Short rant...reported a driver

[Debbie Jean]

I'm just back from another wonderful stay at BWV but did have one very disturbing experience I wanted to share...

I've used a scooter for several years now and have never had issues with transportation, bus drivers in particular... this was a first for me... waiting at the Boardwalk bus stop last Friday AM heading to MK... the stop was crowded but I was on my scooter at the front so I would be sure to catch the drivers attention... an AK bus pulls in and I wave to the driver to let him know his isn't the bus I need... people start to board...

Here's where the problem started... a MK bus pulls in behind him... I wave at the driver who makes a point to look the other way as he opens his doors to let passengers on... by the time I get to the door there are a ton of folks already boarded... he looks at me and says, sorry the bus is full, I can't take you Well, I said, I waved at you and you ignored me... his response is to simply shrug his shoulders, like who cares

I was ticked! The bus was empty when it stopped so space wasn't the issue... he didn't want to be bothered... so I said simply, OK, in that case, I will be reporting you since I have both your name and bus number... boy, did he fly off that bus like his pants were on fire! saying, wait, wait, I'll get you on! I'll get you on!! Well, by that time the bus was full and folks were standing.. I wasn't going to disrupt them... I simply reminded him that he was supposed to board the scooter first so as not to inconvenience people and he knew that soooooooooo have nice day

I was able to locate the bus coordinator for BWV and he called in my report while I was there... he was so apologetic and I told him, that in all the years I've been coming and using a scooter I have never had anything that blatant happen... and if the driver did it to me so casually, I was sure he would do it to others...

To be clear, I certainly don't mind waiting if the bus is full and have done that many times... not the case here... and some of the nicest folks I've met are bus drivers... they have a tough job and really show such grace and patience... this particular guy was a clunker and hopefully by reporting him he will not do this to someone else

 

[Smile&Nod]

The nice thing is this is the exception rather than the rule. I was at BWV in January with my parents and my mom was in a wheelchair. The drivers were always accommodating and locked that chair down tight so there was no danger to her. If you didn't report this driver he'd just keep on doing the same thing. if he really missed seeing you, which it doesn't sound like, and he'd never had bad reports before the supervisors will know that and it will all be fine for him.

 

[Debbie Jean]

The nice thing is this is the exception rather than the rule. I was at BWV in January with my parents and my mom was in a wheelchair. The drivers were always accommodating and locked that chair down tight so there was no danger to her. If you didn't report this driver he'd just keep on doing the same thing. if he really missed seeing you, which it doesn't sound like, and he'd never had bad reports before the supervisors will know that and it will all be fine for him.

That was my thinking, too. I have had such wonderful interactions with the transportation staff in general, that I found his behavior and attitude rather shocking. My guess is that he was running late since there was such a large crowd of people going to MK that his bus filled and he had standees. I think he simply didn't want to be bothered loading the scooter.

The next MK bus came in under 10 minutes and the driver was a real sweetie so all's well that ends well.

 

[disney david]

Not trying to make an excuse for the driver but may be he was having a bad day still no reason not to board you and act like that by j am sure he will get in lots of trouble for doing this. Was you trying to board the am bus or mk bus because maybe the mk pulled behind the am and being he will have to get right behinthe bus he didn't really see you or he wS checking his mirrors when he turned his head he still has to operate the bus in a safe mannor and properly wants to make sure he wasn't sticking out to much so he didn't get hit from behind. Well sorry it happen and hope the rest of your trip went great you did the right thing by finding someone from transportion to complain to because it will ge dealt with better then reporting it to the front desk. Having a bad day is a ba reason just retought what I put even if he had a bad day he should be able to keep his work and personal life appease and not let it affect the way he treats guests.

Again I am not saying the driver was right he was wrong you was right just trying to show may be he was doing it on perporse.

 

[I Love Pluto]

We were there in early July. I did not have to deal with attitude from any bus drivers.

I'm sorry that you had to experience this nasty person. Fortunately, the horrors are fewer than the good stories.

You need this --

 

[SueM in MN]

Most buses drivers are just great, but there are some bad apples and the OP is not the first or only person to be ignored by a bus driver. People have posted in the past that some of the drivers were vary blatant about it.

For that reason, I did include information about how to report a driver. It is in post #4 of the disABILITIES FAQs thread. You can find that thread near the top of the disABILITIES Board or follow the link in my signature to get there.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

Not to be argumentative, but a bad day isn't an excuse. You still have to do your job, maybe not as smiley or friendly, but you still do it. Maybe it was the other way around, and the reason the driver suddenly was so accomodating was because he knew this may be the straw that broke them camel's back, that maybe he'd had several complaints against him and he couldn't afford one more. Who knows though... Anyway OP, I think you handled it very well and sorry it happened!!

