Record Number of Bus Drivers Joining Peninsula Ranks Next Month

Written by SamTrans Spokesman Will Reisman:

The largest bus operator training class in SamTrans history is poised to graduate next month, just in time to implement a new set of service improvements that will streamline the SamTrans system for Peninsula transit passengers.

There are currently 27 enrollees in SamTrans’ 10-week training program, which combines written exams with detailed driving tests and sensitivity training courses. The current class, set to graduate on August 9, will be the largest in SamTrans’ 37-year history. SamTrans’ training programs occur two to three times a year and typically graduate fewer than 10 operators.

A highly-structured and demanding program, operators are dismissed from the training course if they show up more than one minute late two times over the 10-week period. For the first seven days of the program, operators stay in the classroom, where they are receive instruction on specialized driving rules and regulations.

By the end of the second week, the operators are behind the wheel, learning to drive at SamTrans’ operations facility in South San Francisco, before moving on to less-congested, wider avenues like the Redwood Shores Parkway. The SamTrans’ operator training program is sequential, so the students progressively face more difficult challenges, such as driving on El Camino Real and parking at busy malls such as The Shops at Tanforan in San Bruno. By the end of the sixth week, the operators are moving 60-foot articulated buses into downtown San Francisco during peak commute hours. 

In the seventh week, operators are required to pass a three-part exam administered by the Department of Motor Vehicles. That exam includes a performance test to evaluate pre-trip inspection processes, a driving obstacle course set up with traffic cones and a road course on local streets chosen by the DMV.

Upon receiving their commercial driver’s license, the operators become familiarized with the various SamTrans’ bus routes. They even wear blindfolds or use canes to board buses, as a way to gather more insight into the challenges facing riders with disabilities.

“Our operator training course ensures that SamTrans’ drivers are qualified, compassionate and considerate when they’re ready to start working for us,” said William Snell, assistant manager for transit operations training. “This training process helps set the foundation for a long and productive career at SamTrans by instilling a sense of pride, concern for safety, and the utmost respect for our passengers.”

With the graduation of this training class, the bus agency will have both full-time operators and a limited number of part-time operators to help the District better balance peak-hour service needs. That balance will be essential to implementing the SamTrans Service Plan (SSP), which is intended to accomplish three primary objectives: do more of what works, less of what doesn’t and try new things.

The result of two years of planning and feedback from more than 2,000 stakeholders, the first of the new SSP services will launch Aug. 12 when SamTrans implements an order of magnitude service upgrade for riders along the El Camino Real with its new Route ECR.

ECR will provide customers with a faster, more frequent and less complicated riding experience.  It will replace service on the 390 and 391 between Palo Alto and Daly City with service every 15 minutes.  As a result of the increased frequency, customers will be able to walk out to El Camino and jump on any ECR without needing a schedule.