>the entire back section of the (#6 or #7) bus filed out at his command.
If it was this summer, it might have been me...some punk was playing
radio games, and I was not in the mood, so after the 3rd or 4th time he
turned it back on, I stopped at Octavia (nearside) and informed him that
it was his stop. After a surprisingly small amount of profanity, he,
and an amazing number of his friends got off. Later, one of the
passengers commented that I (the driver) was `always a real bitch'...so
I guess you can't please everyone.
>operators have training sessions or rules about these situations?
pretty much what I ouotlined in my previous post.
>Unfortunately, I think you are in the minority.
I know I am in the minority...eventually I'll get asaulted over it and
then I'll probably start ignoring them too.
>This is in contrast to several other Bay Area bus systems where this sort of thing is NEVER tolerated. (I've seen incidents on both Golden Gate transit and SamTrans where the driver has stopped the bus and refused to continue until the offending parties have left the bus).
If I did this, 1) I would be tying up the bus a few times a day, 2) get
assaulted regularly, 3) get a hailstorm of complaints (both from delayed
passengers, and ejectees) and if the police do come, all they will do is
remove the miscreants and tell them to get lost.
>One thing I see missing on Muni: Signs saying "No eating, drinking,
or Radios"
they are there, but often the ones in the rear have been graffitti
removed so much the print is gone.
>Agreed. On the other systems that I mentioned earlier, the one yelling at the driver is considered to BE the problem and often "invited" to leave the bus as well.
`OK, I can't drive with all this. You can either sit down and be quiet,
go to the back where I can't hear you as well, or get off'
>if you ask them to call the police they should comply.
agreed, although you may get a response along the lines of `are you
sure this is what you want?' because, if they do, the procedure is to
tie the bus up, call central control, request police response, wait, and
when it is all clear, and the shift is over, go back to the division and
fill out an accident report.
>I would encourage you to report the incident to MUNI.
You can use the complaint/commendation line for this purpose.
and a small reminder:
Now that it is getting dark earlier, remember that if the bus driver
can't see you (wearing black, in the shadows, under the trees, behind
the bus shelter, in a stoop, etc) you may not have the opportunity to
board. Wear or carry something white/bright and/or stand in the clearly
visible ready-to-board part of the bus zone.
Robert Parks
22-Fillmore