I've often remarked that it'd be nice to have a GoPro camera mounted on the dash of the school bus I drive. People doubt some of the amazing shit I've bore witness to. I've seen a number of Hit & Runs. Many close calls and near misses. Too many to assign a number to, in fact. I've even witnessed a slug-fest between two women on a boulevard, moments after an accident. The list goes on and on. Unfortunately, I do not have a GoPro affixed to the dash, meaning no one gets to see any of those incidents, nor do they get to see the cluster-f*ck I saw this morning.
I tried my best to illustrate what occurred on my route, this morning. Bear in mind that this picture is not to scale. I'd just picked up a smattering of students and was approaching my next pick up, when I happened upon a car parked perpendicular to the street. It was blocking both lanes and my mind quickly jumped into problem-solving mode. A lone male standing by the car, spotted me and ran up to my door. I'm not supposed to open the door to anyone except students and school officials, but taking a chance, I opened the door to see what was the matter, more so out of curiosity for the strange situation.
"I don't know what happened..," the man explained, "I was just driving along and it ran out of gas!"
"So you parked it across both lanes?" I asked, with an implication of stupidity in my voice. "Can't you push it out of the way? I have kids to pick up." He shook his head no. Then he suggested I go around.
Omitted from the graphic above, is the stream of parked cars that lined the street. True, there was a gap large enough to fit a school bus through, but it would require my passing over the lawn, coming dangerously close to the fence that lined the exterior of the apartment building.
People fail to understand, fully, just what is involved with driving a bus. While it's easy to dart around objects in the road, it's a f*ck of a lot more difficult with a large vehicle like a bus or semi-tractor. We can't turn on a dime. We can't fit through tight spaces. Plus, we have a tail swing which is dangerous for inflicting damage or injury.
I eyed up the space the man was inferring to, then cautiously proceeded, closing the door on the man, mid-sentence. Using a combination of grace and caution, I crept the behemoth vehicle around the stalled car, followed by a wide turn to the right before engaging in a sharp turn to the left to make it around the corner.
All-in-all, I survived the ordeal, without much hindrance, but I couldn't get that flimsy excuse out of my head. He ran out of gas? He passes a gas station to get to and from his residence, everyday. You can't travel in or around that area of town, without passing that gas station. Did he assume that the 'E' on the gauge stood for something other than empty? and given that gas has been cheaper in the last few months, than it has been in (literally) decades.
I accept that maybe he did run out of gas. It happens. It's happened to me twice, once in front of a gas station. What eludes me, in this case, is how the car became stopped in the middle of the block, perpendicular to the street? There was a car parked inches off his front bumper, so he couldn't have been attempting a U-turn. If his car, indeed, began to sputter and cough, symptoms of running out of fuel, he wouldn't have had enough power to cause the car to slip sideways, like that. True, it's still winter and there's ice on the roads, but it's rutted in that area, meaning there's tire tracks worn into the thick ice, and sliding sideways, especially under limited power, would be impossible.
I don't know what the case is. The scene only occupied my mind long enough to jot down this blog. Now I'm going to file it away with the plethora of other stupid shit I've witnessed in my travels. I really wish I had a GoPro camera fixed on my dash. You wouldn't believe the stupid shit I see.
I tried my best to illustrate what occurred on my route, this morning. Bear in mind that this picture is not to scale. I'd just picked up a smattering of students and was approaching my next pick up, when I happened upon a car parked perpendicular to the street. It was blocking both lanes and my mind quickly jumped into problem-solving mode. A lone male standing by the car, spotted me and ran up to my door. I'm not supposed to open the door to anyone except students and school officials, but taking a chance, I opened the door to see what was the matter, more so out of curiosity for the strange situation.
"I don't know what happened..," the man explained, "I was just driving along and it ran out of gas!"
"So you parked it across both lanes?" I asked, with an implication of stupidity in my voice. "Can't you push it out of the way? I have kids to pick up." He shook his head no. Then he suggested I go around.
Omitted from the graphic above, is the stream of parked cars that lined the street. True, there was a gap large enough to fit a school bus through, but it would require my passing over the lawn, coming dangerously close to the fence that lined the exterior of the apartment building.
People fail to understand, fully, just what is involved with driving a bus. While it's easy to dart around objects in the road, it's a f*ck of a lot more difficult with a large vehicle like a bus or semi-tractor. We can't turn on a dime. We can't fit through tight spaces. Plus, we have a tail swing which is dangerous for inflicting damage or injury.
I eyed up the space the man was inferring to, then cautiously proceeded, closing the door on the man, mid-sentence. Using a combination of grace and caution, I crept the behemoth vehicle around the stalled car, followed by a wide turn to the right before engaging in a sharp turn to the left to make it around the corner.
All-in-all, I survived the ordeal, without much hindrance, but I couldn't get that flimsy excuse out of my head. He ran out of gas? He passes a gas station to get to and from his residence, everyday. You can't travel in or around that area of town, without passing that gas station. Did he assume that the 'E' on the gauge stood for something other than empty? and given that gas has been cheaper in the last few months, than it has been in (literally) decades.
I accept that maybe he did run out of gas. It happens. It's happened to me twice, once in front of a gas station. What eludes me, in this case, is how the car became stopped in the middle of the block, perpendicular to the street? There was a car parked inches off his front bumper, so he couldn't have been attempting a U-turn. If his car, indeed, began to sputter and cough, symptoms of running out of fuel, he wouldn't have had enough power to cause the car to slip sideways, like that. True, it's still winter and there's ice on the roads, but it's rutted in that area, meaning there's tire tracks worn into the thick ice, and sliding sideways, especially under limited power, would be impossible.
I don't know what the case is. The scene only occupied my mind long enough to jot down this blog. Now I'm going to file it away with the plethora of other stupid shit I've witnessed in my travels. I really wish I had a GoPro camera fixed on my dash. You wouldn't believe the stupid shit I see.
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