Run Joe Run!

It's the third week of the new schedule.
Folks are still getting used to the new schedules and the new Drivers.

In fact, on my regular runs, I don't think the times changed at all.
But I have noticed a ton of my regulars RUNNING for the stop each morning.

I have started twisting, bending, searching - looking up and down the side streets for runners heading towards the bus.
Just recently I heard one of the regulars who'd had to run to the stop, as she was getting off and talking to another passenger who had also run that last block, "Good, I'm glad to know I'm not the only one!"

That got me thinking...
Folks, I'm not running early.
Trust me.
Dispatch & my supervisors keep too tight an eye on my times for me to fudge even a minute.
I have a radio that tells me when I'm one minute late or one minute early.
Dispatch tracks me by GPS and knows if I'm off schedule or even off route.
I have street supervisors who sit at stops and record/time when I arrive and when I leave.

Not to mention I have the even more reliable - if not THE most reliable time management tool on board the bus - The PGS (Passenger Guidance System).
If I miss a turn or I'm late by 30 seconds, that PGS alarm goes off like you can't imagine.
Folks holler from all the way at the back at the bus to correct me, to get me back on route or on time.

So when I hear a passenger comment that I may be running early...
No way Jose(tte) can I run early.

I may run late due to weather or traffic or passengers on the bus but I can't run early.
I can't leave the stops you see listed in that schedule, early.
I cannot.
Too many alarms, too many warnings, too many risks and too many people would be all over my backside.

Perhaps the Driver who ran this route before me was always behind?
If that was the case, you may have gotten used to him being another minute or two later than I am?
Maybe the fact that the sun is starting to rise two minutes earlier every morning (this time of year) is throwing off your internal clock and you're just running a bit late each morning?

Count it mark of professionalism that I know the regulars already on my routes.
That I know when you're late and I wait for you.
That I know the directions from which y'all come so I know to look for you.
You've heard me tap the horn as I pull over and wait for you because I see you coming.

But please, mark that professionalism and don't accuse me of being early.
RTD pays me to finish the route, not finish by a certain time.
So I'm not in a rush to get home.
I'm there to pick you up and get you to work on time, or get you home at night safely.
The more passengers I pass up, the "more dead" my route looks and that puts my run on the "chopping block" for the next vote.

No, it's my job and it behooves me to wait for you, to pick you up and to get you to your destination.
There is absolutely zero benefit to me or to RTD for me to be running early.
I'd rather be known as the Driver who's always late than the Driver who's always early and missing folks.

Can you tell that that overheard comment from one regular passenger to another about me running early, really got under my skin?
Can you tell how passionate I am about being professional, on time and picking everybody up however I'm able?

Good.
Now repeat after me:
"We are not early, we are on time!"
"We are not early, we are on time!"
"We are not early, we are on time!"

Rinse and repeat as necessary.

In the meantime, "Welcome aboard, find your seats - Let's Roll!"

Ads On Buses...

I found this online and I thought I'd share it with y'all.
Not the whole blog but just this one post.

The author is posting about some of the more creative advertising he's seen on buses.

Check It Out

The ads on buses and light rail are the only funds RTD receives that are not tax payer monies.
It's no alot but it's something.
The more you respond to the ads the more advertisers are going to want to use the buses and trains as billboards.
The more RTD can shovel in and before you know it, another revenue source that can help keep fares lower.

What?
Just saying!

Enjoy the link.
If you have any funny bus ad photos, let me know.

P.S.
Here's another link to some old Soviet Bus stops!
Click Here

Gimme A Sign....

YIELD!!!

So I hope y'all have had a great first two weeks of the new schedule and New Year?
Everybody's finally settled down, no more time off and settled in to their new schedules and routines.

Most everybody is now paying the new fares correctly and most everybody has figured out the new times and connections.

If you ride the new "12" and you are a passenger from the previous 7 - I've been praying for ya!
o_O   no, really I have...you've needed it.

This New Year has been packs with new stuff:
From new combined runs like the 12 to new fares and new schedules.
But also us Drivers are getting a new boost from a law that was passed in 2009.
By now many of you have seen the big yellow arrows with those bright red "YIELD" signal lights on the backs of our buses.