 

[Bete]

huge impact it will have in the future on all us; because, the baby boomers have arrived and I'm one of them. I think this is the beginning of the end. Disney knows there's an increase ridership by those with scooters and wheelchairs. They also know we are few compared to the masses. So, if it's particularly crowded with folks the bus driver I believe will take the crowd and forget about the priorities of the handicap more and more. I have screamed out at bus drivers and even other guests standing in line who rush the bus to get their attention during those worse times; so, we are noticed. I have stood in front of the bus door; so, I could tell the bus driver we need to board when it's looking bad and out of control. I review the crowds waiting for a bus and if I can tell it's going to get nasty I actually go up to the first people in the regular line and ask them to have mercy on me. Luckily, I don't use a scooter, but I have a hubby who does and my mom is with us in a wheelchair. I can do this, but it's not easy for those in handicap vehicles to get the driver's attention and so forth. I'm afraid this behavior is going to continue to get worse. It's your word against the bus driver who will say they did not see you. Disney knows the bus drivers are going to be reported and the bus drivers also know it's better to get one bad report from you then to get 50 bad reports from other guests who do not want to wait for you to board and so forth. In some ways, I can understand the logic by the bus driver.

This could be a technique used to deploy crowds who can get restless. If you go during easy times (low volume times) then you don't see this as much. Disney is really caught in this one; they really can't win either way. I do feel for Disney on this one to a certain degree. Let's face it all the bus driver has to do is leave his front door closed; until, he knows those with scooters and wheelchairs have been taken of. How hard is it to make this standard procedure for the bus driver?

And how sad it is to see everyone board and look the other way while you sit there helpless. Most have seen how this works; so, they know you should board first.

We have succumb to using our own car more and more to go to the parks rather than using the Disney bus transportation. Somehow, I feel this makes Disney very happy and I'm sure they would like to see this trend continue by others; so, they will not have to deal with the true issues that are growing and growing on this very topic.

I see an explosion coming on this issue for sure. Sadly, it will have to be an explosion before this one gets fixed.

I will say I go to many other places and I still do believe Disney is better than most on this issue.

 

[Debbie Jean]

Thanks to all for the hugs and support I know you are all too familiar with the challenges of navigating the world with disabilities. So I suppose I am preaching to the choir

I am fortunate to be able to go to WDW several times a year so have had lots of bus experience to compare. It's an indication to me of how well Disney does accommodate special needs that I have never had an experience that was quite so blatant.

If as boomers... I'm one ... more guests require special assistance, then this is something Disney can and will deal with I believe.
Personally, while I am definitely not an overly reactive person, I think it is important to report abuses when we see them. If you have a job you are accountable to perform it whether you're having a good day or bad. I don't expect an artificial smile and a chorus of when you wish upon a star... just to be treated with fairness and dignity

Thanks for the link, Sue... I will put the contact number in my phone so I have it next time

 

[disney david]

Not to be argumentative, but a bad day isn't an excuse. You still have to do your job, maybe not as smiley or friendly, but you still do it. Maybe it was the other way around, and the reason the driver suddenly was so accomodating was because he knew this may be the straw that broke them camel's back, that maybe he'd had several complaints against him and he couldn't afford one more. Who knows though... Anyway OP, I think you handled it very well and sorry it happened!!

your right it not an excuse and this proberly wasn't his first time because of the way he changed his mood. The op did the right thing and the driver should be dealt with which he would. i made a mistake saying him having a bad day was an excuse. as sue said most of the drivers are very friendly but their are some that need to be retrained which this driver will be.

 

[Tony NY]

I'm just back from another wonderful stay at BWV but did have one very disturbing experience I wanted to share...

I've used a scooter for several years now and have never had issues with transportation, bus drivers in particular... this was a first for me... waiting at the Boardwalk bus stop last Friday AM heading to MK... the stop was crowded but I was on my scooter at the front so I would be sure to catch the drivers attention... an AK bus pulls in and I wave to the driver to let him know his isn't the bus I need... people start to board...

