Crunch Zone

Packed, Stacked, and Racked

Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken.

— Oscar Wilde.

I at first wanted to call this chapter, “Crunch Time,” such as the operation of a bus from 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm. However, the pattern of movement between two stops was as predictable as the time frame, and I realized that a more accurate description of gridlock was in certain zones between stops. And the idea for this chapter was born in the conversation with this wheelchair rider as he glided away from downtown with me in a coach that was calm and roomy.  If there was an opposite to being in the Zen zone, this chapter is it.  I found out he wanted to go up Van Ness to Geary, but was passing up the transfer point by four blocks. Now I know why. He was avoiding having to board Muni in the crunch zone.

Indeed, I found this out as a rider that the fastest was to go inbound on the Geary bus to catch a 15 Third. I made a large checkmark inbound to outbound rather than go crosstown direct. Passengers taking the Metro underground also understand this principle, and take an empty car from Civic Center or Powell down to Montgomery, and get a seat for the outbound peak period. This is true of the crunch zones between the 49 Van Ness. Especially if you are in a wheelchair, carrying a large cumbersome object, or using a grocery cart. Also, if you have difficulty in getting up the stairs, or need a seat right by the door, oddly enough, the best offense is the defense of traveling beyond the closest stop to your destination. This means backtracking to board where the bus is less crowded.  

On the 49 line, the crunch zone lays between 16th Street and Eddy inbound, and from O’Farrell to Otis outbound. Load factors and working leaders influence the zone by making it longer or shorter, but in general, I know I have to make sure people boarding do the right thing by sitting or standing in such a way to prevent fights or arguments at the following stops. People listen better before their space is threatened. This is a golden key to the crunch zone.

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Why Be A Driver?

Many ask this question, and we driver’s know who you are:  Someone who has never driven for a living. There are many negatives to being a driver, but not usually what you may think–if all you’ve ever known is an office desk or retail floorspace. In most respects, an office job is a superior job, unless you are like most drivers, independent, and not a fan of office politics. The love of driving should be in your blood, and you know it. Indeed, the life of a driver does involve politics to some degree, but only in a larger sense like city government’s rules and regulations such as parking tickets or moving violations. 

If you work for the government, as a civil service employee, the politics of parking and fee violation threat are somewhat reduced, as you are driving city equipment on city streets, and the police are your supportive coworkers. Backlash can occur at any intersection or crosswalk, however, and the ‘me first’ attitude of car culture, borne of the baby boom generation, is the saddest detriment to quality of life in this thriving city. Heat from claims from the City Attorney’s office, and public complaints about rude drivers is the pushback we do well to understand if we are to keep our job and stay off the radar.

No, the life of a driver is one more like that of a writer: interest in the people that cross your path. Tour bus driver guide, shuttle driver, taxi driver, and  in delivery services, we get in get out, and have command of our own ship, so to speak, like our hero Robert Di Nero in the movie Brazil.

We learn the art of understanding and dealing with dispatchers or how to get a  signature if squaring a delivery.  We know what paths not to take during certain times, and secrets about how to cut delays. We have a many times thankless job, but we still have our own independence and ability to keep to ourselves when all is quiet. Kind of like an editor’s job reviewing a book for publication!

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As long as our vision is clear and our hearing is good, we are good to go. With blood sugar and blood pressure in a normal range, we can continue in service as long as we shall live, so help us God.  We can stay behind the wheel for as long as we shall live. And, of course, stay within the health guidelines setup to make sure we don’t lose attention by low blood sugar, lack of rest, or have cholesterol levels in an unhealthy range. Stress on our bodies over the years, then, is our final enemy. 

And when I (finally) see I am this enemy of my worst self, lest I think I have a new trick to try and keep and love as my own, the Trolleybus of Happy (or Crappy) Destiny awaits us at any corner and on any track!

The Art of Driving a Bus