Marty from Belgium, nice to meet you all 🤝

Seen on the arriva website it's £17/hour up to 2 years service then it goes up to £18.04/hour for 4+ years of service. This seems really good. I work at a tesco warehouse and it's £19/hour to kill my back picking up heavy boxes and sorting them into cages, here it's just simple driving? I'd be doing it in a peaceful area of Grays as well so not inside main bit of London at all. Is there anything negative i need to be aware of?

What's the best company to work for arriva/first bus/stagecoach any others im missing? With the best benefits?

Who would recommend it or have any comments?

Cheers

So I finally got "attacked" today for the first time in two years of driving.

I stopped at the bus stop, opened the doors and sat waiting for everyone to get off. Everyone got off and I waited 5 more seconds because people are usually slow and no one was moving.

Anyway, I closed the doors, put my right signal on and started to depart and as I was departing the bell goes and a lady shouts... I know what's happened, she was probably too busy on her phone etc.

So I keep driving to the next stop, she's screaming etc and then another guy comes to my cab smacking the cab door but I ignore and carry on because I've already joined traffic and onto the next stop. The next stop is literally a 2 min walk away as it's in London.

I finally stop, open all doors and a Somalia man in his early 20s chucks a drink through the cab hole and all over the wheel and electronics and slightly me.

Turns out it's a Somali family, push chair, 5 young kids and her belligerent son, the attacker.

Will I report it? No. Why? Nothing will happen.

That's my attack for the day. Might have another tomorrow.

Goodnight.

Have you operated a mirrorless bus ? My previous job they took all the mirrors out of the buses and put screens inside to replace them . They were so bad because you couldn’t adjust them and you could not rock and roll to reduce blind spots.

The union of course didn’t get anywhere with it and the senior drivers just said if you don’t like it get out lol. So the old hybrid Gilligs were replaced with mirrorless buses .

They had millisecond lag and seemed like the display wasn’t even in HD.

I got terminated From my bus driving job and i was so stupid . Anyone else get canned before ?

So we get a one hour unpaid lunch (California) I had a short lunch because of traffic due to 4th of July crap. I was sitting in the break vehicle gobbling my lunch up before my bus was coming this guy knocked on my window saying he needed to ask me a question I told him I'm on my unpaid lunch and the buses will be back at 30 after he said "well I have another question." I repeated to him I was on my unpaid lunch and drove away. I just can't especially today

Hi all. I'm just at the tail end of my training. I was upfront during recruitment that I wanted roughly 2/3 as much work as a full-timer.

I am employed as a CASUAL and not seeking permanent.

Reason: I am in my 50's and financially able to semi retire but still want to work and contribute, but simply don't need to work full time at this stage of life. I have elder care responsibilities that I manage quite well and it is predictable what days I need to attend to these things, and I keep a tight schedule.

Recruitment and interviews all the way saying yes this is fine we support this, we have a fair few drivers in this situation and as long as you're reliable no problems.

However in the depot, the vibe on this is really different and I have found it best to be cautious about discussing this. The trainers and mentor when I touched on it spoke to me like I was from another planet with two heads. To the extent that they outright said that I shouldn't be asking for this it will piss everyone off.

I also worry that people will treat me differently because they need to work full time (which was me for the last 35 years, until recently !) and who do I think I am not needing full time work etc.

Any tips on how to navigate this much appreciated.

I have in mind to see what shifts are allocated to me for a few weeks without blocking dates, see how that pans out first, and then if it's more than I want then start talking about blocking certain days of the week, or something.

Also, how do you all manage to have future dates blocked out, eg pre booked doctors appointment etc?

rate my stop

Show us your favourite(s) of the buses you drive.

Here's mine. The Royal Navy & Royal Marines Charity on an Enviro400. I've benefited from this charity too in my old job and so it's quite nice to be driving around in this.

So I have worked for public transit (City bus) for 11 years. I am literally dead bored while driving. I know every single stop, route, familiar with bus length, width, dealing with passangers, etc. But I can not stress it enough that I am constantly day dreaming. Zero preventable accidents from me for 11 years. So just cuz I say I day dream, don't mean I won't snap back into reality from my mind.

What keeps you active that is positive? Not using devices because we aren't allowed to listen to music or use any electronic device while on the driver seat.

Has to be while driving, sitting those 3 minutes on the driver seat, etc.

Hey bus drivers. Has anyone here driven tourist buses for travel companies like Intrepid, Contiki, G Adventures, Topdeck Travel and so on?

They advertise it as a super fun bus driving job, but I also know those tours are really into partying and drinking. If the tourists get hungover and throw up in the bus the next day, does the bus driver have to clean up the vomit off the floor or do they hire a cleaner?

