Q-LINE, from page 4
“Should Big Blue Bus drivers wait for elderly people to be seated before they take off on their routes?”
Here are your responses: ■ “Not only should the bus drivers wait for the elderly to be seated, other passengers should be more courteous and respectful and yield the front seat to the elderly. Often times, you see the elderly rushing across the street to the bus and waving the bus down and the driver still takes off. The bus drivers should be more courteous in that area as well.” ■ “Yes, the bus drivers should wait for the elderly before they take off on their routes. The front seats are reserved for the elderly and the bus driver should remind those younger people sitting there that they are reserved for the elderly.” ■ “I’m a senior woman who rides the bus often and I walk with a cane. I always ask the bus driver to please not start the bus up until I sit down. I always sit on those sideways seats in the front of the bus, if possible. I think the drivers should wait for elderly people to sit because it’s very easy to fall, especially if you have a cane or a walker — you can’t hold on to the railings and the walker at the same time.” ■ “Seats are provided for elderly people in the front. The driver should not have to wait on an elderly person to sit all the way in back or in the middle of the bus if seats are provided on the side for the elderly. If they walk past that point, they are able to continue while the bus is rolling.” ■ “Webster’s definition of the elderly is somewhat old — advanced beyond middle age, quite old. The word elderly has too much of a sledgehammer effect on those over 50 years of age. Motorists who receive handicapped tags from the Department of Motor Vehicles are of every age group. Elderly does not mean physically impaired. I am an elderly person who could pole vault into the bus and tap dance to a back seat before the driver could get the bus in forward motion. I also ride a mountain bike 100 miles a month. Riders who find it difficult to board the bus and those on crutches and canes should be given every consideration by the driver, regardless of their age.” ■ “No. I’m an older woman. I’m 80 years old and if you had to stop for every elderly person who got on the bus, we’d never get anywhere. If they’re disabled and they have a problem, then yes, that’s why you have those seats at the front of the bus for people who are in that condition and they should sit down at the first seat that’s available to them.” ■ “Yes. Absolutely. The big blue bus drivers and all drivers should be required to wait, not only for elderly people, but for everyone to be seated or stable before they start the bus. Passenger safety is important. Not only the elderly get thrown around when buses stop or start suddenly. Drivers should be better trained in breaking as well. There are some buses that jerk more than others, but there are some drivers who are good drivers and can give you a smooth ride anyway. But some stop with such a jerk that when you stand up to exit before the bus has completely stopped, you’ll get thrown by that final jerk. The bus drivers need much more training in attention to passengers. After all, if they didn’t have passengers, where would they be?” ■ “The bus drivers should wait for the elderly. I sit in the disabled seat some of the time and if I’m having trouble, I say please wait until I sit down. Maybe all elderly people should say the same thing. Sometimes the bus lurches and we get tossed around a little. Most of the time, I’m really on their side. But I think the elderly should have the benefit also.” ■ “Of course not. The bus will never be on schedule. The bus drivers don’t have enough time as it is to get from point A to point B.” ■ “I think if the Santa Monica Big Blue Bus invites senior citizens to ride the bus, the drivers should be educated to wait until they sit down. I am an 86-year-old senior and I can handle myself pretty good. But I’ve seen people walk on a bus with canes and the driver will take off with a jerky start. Its a good bus line but the drivers should be educated a little more. I don’t blame the drivers because if they’re not told, they’re going to be doing what they’ve always been doing, which is taking off when they shouldn’t.” ■ “Define elderly objectively. Wait. I’ve got the solution. The Santa Monica Department of the Elderly Registration — a new bureaucracy that could be funded for only $10 million. All of those thinking that they are elderly could register and get a neck chain photo-ID and they’d have to wear that on a bus. And they’d have to wear that around their neck to save 10 minutes of fishing it out of their purse. Then when they get on the bus, they have to flash that at the driver and the driver has to wait until they give them permission to start. If you think $10 million dollars is too much, then how about charging the elderly to register? No, but that would be discriminatory. Well, how about a bond or property tax?” ■ “Yes, in the interest of safety, professionalism and politeness.” ■ “The drivers should definitely wait until the elderly are seated. The drivers on many occasions will be rushing, perhaps to a light, and then because they see that they’re a couple of minutes ahead of schedule, they’ll wait for a signal to change once, twice or three times. Certainly they can wait an extra few seconds for an elderly passenger to be seated. They have a responsibility to all passengers on a bus to ensure that they’re properly taken care of when they enter the bus. He’s like the captain of a ship. Many times, they’ll be discourteous to passengers either verbally or they’ll give people dirty looks. They’re not, to use computer terms, user friendly. A tip to the drivers: Wait until all passengers are seated.” ■ “I am a senior bus rider and the seniors would be a lot better off if the middle school and high school students would leave the senior seating in the front for the seniors to sit on. Then they wouldn’t have to go searching for a seat or hang on when the bus moves.” ■ “Bus drivers should wait for elderly people to be seated. Drivers start up all the time before anybody is seated. They should also make sure that young people get up and let older people sit down. I’ve seen young men and women seated at seats set aside for older people and these poor elderly have to hold on to the rails in order to stay stationary. I’ve seen an elderly woman who was thrown from her seat after the bus stopped very short and all of a sudden. She hit her head so hard on a pole that she had a hole in her skull.” ■ “Absolutely. Age and physical limitations are not always visible to the naked eye. Big Blue Bus drivers should wait for people to sit before they begin their routes.” ■ “Tour buses don’t lurch like the Big Blue Bus. Try buying better equipment next time they purchases buses. Otherwise, they have great schedules and cheap fares.” ■ “The bus drivers should wait for the elderly and the young as well. I myself was a victim of a slip and fall. I was air-borne like Mary Poppins. I lost the case. I was rushed to the hospital, needing several stitches, and I injured my knee. When they talk about you cannot fight City Hall — in this city particularly, you can never win. The people on the jury, the people who have sent letters saying that people should hang on, obviously have never been the victim or a passenger, of the Big Blue Bus. They don’t ride the bus, but they should. They would have a different take on it, trust me.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 22, 2003. Read the original PDF.