The praise of Dublin busses

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Everybody admits Irish weather is unpredictable. Number 2 on the list of unpredictable Irish issues would be Dublin busses. I haven't encountered another country yet where the timetable would state the time when the bus leaves the first stop rather than the estimated arrival to the bus stop where you are waiting. Even if you calculate the approximate time of the journey, your calculations will not necessarily take you home, to work or to your date. You could be stuck killing time on the pathway once again.

I've been always curious why can't Dublin Bus calculate those minutes for me. The heaviness of the traffic at certain times, the distances, the time spent collecting the passengers, etc. Obviously there are certain unpredictable situations. For instance, a year ago, while I was rushing to work (late as usual), the bus driver decided to pull into the garage in order to change ad posters on the bus. Perhaps next time he will decide to go for a cuppa or maybe even a pint. It's only a few minutes anyway, isn't it?

Most of the time Dublin busses s u c k. Yet somehow this week was different. As I was sprinting to the bus stop waving with one hand to the driver asking him to stop and clasping my bag with another the bus:

a. stopped (if you are not on the bus stop mostly they don't)
b. the driver was kind enough to let me know that behind him was the bus that takes me to work much quicker (apparently the driver had recognized me!)

And then in the evening as I was dashing to the bus stop trying to pull ahead of the bus, the driver stopped about 20 feet away before the stop and opened the door. Doesn't happen often...

PS
For those who don't know - in Ireland, unless you stop the bus, it will carry on with the journey. My dad learned the lesson upon his arrival to Ireland a few years ago. He kept wondering why over the last hour, despite being quite empty, none of the busses stopped...

 
This Post has 1 Comment Add your own!
Diarmuid Hayes - October 13, 2007 at 8:14 PM

the timetable thing is indeed a unique irish thing :) :( as regards stopping the bus with your hand that exists in a few other countries..

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