Was on a bus yesterday and the driver stopped at a bus stop, started reading The Sun, then started driving again after about 10 minutes.. Why?! It really annoys the hell out of me, especially since I was late meeting somebody..

Probably because he was ahead of schedule.

Because their awkward bastards who get a kick out of having a tiny bit of power.

Normally it's so they can keep to schedule. You'd be annoyed if you missed a bus because it left your stop early because noone got on or off a previous stop and the bus drive didn't "correct" for time.

However, in this case, it just sounds like the driver had a fly break

Probably running early. I was behind a number 280 the other night that was crawling along at 10mph. Probably running early as well.

Where's Fat Controller when you need him?

He was probably running early. It's not uncommon for drivers to stop on the edge of a town, village, city or estate that is normally quiet, to get back on timetable so they arrive at the proper time in busier areas. Cuts down complaints, nothing worse than going for a bus only to find the bugger has gone through 5 or 10 minutes earlier than the timetable says he should have.

Because its ahead of schedule, and needs to turn up on time!

Yep running late is OK, running early is a deadly sin for bus drivers.

So they can stick to the scheduled time table, other passengers would like to catch the bus at the time it states it will arrive regardless of your personal plans.

The bus to my college only runs once in the morning and it's often early. It always waits - I'd be really hacked off if it didn't and I couldn't get there.

Problem is for those that turned up to the previous stops only to have already missed it and its stood down the road waiting for 10 minutes.

I get it when they hold off for a minute or so, but racing ahead and waiting still makes those at previous stops miss it, even if it does reach its destination at the right time.

Lothian Buses was recently fined because of buses running ahead of schedule.

http://edinburghnews.scotsman.com/ed...ith.6450370.jp

I wish they'd do that here. My bus to work (I hate public transport but it's too cold to cycle) is meant to arrive at 7:59. I have to get to the bus stop at 7:45 because it often comes over 5 minutes early. It's annoying when it comes early because I have to wait even longer for my connecting bus, which usually leaves 5 minutes late (despite the stop - the bus station - being the first stop it departs from). I have to be at work at 9am, but because of the non-reliability of buses I have to set off an hour and 15 minutes before I'm due at work, otherwise I'd end up being late. For a 3 miles journey I think that's pretty shoddy.

Yep! This is probably why they do it.

There are set stage stops they have to stop at as published on their timetables, they cannot and should not leave ahead of time.

Indeed, these are the only stop he has to leave at a set time.

If the driver has left the timing point stop on time 3 stops before your stop and has driven at the maximum speed limit for the road, it's your problem if you've assumed he'd be there a certain time and the driver passes your stop just as you get out of your front door. The driver has a right to drive past 3 stops if there's nobody waiting there but they're not a timing point. After all, stopping constantly eats up a lot of time so missing out 2 or 3 non stage stops and a stage stop or 2 where nobody waiting or wanting to get off allows them to make up time if they suddenly become a bit late.

The responsibility is yours to make sure you're there before he arrives. Not to assume that he would have picked up and let off a few passengers for 2 or 3 stops before hand but picked up and let off nobody.

I had a friend who used to be a bus driver. He said you got in a world of shit if you got to the end of your route ahead of schedule.

It really annoys me when the bus comes early and I miss it. It also annoys me when I'm on the bus and the bus driver stops to read the paper for 10 minutes and I'm running late for work. They can't really win.

The traffic commisioner has been quite busy in Scotland recently with several bus companies being fined for either running late/early or not at all. Either the companies have been fined or a few have had their license revoked.

In London you find compulsory stops (red roundel on a white background as opposed to white on red which are request stops) where buses have to stop regardless of anybody wanting to get on or off - these are usually timing points to ensure that buses remain on schedule.

The problem there is that the tramworks caused diversions and they altered the times for taking the diverted longer routes, but the times were never altered them back to proper running time when they went back to their normal routes. The drivers were not really aware there was a problem.

aye - the same as all the previous posts!

in Edinburgh - bus drivers where getting in huge trouble for being too early for stops.
they had to crack down on it.
i seem to remember reading in the evening News that they would fined if they missed stops.

It's a great example of a regulatory system that exists mainly for the industry and not for the customers. It makes no sense that (in London) buses that run every 10 minutes (or often more frequently) should even try to run to a fixed schedule. All that happens is that timetables get more and more padded to cope with extremes of traffic, and buses run slower and slower.

Even worse, buses are sometimes "turned" short of their destinations to support these nonsensical fixed timetables - actually inconveniencing actual passengers, to avoid possibly inconveniencing potential passengers.

And do theyeven publish these fixed timetables for the benefit of customers.... no!

To regulate the service!

I really get annoyed when they do it when I have an appointment to get to or am just one stop away from mine! Happened today and I felt like screaming!

Where I live there is a bus once an hour during peak times (about 1.5 hours off peak) so it being early and missing it makes a huge difference.

i hate when they get out there seat, and walk off the bus, and light up a fag with the whole bus watching ...