Here's where the problem started... a MK bus pulls in behind him... I wave at the driver who makes a point to look the other way as he opens his doors to let passengers on... by the time I get to the door there are a ton of folks already boarded... he looks at me and says, sorry the bus is full, I can't take you Well, I said, I waved at you and you ignored me... his response is to simply shrug his shoulders, like who cares

I was ticked! The bus was empty when it stopped so space wasn't the issue... he didn't want to be bothered... so I said simply, OK, in that case, I will be reporting you since I have both your name and bus number... boy, did he fly off that bus like his pants were on fire! saying, wait, wait, I'll get you on! I'll get you on!! Well, by that time the bus was full and folks were standing.. I wasn't going to disrupt them... I simply reminded him that he was supposed to board the scooter first so as not to inconvenience people and he knew that soooooooooo have nice day

I was able to locate the bus coordinator for BWV and he called in my report while I was there... he was so apologetic and I told him, that in all the years I've been coming and using a scooter I have never had anything that blatant happen... and if the driver did it to me so casually, I was sure he would do it to others...

To be clear, I certainly don't mind waiting if the bus is full and have done that many times... not the case here... and some of the nicest folks I've met are bus drivers... they have a tough job and really show such grace and patience... this particular guy was a clunker and hopefully by reporting him he will not do this to someone else

wow I have never in my last ten years had an issue like that ... I would call disney and say something. you should have never happend in the first place. I am so sorry that happend to you I just wanted to let you know I think that was a fluk incoounter with a driver who did not want to let you on, or he just diden't know any better eather way I would let disney know about this...

Disney has some awesome bus drivers I even had one help me when I ran out of juice . like I said I think that was a fluk incounter with a driver who just droped the ball.

 

[cove61]

just wanted to ask a quick question about the transport, hope you dont mind.

This will be our first ever trip, and i going to be using a scooter due to my MS. I must say i am a wee bit nervous about going on the buses to and from the park with the scooter. Can i ask do you have any tips about where to positon when waiting for the bus, or any other tips you may think are useful. I dont use a scooter at home, but have tried around the shops so manage that part ok, but the thinking about using the buses makes me feel sick

(i was wondering if i should get off my scooter and stand in the line or stay seated and stay near the end??)

 

[SueM in MN]

just wanted to ask a quick question about the transport, hope you dont mind.

This will be our first ever trip, and i going to be using a scooter due to my MS. I must say i am a wee bit nervous about going on the buses to and from the park with the scooter. Can i ask do you have any tips about where to positon when waiting for the bus, or any other tips you may think are useful. I dont use a scooter at home, but have tried around the shops so manage that part ok, but the thinking about using the buses makes me feel sick

(i was wondering if i should get off my scooter and stand in the line or stay seated and stay near the end??)

You need to be out where the driver can see you. The resorts have a white box painted on the sidewalk near the bus boarding area and I'd suggest you wait there at the resorts.
Wheelchairs and scooters are loaded from the back door, so that is where you will need to be to board.

I don't have a lot of time this morning to reply, so I will point you toward the disABILITIES FAQs thread which is near the top of this board, or you can follow the link in my signature. Post #1 of that thread is an index to tell which post contains which information. There is one post about buses.

 

[Bete]

just wanted to ask a quick question about the transport, hope you dont mind.

This will be our first ever trip, and i going to be using a scooter due to my MS. I must say i am a wee bit nervous about going on the buses to and from the park with the scooter. Can i ask do you have any tips about where to positon when waiting for the bus, or any other tips you may think are useful. I dont use a scooter at home, but have tried around the shops so manage that part ok, but the thinking about using the buses makes me feel sick

(i was wondering if i should get off my scooter and stand in the line or stay seated and stay near the end??)

Our favorite place to stay is POP Century; because, they have a queue line for guests and the scooters and wheelchairs have a handicap line in the front. This makes it quite obvious for the driver to know what's what. I think All-Stars has the same thing at least by the food court area.

At most other resorts it's free and open. In those cases you get use to where the bus stops and you can get a landmark of sorts for where you think the back door will open up and then position yourself there. This is where the lift is; you don't get on in the front. Get to the front curb area; so, you are obvious to the driver. If you can't get there then maybe I would get off the scooter when you see the bus driver coming and get to the front door; so, you can state you need to get on with a scooter. This can be tough; because, everyone is trying to get to the front door all at the same to board.

The best is to avoid peak times coming and going. Then, there isn't a mad rush. Also, if you have other choices of transportation like boat, ferry or monorail it might be better to do it that way. Getting back to the room is not as bad; most parks have queues.

I think the biggest issue is there is no consistency. What works one day may not work the next. One bus driver is not like the next one, either. One bus driver may help you get the scooter in place where it needs to be parked on the bus if you are having trouble and another one may look at you like what's taking you so long to get it in place. If you see the front door opening on the bus, you are a lost cause probably for getting on. Only once in a while does the driver open the front and tell the regular line they must wait; until, the handicap board first. Once people start boarding you can't get on the bus.

Also, keep in mind you are the first to board the bus, but you are the last to get off when you get there.

