East Carolinian

I was with ECUSTA from 1995 - 2000. While I started out as a driver, I was the Logistics manager, the Operations manager, and eventually the Genreal manager. I can asure you that a great amount of time goes into the training of drivers, and that the drivers must pass a rigorous road test prior to being employed. Sometimes accidents happen - most are preventable, but some are not. I was involved in an accident once where a car ran through a flashing red light and pushed the bus into the ditch - totalling the car and doing more than $10,000 damage to the bus. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured, but I spent alot of time wondering if there was something I could have done differently - even though I wasn't at fault. I offer my sincere condolences to both the family of the bicyclist and the driver of the bus. I'm sure there are alot of people hurting as a result of this tragedy.

"I'm a little apprehensive [about riding the ECU bus system] because this is the second thing that's happened," said Kyndall Peele, a junior journalism major. "I keep wondering if they get more training if that would help, but what can you do? You have to ride the bus to get to school."

Right, because more training keeps cherry pickers from swinging into the side of a bus (never mind that the driver acted defensively to avoid it). Perhaps Kyndall is aware of some sort of Omnipotence 101 class that the rest of us aren't? I'll be sure to let you know when Transit hires a few demigod drivers. Until then, if it bothers you that bad, walk.

My roommate is an ECU bus driver, and he told me if he was driving that bus and it was me walking, well lets just say it wouldn't have been pretty.