Now as you may or may not know, on a daily basis I have to get the public bus to school and this can be quite a pain. Certain bus drivers can either be quite rude or can also drive the bus as if its a motorbike (you know, when its only meant to go as high as 50 mph and instead they go at 75, racing it around the corners as if they are in the Formula 1). This is not the best for any member of the public, and therefore today my post will consist of me ranting about the disadvantages of having to get the public bus every day.
Okay, so the first point I have to make: getting the bus driver to notice you and for he or she to actually stop. There have been quite a few incidents where, in the morning, bus drivers are either so focused on the road, or are not focused at all, and they just drive past you even though your hand may be out signalling for them to stop and let you on. But then, the most embarrassing part is that they eventually notice you and stop 50 metres away from where the bus stop actually is and all of the passengers already seated on the bus stare at you whilst you're walking smartly to the door. It's humiliating even though I know for a fact its never my fault!
Also, when I began high school, we had this one bus driver for the first half of my first year and he did not wait around for anybody! You put one foot on the bus and he was already closing the doors and driving away whilst you were asking for your ticket. I found this quite intimidating, as I was only small and so the thrust of the bus moving forward whilst I had to get on was difficult to encounter.
Another problem that I always have is that often on the school runs the bus drivers come early to avoid the rush and then we have to wait another 20 - 30 minutes for the next one as they are always late. This then means that the next two buses come together, and everyone piles on the first bus and leaves the second completely empty. I mean, why should we all cramp together in a hot bus when we could stop everyone feeling claustrophobic and space out?
Finally, probably the most annoying conversation I have ever had with a bus driver. It was after school and I asked the driver for a weekly ticket when I got on the bus, only because I had an orthodontist appointment in the morning and therefore didn't catch the bus to school. Now this alone irritates the bus driver as these tickets need to be put in a special laminated cover which the drivers have to put onto the ticket for the customer, delaying them by around 2 minutes, which they hate after school as there are so many kids to get on the bus. However, there are no restrictions to when you can purchase these tickets, so I decided it was worth it, even if I do get a frustrated bus driver on my case. Although, when I asked, the price of £18 came up on the screen, when mine is only usually around £6, so I just assumed that he charged me an adult fare by mistake. But when I corrected him and politely asked for a Children's ticket, he looked up at me and just went: "Well I cant just guess, can I?!". I apologised to him for not being specific when I asked at first, but seriously, I barely look 12, never mind actually being 15, and if at least 30 kids are waiting at the same bus stop with the same school uniform on then I'm sure an educated guess would not have been a bad decision to make.
So now I'm apologising to you all for ranting so much about something that matters so little, but I thought it may be a funny or relatable post for you all to see on this Saturday afternoon. So if you read to the end then thank you, and I'll be back next week!
Zoe x
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