I worked late and headed for the bus stop about 7:10 PM. The bus "should" arrive at 7:28 but in the evening, schedules seem to get skewed. Luckily (hah!) I left early as the bus came at 7:20. Thus began a ride to remember. When I boarded, oddly, all the wheelchair site seats were set in the fully locked and upright position. This left only the two front seats and the brain trust area open for seating. I hate those front seats, so proceeded to the back where a young couple occupied the rear bench seat. We rode in comfortable silence, south on Mill, adding just one more rider. The bus pulled into the left turn lane to go east on Baseline and stopped for the light. Suddenly, everything stopped. The lights went out, the air conditioner turned off and the engine became silent. The lights flickered on and off, but no action from the engine. The driver tried to re-start, but nothing worked. The driver opened the doors, said he couldn't identify the problem, didn't know if we would get a mechanic or a shuttle or another bus or what. He said he couldn't let us off the bus since we were in the middle of traffic and he would be liable if any of us got hurt. A very busy intersection, I had already envisioned us inching around the bus to get to the crosswalk area. The young couple and I started chatting - they questioned me extensively about my needle and thread tattoo - the other passenger talked on her cell phone. We relaxed in a what-are-you-gonna-do-about-it attitude and only the driver seemed rattled. Another bus pulled up alongside and I heard that driver ask our driver if we were broken down. Our driver affirmed and the other guy drove away. Turned out, that bus was the next 66 and the jerk eyeball ass driver didn't offer to let us get on his EMPTY bus and continue on our way. Not that it mattered, really, but what in the world happened to customer service?
Eventually, a Tempe police officer arrived to help manage traffic. A large bus, stopped dead in the only left turn lane of a major intersection, seemed worthy of police intervention. He held up traffic so we could get off the bus and the four of us proceeded across Mill and then across Baseline to the next bus stop. I figured I'd just wait for the next 66 as I had no one to call and come get me. The young man from the bus called his father and arranged for a pickup. It turned out that they lived near me so I accepted a ride home. A motorcycle accident blocked the intersection at Rural and Baseline, so the rescuer had to drive down to McClintock to go south. I had him drop me off at Walgreen's - just didn't feel right having him backtrack to my house. I walked home and as I headed west on Guadalupe, what comes rolling up? The next 66. Timing rules everything.
This crazy bus ride produced a lot of interesting interactions. I thoroughly enjoyed talking to Aaron and Isha, the young couple. She works at Trader Joe's, so maybe I'll see her some time when I'm shopping. What a disappointing lack of customer service from Valley Metro, though. I think the situation befuddled our driver and his critical thinking skills failed him. He could have asked the next driver to let us on his bus, but we were not on his mind. I guess we were on my mind because I was one of us - perspective. Oh well, get to blog about it and any blogworthy bus experience equals time well spent.
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