........Except in an EMERGENCY!!!
I went into Brixham Bank Lane yesterday afternoon, I was running 11 mins late due to taking over the bus 15 mins late. There was a 12A on the bus stop, parked about 6 feet short (lack of proper training?) which did not leave me, a number 12 much room. As I had not seen an other 12 behind me I pulled on to the stop and loaded the passengers who were there. While I was doing this an other number 12 came into Bank Lane. Now there is defiantly not room for 3 buses and this latest arrival was blocking the whole of the Town Square except for the minor road that comes up from the harbour. As I had loaded all the passengers I could see I closed the doors, checked the mirrors and prepared to reverse back 3 feet so I could get out from behind the badly parked 12A. I moved back a foot and a car emerged from the side road so I stopped. I was just about to move off when a little old lady came and stood by the doors. Now at this point I was definatly what is know in the trade as "Committed to Go." I had reversing lights showing and cars behind me waiting to let me go; to have not gone now would have confused the car drivers and it is not conducive to road safety to confuse car drivers. I again made sure it was safe and released the brake to go when an other woman came up and gestured angrily that I should open the door and let the little old lady on. Again I refused pointing to the bus and the chaos behind. Where upon the woman opened the doors using the Emergency button. This was outrageous. This was not an emergency. A emergency is where someone's life or limb is in danger; not when some one wants to get on a bus that is committed to go with an other bus behind that was due out in 2 mins. Any way the little old lady got on and while I was dealing with her several other people came up and boarded the bus which ment I was causing even more confusion and adding to the possibility that Brixham would end up grid locked. All the car drivers behind must have been muttering nasty (nastier) things about bus drivers and how not to run a bus service. Finally I pulled away with 35 people on the bus. The bus behind (who was on time) left 2 mins later with two people on board. All that trouble to save a little old lady a two minute delay.
2 comments:
Haha, life is so rich, nice little story. Just think you saved that little old lady 2 minutes more of her life (she probably hasn't got a lot left), you helped another person express their rebelliousness by using the emergency door inappropriately. Best of all you held up some car drivers and helped them learn the value of patience and to think of others first. See gotta just look on the bright side of things.
Thank you anon, Good points, all of them.
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