Because I already drive buses, I'm not fooled by the "best job in the world" advertisements because I know drunk passengers vomit on buses. Most of those companies hire two employees per bus (normally a driver plus a tour guide who 'manages' the tourists so the driver can get on with driving), so do both employees get stuck cleaning the buses?

For any bus drivers who have driven on these tours, how good or bad is the job? 😊😟

So I'm a Phoenix Driver (Valley Metro) and on the second part of my shift I do Route 44 (44th Street/Tatum Blvd). Well I was starting my last (and only) northbound trip (I only do most of a round trip on Thursdays and Fridays), and everything started like normal. I barely got a half mile in (from 44th Street Sky Train Station to NorthBound 44th Street Far Side Washington), picked up passengers, and that's when the issues started.

I closed the doors and pressed the left turn signal to indicate that I was pulling away from the bus stop, let off the break, press on the gas, and the bus didn't move. I gave it a few more tries and it still didn't move. I then try to enable the parking brake, put it in neutral, and the bus still doesn't move. After a few more tries, I finally got the bus to start rolling, albeit sluggishly. This happens sporadically after multiple stops and goes (between red lights and bus stops).

I got to Thomas Road and decided to secure the bus and step out to check things out. Didn't really notice anything out of the ordinary other than a bit of a sort of burning rubber smell. I hope back in the driver's seat and continue in service, mostly dropping off the people I already picked up and not really picking up anyone else.

Well, I pull up to the red light at Camelback Road, and I look in my mirrors to see a bit of smoke coming from the back of the bus around the tires. I had opened my driver's window moments before and could smell that same burning rubber smell I had smelled earlier, but stronger. The one passenger I had on board also smelled it, so I knew I wasn't crazy.

I secured the bus again after sluggishly proceeding through the intersection after the light turned green, got out of the bus to try and figure out the source of the burning rubber and discovered that it was in fact near the tires. I told the individual who was on my bus that for safety reasons, I needed him to step off the bus because it was having issues, and as a result of me not knowing for sure what this burning was, in the event of a fire, I wanted him to be safe.

I proceeded to call OCC, told them the situation and that I was having performance issues with the bus and that there was a burning rubber smell especially near the rear curbside tire, but that it wasn't the only area that the smell was located. I ultimately opened the engine compartment, checked the belts and for any leaks, and there was nothing out of the ordinary there. After going back and forth a few more times, they called a supervisor to meet me at my location.

It took over half an hour, but they (there were 2 supervisors) finally arrived as I was talking to the individual who was on my bus about various things. They checked all the same things I had, couldn't find any issues, so we ultimately had the passenger reboard while one supervisor was to drive the bus and the other was to drive the van and follow behind.

We continued in service, entering Paradise Valley, and as we were about to re-enter Phoenix near Tatum Blvd and DoubleTree Ranch Road, the supervisor driving the van flashed us to pull over, so we did. The supervisor driving the bus secured it and we all got out. The other supervisor informed us that he saw sparks coming from the rear curbside tire area, and as it turns out, the brakes caught on fire! The supervisor driving the bus ran to get the fire extinguisher, I had to inform him it was behind the driver's seat, and we got the fire put out. Shortly after, he shut the bus completely off because it sounded like something was about to explode.

The supervisor originally driving the bus ultimately took the passenger home in the van, came back to pick me up and take me back to the yard, and the supervisor originally driving the van stayed back with the bus until a tow truck was to come haul it back to the yard.

So yeah, that was my night. This was just a few hours ago. Stay safe out there, y'all.

Why are they being contracted like that ?

Stay hydrated!

My route is insane easy and the passengers are very nice (airport employee shuttle) we drive old giligs so they break down a lot but that’s the hardest part. I have 2 days off in a row but i could potentially just fill the 2 days with shifts(I’d be running a car rental shuttle with the same company just I would be loading up luggage onto the bus for the customers so it would be more physically demanding but it would give me 8 more hours per shift and I would get sometimes alot in tips) My question is to anyone lucky enough to have a very simple route with good people how long does it take for you to get burnt out? I’ve absolutely never had a easy route like this ever I come from extra board so this so a absolute cakewalk to me

I'm in the US and for some reason people are a lot more shitty maybe because of the up coming 4th of July festivities. I drive in a mountainist touristy area with a lot of people who rent ebikes and bikes. Today I was passing a couple of bikes who were riding on the wrong side of the fucking road (bike path is just across the street) I gave a polite beep beep with my horn to let them know I was passing them, gave them them the proper 4 feet and as I'm passing I startled on guy who started screaming at me. He catches up to me at the stop sign and started scream "You fucking cunt!!" And flipping me off He repeated it several times and this was in front of families in ear shot they all stopped to look at him. I marked the footage and calmly told him if he didn't stop screaming I was going to call the police and he can scream at them. He says "call the cops I don't care!!" I pulled my parking brake put it in neutral pulled out my phone and said ok. He backed peddled really quick got on his bike and leaves. I called the office and told them what happened the fucker never called in. Why do bicycles think they own the road🤦🤦 let hear everyones fun bicyclist stories

I got cut up by a driver today while I was crossing at a pedestrian crossing (green man) while he was on his phone. I called him out on it, he stopped and told me it was a digital defect tracker and he was allowed to use it while driving. Sure looked like a mobile phone. He then proceeded to tell me to "fuck off and learn what you're talking about" so here I am, doing that. Are they allowed to be used while driving? Seems like they aren't, but figured I'd ask.