I would say 90 percent of the time if you are smart when you travel back and forth you will not have many issues.

The same thing happened to us as the original poster; so, this is why I get aggressive sometimes if I see a big crowd waiting for the bus. We can do it; because, I'm mobile and I get the driver's attention most often.

 

[Piper]

Several years ago i was leaving MK about 10:30 a.m. (I had already worn out) and I was the only one at my bus stop. A supervisor was walking around with a walkie-talkie and clipboard. He stopped and we chatted for a few minutes and then he moved into a group of people waiting at another stop.

My bus pulled up to the stop, the driver looked at me and then drove off. The supervisor stepped out from the group of people and used his walkie-talkie to call someone. The driver pulled back around and the supervisor reamed him out. The supervisor apologized to me and then called for a van to take me to the resort. I was glad I didn't have to ride with the original driver. He evidently didn't want to bother with just one person on an ECV!

 

[ShhhQ]

On our recent trip we had only one time with a problem with buses....

We were staying at POR but had dinner at Cape May at Beach Club Resort. It was a later dinner so was probably around 9:30 or 10pm that we were ready to go back to our resort. DM was in her electric W/C.... it was just the 2 of us. DM did not want to ride a boat so we opted for the bus to DTD and transfer. By this time she wasn't feeling very good, but wasn't telling me. We sat out at the bus stop with a family of 5. About 7-8 minutes later, a bus pulls up.... at least a dozen if not more people got off the bus. There were still a lot of people on the bus but more got off than got on. The bus driver yells at us... "Already got one scooter on board, bus is full.... will call to send another bus"... as the bus pulls away, I see several empty seats toward the back and only about 10 people standing. So we sit for another 10 mins getting ate up by bugs and I can see DM is not feeling well by this time... she is getting fidgetty and thats a sure sign her legs are starting to bug her. (She has extreme restless legs, neuropathy, arthritis, and fibromyalgia.... so when her legs start acting up it is a MAJOR issue... as she gets in severe pain and then the pain causes her to lose herself and becomes beligerant) So I was getting concerned!

Finally, another bus pulls up.... by this time we have another group waiting with us. This bus is fuller than the 1st one and I felt we would be waiting still. However, this bus driver said "We are kind of full, but lets see if I can get some people to move and we will get you on" and HE DID!!! This bus had no empty seats and packed standers! I don't know if the bus driver noticed DM not feeling well or not but he was an angel in disguise as far as I am concerned. When he pulled up to DTD and let people off, he told us to stay put and he would take us to POR. So I sat down as others boarded (I have some balance issues and really had a hard time standing, but did it). Wondering how he was gonna do that. I came to realize that he had changed his route for us!!! This was a bus from Beach Club, but he changed to POR.

I didn't have a lot of cash with us, but I wanted to give him a tip when we got off the bus... he refused to take it!! Said it was part of the magic!!

That happened to be our last bus ride.... during the night DMs legs went into full blown attack mode and by morning we had to call 911 and she spent the next week at Celebration Hospital... diagnosed with new onset A-Fib!

My Mother may not be able to make another trip that far away again... and this particular bus driver made our last bit of Disney magical.

We would like to send a thank you card to this driver, but we didn't get his bus number and his 1st name is very common.... Mike!

Does anyone know how we can do this?

 

[disney david]

On our recent trip we had only one time with a problem with buses....

We were staying at POR but had dinner at Cape May at Beach Club Resort. It was a later dinner so was probably around 9:30 or 10pm that we were ready to go back to our resort. DM was in her electric W/C.... it was just the 2 of us. DM did not want to ride a boat so we opted for the bus to DTD and transfer. By this time she wasn't feeling very good, but wasn't telling me. We sat out at the bus stop with a family of 5. About 7-8 minutes later, a bus pulls up.... at least a dozen if not more people got off the bus. There were still a lot of people on the bus but more got off than got on. The bus driver yells at us... "Already got one scooter on board, bus is full.... will call to send another bus"... as the bus pulls away, I see several empty seats toward the back and only about 10 people standing. So we sit for another 10 mins getting ate up by bugs and I can see DM is not feeling well by this time... she is getting fidgetty and thats a sure sign her legs are starting to bug her. (She has extreme restless legs, neuropathy, arthritis, and fibromyalgia.... so when her legs start acting up it is a MAJOR issue... as she gets in severe pain and then the pain causes her to lose herself and becomes beligerant) So I was getting concerned!

