers.

Maybe that was the 1% case where you weren't in the wrong, but 99% of the time people are sitting in the lane that needs to be used for turning space, it's a behavior all vehicles generally do bike or car.

Call and complain, EVERY SINGLE TIME. The system works (at least in Seattle), albeit at a glacial pace. You'll probably never see the results directly, but if you don't complain then nothing will ever happen.

I would have gotten his plates but but he hurried away and the light was at the bottom of a hill :/

at least he got the bird, but that never does anything.