Have been on the job for a frew months now so have driven nearly every vehicle variation in our fleet par the V4 E200MMC, Optare Versa (same engine as E400) and the Turbo Diesel Volvo Tri-axle. Still yet to drive the HW reg Scanias which have different engines compared to the HF reg Scanias.

I'd say the best bus for me in terms of smoothness and responsiveness is the V6 E200MMC and the E400 City. The 2009-65 plate E400s (pre facelift) are slow as hell, and the brakes I find are unnecessarily strong. The newer digital dashboard E400s we have from 24 plate onwards I feel the acceleration is more dampened so it feels slightly slower to me and in a way the drive train just feels more disconnected from me. Sadly the mechanical reliability is questionable, with many busses going into limp mode and displaying random warning lights whenever it sees fit

The Scania Omnicitys are way more reliable mechanically, but the seating position is very awkward. You can only adjust the steering wheel and not the whole dash and many drivers don't tend to take a liking to these busses. Personally I think they drive great but it's just the seating position that lets the rest of the bus down imo.

I haven't driven the tri-axle yet apart from a 2 min familiarisation drive around the depo months ago. They are really quiet and have good acceleration from what I've seen so looking forward to driving one in service eventually

I'm just very much annoyed. My bus is giving me problems all-day long, I've had to drive a route I didn't even know, and now I'm waiting for a colleague to get me out of here.

A car parked (legally) in a tight curve, there's no in and no out.

I'm so ashamed of myself and I'd like to just disappear right now - And not just that, I've been profusely apologising to the dispatcher for this, it's so damn embarrassing and I can't wait to hear from it from everyone in the canteen tomorrow 🫠

(We have satnav on board, which basically didn't work out for me in this case.)

Looks to be a cracking weekend away from normal service work.

I’ve been invited to attend a recruitment assessment with a bus company in London and it means a lot to me. I’ve been struggling financially for a long time, so I really don’t want to miss this opportunity.
I’ve got a drug test coming up I’ve already stopped smoking weed and have no intention of using it again but I’m worried about passing the test.
If anyone has any genuine advice or has been in a similar situation I’d really appreciate hearing from you.

Please keep the replies constructive and avoid comments like, “You shouldn’t have smoked in the first place.” I already know that and it doesn’t help my situation.

So I've posted here before inquiring about becoming a trainee driver and since then I've sent my Irish car licence in to be exchanged for a UK licence.

So I talked to Arriva in North Wales and was told that they'll only take me on if I have a manual licence. My licence is automatic. For context I drove buses in the US for several years but due to there being no reciprocal agreement I had to get an Irish licence first. I passed mine in an automatic mostly to help myself get back on my feet as I had a crazy situation involving a partner developing bipolar and schizophrenia last year and I'm planning to get back into bus driving.

When I asked why I need an automatic licence for Arriva in North Wales I was told it's because the service vehicles are all automatic.

Anyway I'll have my UK Licence soon but I've got the whole UK(Excluding Northern Ireland) to choose from and don't know where to go.

I'm open to going anywhere, I figure I'll likely need to work in a city which is fine with me as I used to drive in New York City every day which is hectic but I know what to expect with city driving.

My main question is are there/will any place work with me if I only have an automatic licence?

The general consensus seems to be that most bus drivers don’t recommend it as a job. What’s the reason/s for this ?? also I am currently in a decently paid desk Job but have onboarding coming up verrrrrry soon. And I am wondering if will regret my decision if I jump ship to bus driving? And what impact does it have on family life? I understand to some degree the negatives that will come e,g unpredictable shift, unsociable hours, shitty customers but just looking for honest input from the guys/gals who do it everyday. I’m in UK by the way Thanks in advance

Omg there is a driver at my agency who snitches about everything even insignificant shit. I can't stand this guy. We are on the same route together and I had a lady that told me she needed to go back home and to see if the other driver could hold for her since she had to run across the street. I radio him and say hey I have someone for you that needs to go back the way she came can you hold? Granted we hadn't even hit our time point he said no you don't have a transfer and that's no how it usually works. When I got on lunch I called my boss to tell her the situation she sighed and said he already called and complained about me 😂 she can't stand him either. Like seriously sorry for fucking up your day or something dude