Finally, another bus pulls up.... by this time we have another group waiting with us. This bus is fuller than the 1st one and I felt we would be waiting still. However, this bus driver said "We are kind of full, but lets see if I can get some people to move and we will get you on" and HE DID!!! This bus had no empty seats and packed standers! I don't know if the bus driver noticed DM not feeling well or not but he was an angel in disguise as far as I am concerned. When he pulled up to DTD and let people off, he told us to stay put and he would take us to POR. So I sat down as others boarded (I have some balance issues and really had a hard time standing, but did it). Wondering how he was gonna do that. I came to realize that he had changed his route for us!!! This was a bus from Beach Club, but he changed to POR.

I didn't have a lot of cash with us, but I wanted to give him a tip when we got off the bus... he refused to take it!! Said it was part of the magic!!

That happened to be our last bus ride.... during the night DMs legs went into full blown attack mode and by morning we had to call 911 and she spent the next week at Celebration Hospital... diagnosed with new onset A-Fib!

My Mother may not be able to make another trip that far away again... and this particular bus driver made our last bit of Disney magical.

We would like to send a thank you card to this driver, but we didn't get his bus number and his 1st name is very common.... Mike!

Does anyone know how we can do this?

i am sorry to hear about the first driver but the second one showed you that their are still good drivers. some drivers don't want to make people move or go the extra mile to do their basic job functions while others want to make every one happy. I am Also sorry to hear about dm needing to go to the hospital i hope she is feeling better. In the faq section sue has set up their a phone number for transportation dept you could call and let them know about the first driver and how good the second was. I think if more people would let disney know about good drivers then they could reward them and weed out the bad ones. non tipped cms are not allowed to except tips but it sounds like this driver would not take one he more happy to see a smile on your face. if you remember the time it was may be they could track the bus via video footage he most likely heard the other driver call for another bus and took it as a chance to make your night better. it is the

 

[livndisney]

On our recent trip we had only one time with a problem with buses....

We were staying at POR but had dinner at Cape May at Beach Club Resort. It was a later dinner so was probably around 9:30 or 10pm that we were ready to go back to our resort. DM was in her electric W/C.... it was just the 2 of us. DM did not want to ride a boat so we opted for the bus to DTD and transfer. By this time she wasn't feeling very good, but wasn't telling me. We sat out at the bus stop with a family of 5. About 7-8 minutes later, a bus pulls up.... at least a dozen if not more people got off the bus. There were still a lot of people on the bus but more got off than got on. The bus driver yells at us... "Already got one scooter on board, bus is full.... will call to send another bus"... as the bus pulls away, I see several empty seats toward the back and only about 10 people standing. So we sit for another 10 mins getting ate up by bugs and I can see DM is not feeling well by this time... she is getting fidgetty and thats a sure sign her legs are starting to bug her. (She has extreme restless legs, neuropathy, arthritis, and fibromyalgia.... so when her legs start acting up it is a MAJOR issue... as she gets in severe pain and then the pain causes her to lose herself and becomes beligerant) So I was getting concerned!

Finally, another bus pulls up.... by this time we have another group waiting with us. This bus is fuller than the 1st one and I felt we would be waiting still. However, this bus driver said "We are kind of full, but lets see if I can get some people to move and we will get you on" and HE DID!!! This bus had no empty seats and packed standers! I don't know if the bus driver noticed DM not feeling well or not but he was an angel in disguise as far as I am concerned. When he pulled up to DTD and let people off, he told us to stay put and he would take us to POR. So I sat down as others boarded (I have some balance issues and really had a hard time standing, but did it). Wondering how he was gonna do that. I came to realize that he had changed his route for us!!! This was a bus from Beach Club, but he changed to POR.

I didn't have a lot of cash with us, but I wanted to give him a tip when we got off the bus... he refused to take it!! Said it was part of the magic!!

That happened to be our last bus ride.... during the night DMs legs went into full blown attack mode and by morning we had to call 911 and she spent the next week at Celebration Hospital... diagnosed with new onset A-Fib!

My Mother may not be able to make another trip that far away again... and this particular bus driver made our last bit of Disney magical.

We would like to send a thank you card to this driver, but we didn't get his bus number and his 1st name is very common.... Mike!

Does anyone know how we can do this?

If you know the date and time you can contact WDW. Even with a common name they should be able to figure it out. He sounds like a CM management should recognize for his excellent Guest Service.

 

[SueM in MN]

THey should be able to find the correct Mike if you can provide:

• the date,
• approximate time
• where you got on
• where the bus was headed
• and where were dropped off

You would just write or email to Disney. Here is an address:
Disney Complaints and Comments:
Walt Disney World Guest Communications
P.O. Box 10,040
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830-0040

 

[ShhhQ]

Thank you very much!!!