There is much to know about being a bus driver. It takes about thirty-five days to train a new employee. But as Doug points out, some skills come through experience that takes years to develop. This “guidebook” or “rule book” contains material needed to choose your style on how to pay at the fare box and where to stand while waiting for the bus. Plus a philosophy on how to maintain dignity and peace when the going gets tough.

“The Dao of things cannot be complete without the Dao of driving a bus. I’d ride with Doug all the way to the Himalayas just to listen to the art of his wisdom.”
- David Biddle,
author of Implosions of America—
A Story Collection

“Nice read. I like the mix of situational context and life lessons.”
- Chad Upham,
graduate, Art Center College of Design

The Dao of Doug: The Art of Driving a Bus OR Finding Zen in San Francisco Transit: A Bus Driver's Perspective

By DOUGLAS MERIWETHER

Balboa Press

Copyright © 2013 Douglas Meriwether
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4525-6649-8

Contents

Preface by the Author...............................ixI'd Never Do Your Job...............................1Getting Started.....................................5First stop..........................................7Not all Stops Are Equal.............................9The Fare box........................................12Have It Ready.......................................23Tag-in Please.......................................26Where to Stand......................................29Morning Rush........................................32Placing the doors...................................35Stopping and Starting...............................37The Noodle..........................................38School Trip.........................................41Sit Back and Watch the Show.........................43Thank You For Riding!...............................45All alone...........................................47Dragging the Line...................................51Surrender...........................................54Headway.............................................59Packed Stacked and Racked...........................62Split Doors Split Groups............................64Pulling Poles.......................................66Secure the Coach....................................69Knowing the Lights..................................71Next Bus............................................74Nowhere In Particular...............................78The Late Ring.......................................81The Black Hole......................................84Boarding the Coach..................................87Sleeper.............................................90The Boat People.....................................92The White Lie.......................................93What its Really About...............................96Move Up 4...........................................98Back Door!..........................................100Dump and Run........................................102Seniors come out....................................104Reroute In-Effect...................................106Special Events......................................109New Year's Eve......................................111The Bigger They Are.................................113The Argument you Cannot Win.........................117The Stroller Incident...............................119Moms and babies.....................................121Always in Service...................................123Pulling In..........................................127Pulling Out.........................................131Beach and Broderick.................................133Coach Trade and the Defect Card.....................135Calling Central.....................................137Shoes...............................................143Wheel Blocks........................................146RDO.................................................148The Zen Zone........................................150Witching Hour.......................................156The Ninth Level of Hell.............................158Daly City 702.......................................161Payback.............................................165When Worlds Collide.................................167Glossary............................................171

Chapter One

I'd Never Do Your Job

I come from a background where money may not be the root of all evil, and it was acknowledged that it did indeed grow on trees, but that they were two types of money: Good money and bad money. You never wanted to throw good money after bad. And there was a nuance between money earned and money given. Or money found by luck, or money made easy. I never heard too much about money made easy. Honest money made was the best money. A penny saved was a penny earned. But, boy did that sound like a lot of plodding and not too much fun. So it should come as no surprise that if I worked hard to make money, it should therefore be good money, and so I was pleased to find that work as a transit operator in the city by the bay, the Bagdad by the bay, the city that never sleeps, was a hard job but a good paying job. I hit the family ancestral jackpot. I was making good money at a hard job that was in line with my ancestral roots.

But I noticed early on in my muni riding days, that some drivers looked relatively relaxed. And that nothing seemed to phase them. And that some were actually fun to talk to. And that there did seem to be a way in which to make their work look easy and relaxing, and yet is a high paying job. So the seed was planted early on that this might be a good job for me. As a Gemini sun sign, transportation and continual movement fits my sign. And my 4th grade art project, "What do I want to do when I grow up?", was a picture of the silver GM coaches that serviced the NY Port Authority from Jersey during the 60's. I had bus driver as a job I wanted to do since the fourth grade. And I have heard that those that are successful in their jobs later in life, had a passion for those activities or skills from an early age.

