Are the bus drivers at Disney employees of Disney or is that job subcontracted out?

[disneynewbee]

We always speak to the drivers too. I would find it rude to get on the bus and pass the driver standing there and not say hello. I also thank them if leaving out the front door. Most drivers are great I just see a difference between them and other employees. Not all of them and probably less than a handfull. Again it did not affect our trip we had a perfect vacation this was just an observation.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

We have been coming o WDW since 1977 and always had excellent, friendly, helpful bus drivers. I have seen them on ocassion, actually courteous and patient beyond the line of duty when dealing with a totally out of line guest.

We have heard that there were some guest compliants about drivers talking and engaging guests on the bus while driving.

I see no problem with driver talking and engaging guest while driving and still being able to drive in a safe and professional manner...EI using their professional judgment. If you check it out, there are very few accidents and much fewer accidents with buses at WDW then any mid to large city system running the same number of buses.

So if anyone thinks the bus drivers are less magical, we only have our fellow guests to blame.

AKK

 

[LilyWDW]

I have never seen a rude bus driver. Some are a bit more jolly then others, but none have ever been rude in my personal experience.

I do find that the guest can set the mood pretty quickly one way or the other though.

 

[Disney_Princess83]

We've had some awesome bus drivers. Earlier this year, one particular bus driver was the best! He always was smiling and had trivia ready to go and asked questions. We had been at WDW for almost 3 weeks and we had seen him countless times over the trip. One morning he was asking trivia questions about EPCOT but then added "The red head and brunette at the back can't answer though, they already know all the answers." Everyone looked at us and we just laughed. Another day we were getting off the bus and he asked if we could tell HIM some trivia about the parks. He was terrific! On our last day, we told him we were going home the next day and he announced to the bus that "Princess XX and Princess XX would be returning to their Kingdom tomorrow and it had been lovely to have them visit." We saw him get the whole bus to sing "Happy Birthday" one afternoon to a little girl who had been to BBB who was thrilled. He was a great driver and made the drives even more fun!

He also though initiate contact with whatever driver we have each day. Even just a "Good Morning" and a "Thank You" as we arrive at the parks or hotel/resort.

 

[missx0xdelaney]

Sorry that entered before I was done. Sometimes I feel people don't even read on here before they post. Or maybe they just enjoy turning peoples post into something its not. Again this is not about them not being bubbly enough or playing trivia games or about me needing to give them a break. This is about some of them being down right rude. I had plenty of great bus drivers. The reason I posted was that in comparison to other Disney employees the percentage of rude drivers is higher in my opinion. There was a driver on our last trip that was so rude that everyone in line were shaking their heads so it wasn't just my perception either.

Sorry if I missed it in one of your posts, but what exactly did these "rude" bus drivers do to make you all so upset? I didn't see any examples.

 

[ttintagel]

Maybe it's just because I don't drive and regularly use public transit in my own city, but I find Disney's bus drivers to be very magical.

They smile when you get on the bus! (Sometimes you might need to smile at them first, but that's hardly difficult.)

They'll tell you interesting stories if you're standing at the front of the bus. Try asking them where they come from some time!

On several occasions during our visit last week, drivers DID tell jokes and play trivia games. They sang happy birthday and happy anniversary and welcomed "princesses" on board. And even when they were quiet or didn't speak English well, they were unfailingly polite and professional.

The guests were always more of a problem than the drivers. I was a bit ticked at a family in the back of the bus, one trip, who were mocking the driver during a trivia game. My husband and I ended up calling them the "Goobers" thanks to their inability to grasp that Steve Gutenberg is an actor, it was the answer to one question, and we're all moving on now. "What'd he say?? GOOBERberg! Ha, he said GOOBER. Hyuk, hyuk! That's not a name!"

They were very special people.

Sums it up for me, too. The worst bus driver I ever encountered at WDW was still a great bus driver. I'm glad to hear that they get decent pay; they deserve it.

