class B, vs class A, need help

Oh yeah get ur a class unless u want to drive buses with a b class license. Nothing wrong with a b class, u can still make good money and have less stress .

 

Not to knock the stress of trucking, but I would definetely not say that driving bus is less stressful. In fact driving bus is one of the top stress jobs you can have, especially in todays realities. Taken from 14 yrs as a city transit driver, I have had a gun pulled on me, I have been knocked out, I have been spit on and had coffee and soda thrown and splashed on me. You are stuck in a drivers seat that has all this equipment( farebox, radio, where I worked at they had whats called an MDT) all on the side of the drivers seat that you have to make a quick exit on, and that leads right to your threat. There is no drivers door to jump out of in a 40ft bus. I am actually looking forward to driving a big truck. It will be a relief not having to deal with all that plus the people that will yell at you if you are running three minutes down on your schedule. I can easily deal with an irate shipper/receiver after being cursed out over someone that doesn't want to pay their fare. And dealing with constant high traffic situations on top of the baby crying right behind you. In and out of bus stops every other block, while the cars wont let you merge back in because they dont want to be stuck behind a bus, I am looking forward to the long runs on the freeways. And all the while you are getting yeald at by all the passengers that can't comprehend why you are running so late. And with all this going on, your security and safety are the least of the companies concerns. All they care about is their budget and why you are running late. I know people that have been beaten so bad they were hospitalized, burned so bad that they were permenantly scared, had teeth knocked out. And I know people that have died behind the wheel while the bus is in motion. The constant stress never lets up when you have 15 to 40 people constantly on you about how you are doing YOUR job. I can go on for hours about this topic, but I am going to leave it at that.

So don't let people misslead you that driving bus is a low stress job... Ohh BTW unless you get on with a good transit DISTRICT, one that isn't run by a private company, you aren't going to be paid squat. I know people that have made 6 figures driving bus in one location, and I know people that can barely pull in 35K, doing the same job but in a different location, there are no standards in transit.

So I will stop before I get going again, just my 2 cents on the stress involved between the two carreers.

 

Wow I never new that about bus driving, but I was talking about the buses like greyhound. But man I'm sorry to hear what u have been through with driving a bus.

 

Why do all you OTR cats tell these newbs that they "have" to do OTR??? NO THEY DON'T....Conway,FedEx(national or freight)UPS freight...hell,i could go on and on.

 

I've heard that myself when I first started to drive, it might have been true years ago but not now.

 

I am CDL BP and that leaves me limited. Especially since I am leaving NY for Utah or Arizona next year where I'll need to find another career. If you have the opportunity and desire to stick it out, I would (and should have) gone for the Class A. This way, my options for work are as open as my endorsements.

Give yourself whatever opportunities are available by not limiting your license class, if that makes sense for you to do so.

Would you guys agree?

 

Agreed. Get all of your endorsements,don't limit yourself.

 

Greetings to a fellow BP!

I am 15 years CDL BP New York City Transit Authority.

I also used to run a website, much like this one, strictly for bus related agenda.

Where do you drive?

Jeff

 

And then you have the Greyhound driver that had his throat slit while driving down the freeway because he was running late on his schedule.. A bus driver is a bus driver, you deal with the public, in your face constantly, the traffic that never stops and busses go where trucks aren't allowed, and the company, including your direct supervisors that all they care about is their bottom line and the schedule, doesn't matter if you haven't eaten in hours or you have to go to the bathroom, if you delay the schedule for personal reasons you are written up, period.

Now that I am out of it and it isn't my livelyhood anymore I wouldn't wish it upon anyone. I didn't realize how stressful it was until I didn't have to deal with it everyday. Thats when I took a step back and was like, Man its nice not to have to go and do that. And it is. I feel sorry for my mother, who still drives, and I see how exhausted she is when she comes home everyday, and I feel really bad for her. Luckily she is close to retirement and that is one good thing about the industy, if you make it that far you get a good retirement check and with most of the districts you get your medical for life for you and your spouse.

Anyways like I said I could go on for hours about it... so if anyone wants anymore specifics feel free to ask.

 

It's not impossible to get a local job, its just that the odds are really stacked against you. It could take a while to land a local gig and you only have about 3-4 weeks before companies want you to take a refresher course. Good luck!