But unlike Civil Engineer, Medical Doctor, Dentist, or Lawyer, Bus Driver did not seem to appear on the success roster. But I didn't really care. Ralph Kramden was my hero. I saw that no matter how half baked an idea was that I could hatch, as long as I had my friends, and made a connection with others, everything would turn out okay. When Jackie Gleason would exclaim, "How Sweet it Is!" I got it. I guess you could say the in a way, "The Honeymooners" was my imprint version of "The Wonder Years," that many followed in their youth in the eighties.

So fast forward to San Francisco and the late nineties. Newly elected Mayor Willie L. Brown Jr., Esq., was mandated to fix muni in his first 100 days, and he took immediate action to hire more bus drivers. I went to the Moscone job fair and put in to get on the list. Finally, at age 39, I was finally making a plan about choosing a job that seemed more like a career or occupation than just a need to get another paycheck fast. I encourage anyone living paycheck to paycheck, or between jobs, to pause a look deep about what kind of service they want to provide to others. I had always sat in the front seat when I rode the bus with Grandma, and liked it when the bus drivers would talk to me. I still do that now, conditions permitting, and I feel like I am actually in a recruitment mode. Early first impressions can and do have a lasting effect on our life decisions later on down the road. Get them when they are young, and so I present myself as doing a fun job.

So the first thing that comes up about why someone would not want my job is, "the people." But where in the world do we not have a job involving other people? And if I am to be resentment free, can I not take quiet time every day to see what amends I can make to determine my part in any negative reaction? To me this is where the rubber meets the road. The path that separates the men from the boys. I see so many miserably quiet lives departing the bus after work daily that I sometimes feel like I am the only happy bozo on the bus! Gee, is it that bad? And if I smile, I try to break that grimace of the boarding face. Usually it works.

I guess I need to do more research about why someone would never do my job, but I guess in a way it adds to my job security. One thing that most people don't realize is that once the mental hurdles are pushed into the background, it is the physical stress that can take its toll and put continued work in to jeopardy. Stopping and starting, braking on a downhill with a full load: day in and day out. As Harrison Ford quipped in one of his action movies after incredible odds, "It's not the years, it's the mileage."

One of my students was having difficulty in signing at this years' General Sign Up because she was getting the run-around. She didn't get the "email" that many of us with more time understood: if your body starts to give you pain in a certain area, take care of it immediately! Go to the gym or get therapy before your body shuts down. Take care of the warning signs before you can barely step off the bus at the terminal because your hams and quads are all locked up. Repetitive stress requires repetitive stretching and massage.

Just as I have learned to eat on the fly, or pick food choices that are simple to munch on with only a few minutes of recovery, so too, must we stretch and find a trainer or massage therapist that we can meet on a regular basis to prevent our bodies from shutting down. I keep saying I am going to try Yoga. Going on leave is not the answer. Shutting down and doing nothing is never a good idea. So as long as we keep moving, we stay employed and enjoy the benefits of steady pay.

I envy musicians and artists that can bring home the bacon with their creative abilities, but also do other part time jobs to stay busy. There can be freedom in scheduling a week with personal choices rather than the ball and chain of a railway timetable, but I guess each lifestyle has it ups and its downs. There are those of us with stable government jobs that would do well to understand the creative mix of those that rotate with three part time jobs and free lance, to make ends meet. The lack of understanding about what needs be done to be work flexible, might lower tensions among the classes of types of workers that board the bus. Getting to the zen zone keeps this in balance. I certainly have had to deal with these demons at the fare box, or when someone is running to get to the door.