 

[disneynewbee]

Sorry if I missed it in one of your posts, but what exactly did these "rude" bus drivers do to make you all so upset? I didn't see any examples.

The reason I didn't give examples was because that wasn't what this post was supposed to be about. I wasn't posting to bash the bus drivers, most of them are wonderful. My post was just to ask if the job was subcontracted out and mesaboy2 answered that in the first post. Since no one else has ever had a negative experience with bus drivers it's apparently not a wide spread problem.

 

[brockash]

We've had one really nice bus driver (gave my ds chips to feed the ducks while we were waiting to board- it was the middle of the day and I guess they wait for a certain amount of time before leaving??) We also had one really grouchy one, who announced to everyone that he was turning off the little announcements spiel that they play on the bus determined by wherever you're going, because as he said "it's annoying." That guy really annoyed me, but he's been by far the worst bus driver we've experienced. We've had a few that just don't seem to smile at all, take off while ppl. (including little kids and elderly) are still walking back to either a seat or a place to grab on and stand; we've also had a few who are pretty rude in the way that they talk to guests, but we've also had some friendly ones. I do agree that in general our bus driver's haven't been as "friendly" (which is something very easy to do, even if you're driving a bus) as other CM's we encounter. I will say some of the friendliest (although not always the easiest to understand) bus drivers have been our ME drivers.

 

[Allieran3]

I was under the impression they were in fact employees of Mears Transportation and contracted to Disney. I agree that the bus drivers are the least "magical" of all the people we have encountered on our last 4 trips.

I think some of the bus drivers are magical on our last day we head to Mk and we had a wonderful funny bus driver named Marlene. She gave everyone on board great points and was very funny about it too.

 

[Magpie]

Sometimes I feel people don't even read on here before they post. Or maybe they just enjoy turning peoples post into something its not. Again this is not about them not being bubbly enough or playing trivia games or about me needing to give them a break. This is about some of them being down right rude. I had plenty of great bus drivers. The reason I posted was that in comparison to other Disney employees the percentage of rude drivers is higher in my opinion. There was a driver on our last trip that was so rude that everyone in line were shaking their heads so it wasn't just my perception either.

I've never had a rude driver, nor have I noticed any difference between them and the other Disney employees I've met.

The reason I didn't give examples was because that wasn't what this post was supposed to be about. I wasn't posting to bash the bus drivers, most of them are wonderful. My post was just to ask if the job was subcontracted out and mesaboy2 answered that in the first post. Since no one else has ever had a negative experience with bus drivers it's apparently not a wide spread problem.

I guess I'm curious what you consider "rude". Maybe I've had the same experience, and didn't think twice about it. Maybe not. If it's a problem with a specific driver, you should consider writing to Disney's guest services to tell them about it. They can't correct a problem if they don't know about it.

Personally, I'd love some specifics. What did the other CMs do, that enough bus drivers didn't do, that it would lead you to ask whether they were even hired by Disney in the first place?

 

[maxiesmom]

The reason I didn't give examples was because that wasn't what this post was supposed to be about. I wasn't posting to bash the bus drivers, most of them are wonderful. My post was just to ask if the job was subcontracted out and mesaboy2 answered that in the first post. Since no one else has ever had a negative experience with bus drivers it's apparently not a wide spread problem.

I didn't take it that your less than magical bus drivers meant they were rude. You can be less than magical and not be rude. That could be where some of the confusion is coming from.

I think you have been on the boards enough to know that threads hardly every start with a simple question and end when that question is answered. We tend to go off on tangents. Yes or no answers are pretty boring, don't you think?

 

[TowMater92]

Are the bus drivers at Disney employees of Disney or is that job subcontracted out? I ask because every trip we have had to Disney we have had such wonderful cast members. The only employees who seemed less than magical were a few bus drivers. Don't get me wrong it didn't affect our trip at all but it did leave me wondering if they were actually employees of Disney.