You can read about it in today's Sunday Post ( or click here to read the article )
It allows us to get back into traffic and attempt to keep our schedules.
For instance:
As a 0 bus coming into Downtown on Lincoln, I can be on time all from Highlands Ranch but as soon as I hit Lincoln and pull over at say Center street, I'm stuck.
First I wait for every single car to go by as nobody will let me merge in.
Oh, I can be assertive but the first guy who gets offended by me asserting my big bus in front of him, will take my number, call RTD and complain that I hurt his feelings and BLAMO! I'm written up and from that point on, I'll wait until everybody on my bus grows old and gray before I jump into anything less than an empty lane in traffic again!
So I wait for every last car from the traffic light to go by then I can get back onto Lincoln.
Then of course I've hit that red light, then pull into the next stop at Virginia, then wait for all the traffic to pass and get stuck at Alameda's light.
Then do this at every light and stop all the way down to Colfax and it can take up to 20 minutes, not to mention I have to repeat this up 18th and add another 10 minutes to a 35 minute trip that should have taken me less than ten!

The point is that the Buses should be saving everybody time and money but instead are being boxed in at stops so they've come up with a way to help.

The Yield Sign.

As I start to make my way back into traffic, that red yield signal will begin to flash, warning y'all that according to the law, you're supposed to yield.
And it could result in a $100 ticket if you don't!

It's not that bad, I know how frustrating it can be to be stuck behind a bus.
Hey, I get stuck behind these stupid contractors driving RTD's buses all the time and they freakin drive me nutso.
But give the bus a brake, he'll probably only be in front of you for another block or two before he pulls over into another stop and you can fly down the road back into another traffic jam four cars further up than you were behind the bus.

Oh, and if you go down Broadway from 13th to Alameda or up Lincoln from I-25 to 13th, you've seen cops in the HOV lanes more frequently lately, yeah?
I love it.
It's really like shooting fish in a barrel when they do this.

That's an HOV lane - meaning you have two or more people in your car (like a bus!)
OR you're about to make a right hand turn.

They usually wait until the overhead lights are flashing when it's not an HOV lane but a right turn only.
The cops sit just past a turn and wait to see who comes flying down.

Then BLAMO! Ticket time...

That solid white line protected lane is for parking (kinda), HOV during Off Peak hours and right turns only during peak rush hours.

So be more aware now.

Be Safe.
Be Aware.
Be On Time.

And YIELD to me now!
ha ha ha ha ha

As always, "Welcome aboard, find your seats - Let's Roll!"

Great Balls Of Fire!

Some Drivers have some really horrible stories that they want to share.
And like many of us, while sometimes these stories make my skin crawl so fast I can't keep up with it - I just have to hear these stories!

One Driver told me that she found a really pretty young gal passed out in the bathroom stall at one of the Stations on The Mall. The gal had her drawers down, had the empty alcohol bottle still in her hand and had lost control of her "functions" while asleep!
I didn't need to hear that, and neither did you but I had to share...

I had a couple sit in the number one & two seats next to me on the bus the other night.
They got on at one end of the route and remained on for the entire stretch of a very long run.
She was freaking stunning and he was...well...not like her.
You know the couples: you wonder what it takes to get in those pokers games that she obviously lost and had to marry him!
They were cooing and whispering back and forth to each other the whole time.
Towards the end of the route, I made a comment to them and they both rolled around laughing their butts off. He looked at her and said, "She's my kidd sister," while his sister said, "It's complicated."

I mean, I know this is Colorado and we have some very liberal "relationship" laws but...
But...
That's just too much - I think I threw up a little in my mouth and I had goose bumps for the rest of the night.
They got off the bus, arm in arm, looking like any of the other couples walking down The Mall.
o_O

Another Driver told me the other day, that she had a bus full of moms going to some event and the aisles were packed with strollers and screaming kiddos.
She was talking to one of the mothers while driving, looking in the mirror at her while she was talking so she could keep focused on the road.
When through the mirror she caught sight of a kiddo stand in the seat behind the mom to whom she was speaking, drop his drawers and poop.
The bus went silent then several of the moms at once pulled out baggies and wipes and started cleaning the mess and the kiddo.

So ya never know what's gonna happen on our bus and sometimes...
You just don't want to know.
Oh, and just to ease your minds: she did call Dispatch and got the bus replaced so they could appropriately take care of the situation.
We call in and swap out all buses when those issues arise so don't fear you're sitting in vomit or some other nasty dried stain.

Blech...
Drivers on the other hand...
Our seats are disgusting and stink to high Heaven.
They never get cleaned and ten minutes into my butt warming that seat up, the whole bus smells like the nasty fat stinky sweaty butts of the throusands of Drivers before me.

But your seats (YOU, the Passengers) are fine, this I know.
LOL

Don't ask, I won't tell.

