The tough job of a bus driver dealing with the highs and lows of public life
Many events can take place on a bus, but the drivers are the ones who see the whole show
DESPITE the ups and downs of modern life - there is MORE good in Britain than bad, according to the people who see it all - the nation's bus drivers.
A nationwide study of bus drivers has revealed a fascinating snapshot into British life – from the viewpoint of those who see and hear the most.
The poll of drivers who have, on average been behind the wheel of Britain’s buses for at least nine years, said despite the highs and lows, kind gestures from their passengers makes them smile to themselves up to 11 times a day.
Passengers giving up their seats for the elderly, helping mums onto the bus with prams and lending one another change for their fare were just some of the regular acts of kindness witnessed by the nation’s bus drivers.
They also estimate they are on the receiving end of as many as 169 ‘thank yous’ on a typical shift.
In fact, as many as 71 percent of the drivers said, while there were downsides to the job - they actually see more instances of good than bad, while over half reckon they see more in an average day than any other profession does.
The research found the typical bus driver, in the past 12 months, has witnessed 9 childbirths, 11 marriage proposals and has had to wake up 25 people who had fallen asleep on their bus.
In addition to that, 50 people will have moaned to them about the weather, and there have been an average of 18 instances where passengers have broken in to a sing-song.
Drivers have called for medical assistance eight times in the last 12 months, observed 13 people crying uncontrollably and witnessed 46 episodes of road rage.
Melanie Rees, Customer Experience Director at First Bus, the operator who carried out the research, said: “Very few people are in the privileged position to see such a varied snapshot of British life.
“Our bus drivers are the heart of our business and they have one of the toughest jobs – they get to see Britain at its best, and worst.
“As one of the UK’s biggest bus operators, we know how important the bus service is to local communities and we’re working hard to make it better for our customers.
“Our customer app makes it easy to plan journeys and means customers can see when their bus is coming and all our buses now offer contactless, which means customers don’t need to worry about having the right change to give to their bus driver.
But there are downsides too, with 73 percent saying it drives them mad when customers don’t have the right change or lose their ticket and 93 percent grumbled about cars parking illegally in designated bus stops.
Drunk customers, passengers talking too loudly on their phones and being forced to listen to individual’s loud headphones were other common grievances.
The poll of almost 300 bus drivers also revealed some of the most common things to get left on buses, including umbrellas, books and mobile phones.
However, according to the drivers polled, some of the more obscure objects left on buses in the last 12 months included a prosthetic limb, children and false teeth.
The weather, football and moaning about the bus journey were the most likely topics of conversations between bus passengers – but more than one in ten drivers said they often hear customers discussing Brexit.
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And over a quarter (27 percent) said it’s very common to eavesdrop on passenger’s slagging off their work colleagues – especially in rush hour.
Of the bus drivers polled – 63 percent said they would recommend the job to anyone.
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