Sorry that entered before I was done. Sometimes I feel people don't even read on here before they post. Or maybe they just enjoy turning peoples post into something its not. Again this is not about them not being bubbly enough or playing trivia games or about me needing to give them a break. This is about some of them being down right rude. I had plenty of great bus drivers. The reason I posted was that in comparison to other Disney employees the percentage of rude drivers is higher in my opinion. There was a driver on our last trip that was so rude that everyone in line were shaking their heads so it wasn't just my perception either.

Nope I did read your post and no where in it did you say you had a rude bus driver you said they are less than magical when you compared them to other Disney cast members. So no I didn't change your post into something its not. Also the Mears/Disney cast member part had been answered so I posted that I haven't had one bad bus driver.

 

[minnie mum]

Sorry that entered before I was done. Sometimes I feel people don't even read on here before they post. Or maybe they just enjoy turning peoples post into something its not. Again this is not about them not being bubbly enough or playing trivia games or about me needing to give them a break. This is about some of them being down right rude. I had plenty of great bus drivers. The reason I posted was that in comparison to other Disney employees the percentage of rude drivers is higher in my opinion. There was a driver on our last trip that was so rude that everyone in line were shaking their heads so it wasn't just my perception either.

I doubt that it matters whether or not your bus driver was a Disney or a Mears employee. Occasionally a CM will have a bad day and do or say something that you consider rude. I doubt that any emplyee of Disney can be consistently rude and keep his or her job for long. I'll let karma take care of the less than perfect ones and be content if the driver knows how to handle the bus properly. From my experience over the last 37 years of riding the buses, I wouldn't agree that there is a higher percentage of drivers who are rude compared to the general CM population.

As for your comment about some of the posters on this thread, Maxiesmom is correct. Threads, once started, have a life of their own and frequently veer of into new (and often more entertaining) directions. Trying to order posters to stick to your original post is like herding cats- you might as well not even try.

 

[disneyfanlincoln]

Maybe I've been lucky but the bus drivers have always been great. Some were more magical than others but all got us from a to b with no issues. I also love the fact that if they see you coming they stop and wait for you to get on the bus. I come from a city where bus drivers find it amusing to let you get to the doors which they close in your face and pull off. So compared to that I'm grateful for the disney bus drivers. We've had a driver give my daughter a flower, don't know where it came from but we put it in water and it lasted a week - it was a magical touch. In the year of a million dreams the drivers were always adding little extra touches. Even the magical express drivers have been fine always helpful and courteous what more could I ask for.

 

[missx0xdelaney]

As a matter of fact on our previous trip my husband was standing at the front of the bus and the driver was actually nodding off. Hubby talked to her to help keep her awake. She was nice though so this post wasn't about her. I don't expect to be entertained they are there to take us from one place to the next. I don't expect Disney trivia or even a super cheery hello. I also have never given a bus driver a hard time and am always packed and ready to load the bus when it shows up. I still have experienced them being down right rude to people. Some seem to really dislike their job and that's why I wondered if they were employees of another company and maybe were not treated as nicely by the company as Disney employees. I would agree they probably do take a lot of crap from difficult visitors but part of being professional is putting that aside and doing your job with at least a half smile on your face. I used to work at the Unemployment office so I know what it's like to serve unhappy people but I always did it with a smile and compassion.

Nope I did read your post and no where in it did you say you had a rude bus driver you said they are less than magical when you compared them to other Disney cast members. So no I didn't change your post into something its not. Also the Mears/Disney cast member part had been answered so I posted that I haven't had one bad bus driver.

The whole "rude" vs "non-magical" point did not get pulled out of thin air. The OP brought it up herself. She even gave an example of what she considered to not be rude. All we're asking is for some kind of baseline to compare to so we can understand what she experienced to see if any of us had similar issues.

 

[North of Mouse]

Our drivers have always been great, at least nothing was ever done to complain about. But I always say hi, entering and try to say thank you leaving if I pass the driver.

