#4152

Well it took a ride home on the 66 to bring some fun back to bus riding. Caught the 4:50PM 66 southound at the corner of Stadium Drive and College Ave. The 4PM to 6PM 81 southbound buses all run very late (sometimes not at all), so if I leave work in that time window, the 66 provides a more reliable alternative.

I got on the bus and waited as the driver's switched out. The new driver announced he was new to this route and asked us to please be patient. For the most part, he did a great job -- only a couple of near misses when people wanted off at the more obscure stops.

By midway down Rural, I remained the only passenger. We neared the Guadalupe-Rural intersection and instead of getting into the left turn lane, he kept the bus in the right turn lane. Fortunately, the light turned red and we stopped. I moved to the very front of the bus, saw him looking left and right and he said, "I think I turn here . . ." I told him he did indeed need to turn, but left, not right. He looked down at a map and concurred. Once the light turned green, he moved forward and waited in the intersection until he could safely proceed south.

We discussed doing a cloverleaf in the shopping center parking lot, but he said it was too crowded for a safe detour. He continued south on Rural and took a left at the first residential street. He told me not to worry or panic, he was just getting us back to Guadalupe. I told him I wasn't worried at all - I enjoy a great adventure. Poor guy couldn't know my true delight at this unexpected "food" for the blog. We curled around in the neighborhood and finally found a cross street that joined Guadalupe. He asked me about the next right turn and I told him only left turns until he made it back to Guadalupe and then he could turn right.

I got off at my stop and wished him well on the rest of the route. What a fun ride home!