Getting Started

I was jotting down ideas for chapters and this one popped into my head as I was doing pre-op on track 12. I would add chapter idea headings into a blank folder on my computer so as to not lose the idea. I would be able to have the topic ideas as chapters in my Dao of Doug folder, so if I ever had a block against writing, I could use those blank folders with names as a starting point to get my juices flowing. But when I returned to this chapter heading, I had a blank as to what I was thinking when I put it in. "Getting Started" could mean anything. Waking up before coffee. Getting to the bus stop to take a 22 to the barn. Signing-in on the daily pull out coach assignment. Finding the yard starter. Calling Central Control and telling them I am blocked on track 4. Running back to the tower to see if I could get someone from the shop to stop an air leak. Or get out of restricted mode. Or just get the coach to move. Or to simply get the doors to open!

But I remembered my tears as I was trying to make it to the gate to pull-out. My collectors had not been reset when someone de-wired pulling on to track 12 last night. And I didn't know how much leeway the wheel had against the wash rack, and I cut the turn too fast and too sharp and got caught in the wires. But after finally coaxing the poles out of the web, I put them back on the wires only to de-wire again. I needed to be at 11th and Mission in five minutes and wasn't going to make it. And I began crying because I wasn't even out the gate and already a wreck.

A couple of times, maybe three, I went through three coaches before I pulled-out. Finding one that is okay can be a game of musical chairs. But as soon as I remember that the wisdom of being zen is kept when I throw out the schedule, or trying to maintain the schedule, I immediately relax. You could ask me a question about where I go if I am in the zen.

But getting started could be when the alarm goes off in the morning. Did I get enough rest last night? Am I too stiff? Waking up with a crick in the neck is just awful. Especially if we have to turn our head to the right to observe boarding passengers. I have to check the condition my body is in when I wake up because I have learned the hard way that if I don't take care of myself, I could be in for a bad day. Nothing is worse than being tired behind the wheel of a bus in a busy city. So getting started could actually be about how we approach the day when we first wake up. Getting on a regular sleep cycle, when I don't even need an alarm, is a good indication that I will be in the zen zone for most of the time in the seat.

First stop

When I pull-out in the morning, I always smile and say hello to my first customer. I try to make this an important barometer for how the day will go. And it gives me an instant check in to see where I am at in my head, and whether or not I am present to be of service. Yes, the job gives great paychecks, but I have always followed the precept that do what you like and the money will follow. Even though I believe most city employees think more about their paycheck than the service they provide to get that paycheck, I do know that placing service first is actually my best action to create job security. And I am surprised to admit that I may not be following this belief for more than half the time I spend behind the wheel. Or at least I am not aware that I am. Most of my actions become subconscious, which is great from a zen point of view, but it takes considerable effort to get back to a service first mode when I am running late and heavy.

So the great thing about the first stop and the first passenger is that none of burdens of being late or overwhelmed, exist, usually. And I always try to find a start time that doesn't put me behind the eight ball from the get go. There are certain quirks in the schedule that place cut-in coaches at a disadvantage at the first terminal. Usually it because the leader is late and ends up being behind the cut in coach where the new coach begins service. And so at the first terminal, the pull out "leader" has to pull poles to let the follower regain leader headway. But with all the cuts to recovery time, the leader may not have any wiggle room to relax and break before heading out from that terminal.

And so, I have learned to cut-in at not necessarily the exact time, but to make sure my leader passes before I cut-in. Sometimes it is easier to trail blaze ahead and keep the follower less busy so he can make better time to arrive at the next terminal with some recovery time. All these nuances do influence how I feel when I get to my first terminal, and hence, shorten or lengthen my temper when picking up those first few passengers at the first stop.

I found out that I am not a rush hour downtown bus driver. I am a cross-town guy that avoids being on that inbound trip at 8:30am or that 5:15pm trip outbound. Cross town is where it's at for me. The muni meaning behind "doing homework" means checking out the paddles to see where the run is in the morning and in the afternoon. People always ask me what the bad line is. I say there are no bad lines. Only bad leaving times.

Not all Stops Are Equal

When busses are missing, and headway or waiting time increases, it can become very unclear to those standing at or near multiple line bus stops why the bus passes by. All the frantic yelling and screaming is moot if you are no longer in the scanning range of the operator or outside the zone. The scanning range of an operator is one to two blocks ahead of the direction of travel. Once the front door passes by where you stand, lucky is the day that the bus stops. And I do appreciate your thanks when I do stop. But stopping is the exception to the rule when I am late and I am full.