As always, "Welcome aboard, find your seats, spray/pour on the Lysol - Let's Roll!"

Stop The Bus!

Passengers are asking me about all the RTD Drivers involved in these accidents that we've read about last year.
They're asking me about the recent plea deal for the Driver in last April's fatal accident.

I won't talk about that on the bus, sorry.
All it really does is upset and or stress me out.

Those are not RTD Drivers.
Those are contractors who driver RTD buses.

All of you who moan and complain about the horrible customer service, about the bus that arrives an hour late if it arrives at all, about the guy who had no idea about his own route let alone connecting routes to help y'all get around...
All of you who are complaining about RTD Drivers...

Stop.

Take a deep breath.

First, keep in mind that RTD only employs around 1100 Drivers.
The rest are contractors.

I'm told that it has something to do with monopoly laws or some such but RTD is not allowed to run all of the routes all of the time. So a huge chunk of the routes get contracted out to the private sector; companies like First Transit and Veolia.
These companies are for profit so they don't pay their employees very much and as we all know - you get what you pay for.
Their Drivers are always grumpy, short tempered and on their last nerves (when I talk to them)
They don't wait for RTD Drivers (me) who honk and try to catch them so Passengers can transfer.
They pass stops and Passengers right in front of RTD Driver's eyes (My own included!)

I hear from Passengers all the horror stories of these other Drivers from the private sector.

But that's not RTD.
They just drive RTD buses that they lease and maintain on their own.

The worst RTD Driver is the best Driver you'll find amoung the contractors.
That's my understanding from all the stories I hear from y'all.

I know that the Passenger doesn't give a hoot who employs the Driver, that y'all just see the bus and the uniform and that's all that maters...
But just know this:
The differences are night and day.

Many of you have expressed this to me.
You get on and tell me how refreshing I am.
How great of a Driver I am.
How friendly and on and on and on.

I assure you, I'm just average when compared to the other RTD Drivers...
Drivers who work for RTD.

If you care - how do you tell the difference?
The contractors are supposed to have letters next to their bus numbers.
I've noticed lately that the vast majority of contractor buses I've seen no longer have letters.
Like "5150X" or "2139F" or "3978L"
They are also supposed to have a sign plastered to the curb side of the buses that read that these buses are operated by such and such company, etc.
I've found these missing too.
When the letters and signs are missing, I can still tell it's a contractor because they have normal license plates.
RTD have little "gvt" next to the numbers on the plates.
The contractors do not - they are private not gov't like RTD.

When you're on the bus, if those letter are missing from the bus numbers, check the Driver.
Does he speak English?
Check his uniform, does it have the RTD patch on his arm or does it read another company?

All RTD Drivers visibly carry ID and have our RTD name tags where you can read them.

RTD Drivers care about YOU - the Passenger and customer.
RTD Drivers are leaps and bounds better than the contractors and I do my best, daily - with each and every run/trip back and forth - to prove that difference.

Keep in mind folks that this is just my personal opinion.
My feelings and thoughts.
Unsupported by RTD.

When I read and hear these complaints - it kills me.
It kills me to be lumped together with these fart knockers who are killing our good names and it kills me that they are turning off and turning away future RTD riders, daily.

I had to say something.

I am an RTD Driver (still!) and they are not.
You won't read about me in the news (Lord Willing!) unless I pull over on the road and pull some guy and his family from a burning vehicle or building and save all their lives.

Next time you hear about RTD in the news, take a second and consider whether it's actually RTD or a contractor.
There really is a difference - I know you've noticed and I'm glad when you do.

As always, "Welcome aboard, check my ID, take my name and number, find your seats - Let's Roll!"

Once Again - The Reminder...

I gotta start the New Year by reminding you that this is my personal blog.
This is just the blog of some guy who happens to drive a bus for a company called RTD.
I don't speak for RTD and my posts are neither supported nor endorsed by RTD.
And I don't speak for the other Drivers - even when they do suggest I say something.

It's all me.

And when I say RTD Drivers - I don't mean those freaking idiots who work for the privates.
Those dummies who give RTD Drivers a bad name.
You know them; you read about and see them all the time in the news.
They are the ones in all the accidents, giving all the crappy customer service and they are the same who are an hour late IF they show up to a stop at all.

I'm an RTD Driver, not one of the contractors who do not represent RTD, only driving buses leased from RTD by their private contract companies.

So my posts, my blog is just me, my thoughts and opinions.
Me, myself and I.