Yep! Us too. We just got back from 10 days there and never encountered a rude, or unfriendly, bus driver. Considering all they put up with, I would say they do exceptionally well - I could never keep up my cheery demeanor with some of the way parents let their children behave, or rather misbehave, on the buses.

 

[dISNEYlOveer]

Someone did answer this already, but I am going to again. Disney Transport is owned/operated by Disney. Drivers are Disney employees. DCL and DME buses are owned/operated by Mears Transport. That is why sometimes you might see a Mears bus come to your resort. I have never had a rude bus driver. One time, in the morning, our driver played all the different announcements (like ones you never hear). Like "Ladies and Gentlemen, Due to the high amount of guests at the park, the park is at capacity and nobody is allowed to enter the park. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause" and "We have a princess on the bus today!" and then he said "That is me." lol. And one time, we almost crashed though. At Saratoga Springs where the bus makes a right turn about to the Congress Park bus stop, the bus driver stopped at the stop sign, then was inching forward, and then hit the gas instead of the break, and almost hit a car going in front of the bus! But, long story short, bus drivers I have had a never rude, I guess it just depends on the time of day and destination.

 

[disneynewbee]

Your right in my origional post I said less then magical rather then rude I guess that was me trying to be politically correct on a Disney loving board. I did however clarify shortly after that by not magical I meant rude, before many responses came in. Maybe that is just people reading the 1st post and replying rather than the whole thread.

 

[TowMater92]

The whole "rude" vs "non-magical" point did not get pulled out of thin air. The OP brought it up herself. She even gave an example of what she considered to not be rude. All we're asking is for some kind of baseline to compare to so we can understand what she experienced to see if any of us had similar issues.

Go read my post again she said that in her first post she said she had a experience with a rude bus driver. Which is what my first post was replying to. What I posted(that you are talking about) was defending my first post when I talked about never having a problem with bus drivers and people need to give the bus drivers a break. She attacked everyone that said anything like I said with her second post saying we went off topic and hijacked her post. I posted her first and second post to point out that she did not say that she had a rude bus driver in her first post like she claimed in her second post. She said bus drivers were less then magical in her first post which does not mean rude. I'm not arguing with you I was talking to the OP so ask her your questions I wasn't there.

Rude vs less then magical are two different things in my book. Magical means that someone is going out of there way to make your trip more enjoyable which to me makes less than magical that they were just doing there job and she expected more. Rude = rude plain and simple.

 

[disneynewbee]

Go read my post again she said that in her first post she said she had a experience with a rude bus driver. Which is what my first post was replying to. What I posted(that you are talking about) was defending my first post when I talked about never having a problem with bus drivers and people need to give the bus drivers a break. She attacked everyone that said anything like I said with her second post saying we went off topic and hijacked her post. I posted her first and second post to point out that she did not say that she had a rude bus driver in her first post like she claimed in her second post. She said bus drivers were less then magical in her first post which does not mean rude. I'm not arguing with you I was talking to the OP so ask her your questions I wasn't there.

Rude vs less then magical are two different things in my book. Magical means that someone is going out of there way to make your trip more enjoyable which to me makes less than magical that they were just doing there job and she expected more. Rude = rude plain and simple.

First off I didn't attack anyone I clarified myself and then people still continued to comment about how I expected them to entertain me so then I made the 3rd post. If you look back in the first post I posted I put less then magical, shortly after I clarified it in post number 2 saying I did in fact encounter a few rude drivers in my multiple trips. After that people were still commenting about how Disney drivers shouldn't have to entertain me and that is when I made the 3rd post that mentioned people not reading before they type. Either way you all reminded me why I don't normally post on here and just read. People can't discuss anything without being attacked if they post anything not 100% Disney is perfect. The fact is they are a big company hiring lots of people they are going to get a few bad eggs. Either way I just came back from a magical trip and I'm not going to let people on this board get me down. I'm going back to my read don't post policy. You guys have fun.