If no one rings to get off, and the bus is full, the bus doesn't stop. It becomes important to see how full a bus is as it approaches. Looking away on a cell phone, or talking to someone else and facing away from the direction of travel, all compound the chance of a bus not stopping if no request to stop is made on board on a crowded bus. These are the unwritten rules of not wanting a bus: If you are not facing the operator as the bus is a half a block away, and you are alone, and you are on Van Ness or Mission, we usually will not stop. In San Francisco there are so many passing by, or standing, or sleeping (or whatever) in the shelter, we have learned to look at your hands to see if you are holding the fare. This is called looking for those who are ready.

So baby stops, not at a light, or far side from the cross street, are not equal to major transfer points nearside at a stop light. Increasing your odds for pickup become relevant if no bus is seen coming, or you see the taillights of a bus just having gone by.

A red light can save you when headway is long, or a bus is full. A good question to ask yourself while waiting, is, what are the chances of someone wanting to get off at this stop where I am waiting? It also pays to be aware of when the next bus is due. Do you have a clock in the shelter where you are waiting? If not, is there another bus stop a block or two away that does have next bus? If you are waiting at a minor stop with no clock, and no way to see a bus coming, should you move to a better line of sight stop that is by a stop light or transfer point, so as to increase the chances of a stop? The answer is Yes!

If you are headed downtown for an appointment or interview, and time is of the essence, get on that first arriving 49 line coach even though it doesn't go downtown. Then ride to the nearest 14 Limited stop and get off. Even if this is only a couple of blocks. Now you have a chance to get on the next Limited or Local 14 to go downtown. If the wires are blocked or power is off on the 14 local line, you have the option to take the diesel motor coach, the 14L to get downtown faster. So just waiting for your bus at a baby stop can cost crucial time.

If, however, that other stop has a large number of people waiting, sometimes it pays to backtrack to a stop with less people waiting so you can get a better spot inside the bus before it gets too full. Giving up a major stop is good if you can tell on your smartphone or the shelter next bus arriving time clock, that another bus is only one or two minutes behind the first coach. Usually this first bus is packed, and the next one is fine. So sometimes getting on the first bus is bad. The chances of a fight breaking out, "Quit Pushing!" "Get off my Leg!" and such always occurs on the first, more crowded bus. The chances of that bus going out of service are also greater. Think about it. When you see a mob of people getting off of a bus that stops working, it is a mob of people. Very rarely is an uncrowded bus. This crowded bus is usually late and arrives after a long wait for busses. Try to avoid getting caught by noticing how many people are waiting when you first arrive on foot to the bus stop. Sometimes if you get on a local neighborhood bus or another line with less people, you can transfer later down the line and be on time.

So what am I saying? I am saying that if you are smoking a cigaret, talking on your cell phone, looking away from the street, all alone or sitting down, and look like you haven't seen the inside of a gym in years, forget about it! All the shouting and cursing in the world isn't going to make the bus stop, unless you can beat it to the next red light and get the cap number of the bus driver! Good Luck, and see you next time!

The Fare box

Surveys of time use show that much time is spent in the bus zone loading passengers. Although this would seem to be a revenue loser as those that board in the rear would be evading the fare, my experience has been that most riders are honest and pay their fare share by coming to the front door to get a receipt or transfer. Those that enter in the back because of wheelchair boarding or kneeler requests, do come to the front from the aisle to get a transfer, and pay their fare. By believing that most people are honest and abide the unofficial honor system of paying for their ride, I have reduced almost all problems and delays at the front door and fare box.

(Continues...)

Excerpted from The Dao of Doug: The Art of Driving a Bus OR Finding Zen in San Francisco Transit: A Bus Driver's Perspectiveby DOUGLAS MERIWETHER Copyright © 2013 by Douglas Meriwether. Excerpted by permission of Balboa Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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