I don't represent RTD in my posts.
I don't represent the Union - EVER!
I don't represent the contractors - EVER - because I love you, the Passenger & Customer...

Anywho, I wanted to once again remind y'all that while I'm an RTD Driver, my posts, thoughts, opinions and blog are all me and are neither supported nor endorsed by RTD.

Got it?
Seriously, do I need to tell y'all this over and over?
RTD's Legal Department asked me to - so there!
You've been told.

All that said,  "Welcome aboard, find your seats - Let's Roll!"

Up Up & Away!

It's the New Year and the cost of being a passenger on RTD has gone up.
Folks are moaning and groaning but y'all gotta understand that RTD is solely supported by the Tax Payer & Passenger (plus a bit of advertising) and the operating costs far exceed the income.

There is a little poster in the buses that reads, "Transit Economics" followed by a list of solutions to the $18 million dollar shortfall, including service reductions and fare increases.
The list also includes hiring limitations but we just hired a buttload of new Drivers who, while admittedly half will quit before or by the Summer, are ending up sitting around being paid for 8 hours of work but doing anywhere from 3 to 5 on a good day.
And I don't mean a Driver or two sitting around - but a room full of Drivers sitting around.
One Driver told me that he was on report (meaning he's on the "Extra Boards" waiting for work) for an entire week but only got one run that was 5 hours long.
I've had other New Drivers tell me they sit around on the boards waiting for work all day.

Anywho (sorry for the tangent - I really hate the Union's push for RTD to hire more Drivers that we can neither afford nor use!) the only real control that RTD has over income is the fare.
We can crack down on passengers who cheat the system and use old passes, expired transfers and who jump on the bus without offering any form of fare at all.
To do that we'll slow down each stop - taking the time to carefully examine each fare, each transfer, each pass - that makes everybody even more late when the routes are super busy and behind already.
It also makes RTD Drivers look like jerks when we start refusing passengers.
I hear all the complaints from y'all about the contractors (First Transit, Veolia, Etc) and in all honesty, RTD Drivers are supposed to be even more detailed and meticulous when it comes to fares.
But we're taught to educate and accommodate, "That transfer has expired, the correct fare is X dollars, Sir."
Then move onto the next passenger if he refuses to pay.
Another option is the Fare Inspector.
They are already all over light rail but not in the numbers needed to keep folks honest - I have people get on the bus at light rail Stations and only then do they decide to pay their fares. I watch them get off the rail and come straight onto the bus.
Fare inspectors cost money. They have to be paid and while they increase the revenue, that increase goes to their salaries.
Somebody even suggested that RTD was free to passengers.
That's great but then taxes and fees in "RTD Districts" would sky rocket causing everybody to pay for RTD while only a portion of those people actually use it.
And don't tell me, "Everybody saves when we have mass transit..." because while that's great and all, I've no desire to pay for something I don't personally use.
I won't push for a completely Passenger supported RTD because then the fares would be something like $10 a ride and RTD would end up being as crappy as the contractors who already operate on that system while using RTD buses.

Bottom line is that a fare increase is necessary.
In an economy where tax and fee increases can neither support public transportation nor can they be increased enough to attempt to support it; a small (~12%) fare increase is the least painful way of bridging the gap between breaking even and severe service reductions to make ends meet.

And please, I know you're upset with RTD for increasing the fares but please please please don't take it out on me?
I don't make a butt load of money, I'm not getting raises and my uniform is old, worn out, ratty and falling off me, not to mention RTD can't afford to buy me the required uniform jackets, gloves and hats to keep me warm (and they won't let me wear what I have because it doesn't conform to their guidelines!).
I'm not making any profit from your fare increases and I can't do anything about it.

While I'd prefer you pay your fare - pay or not, just get on, get in and let's get moving.
But be careful - fare inspectors are out en masse to enforce the increase.
You never know who's sitting on the bus pretending to be a passenger!
I've had them ride entire routes with me before.
They tell me when they get on (show me their badges) then sit and ride, keeping busy writing ticket after ticket the whole route long (one guy stuck around for my entire 8 hour shift!)

Tangent:
Speaking of Passengers whining and moaning and the cost to ride...
On Friday (New Year's Eve) the Ride was free from 7pm to 6am New Year's Day.
I've had bus loads of passengers very loudly complain about not knowing about detours, parades, delays, moved stops, etc.
But every single passenger on New Year's Eve knew about the free fares.
Every single passenger.
I didn't have to tell one rider not to pay.

Anywho, "Welcome aboard, pay the new fares, find your seats - Let's Roll!"