The bus stops, but you don't have to

[depechemodefan]

As people probably notice, bus stops are usually 5 feet from the corner of an intersection.

So I'm behind a woman, who is driving next to a bus. The bus stops at the intersection, and the light is green. Woman in front of me stops. I wait, thinking she is going to turn in front of the bus (because God help you because you can't wait for the bus to move so you can turn in the right-hand lane /sarcasm) but she is just sitting there. aAnd the light is still green. So I honk and she turns up her hands like "what am I suppose to do? Why you bothering me?" I think she finally realizes the light is green (or thinks she better move because I'm some psycho) and starts to move but the light turns yellow so she stops moving.

No emergency vehicle was coming, so the only thing I can think of is the bus stopped almost at the corner, so she thought bus stopped = light red. Instead of looking at the light herself.

Oh, and when the light turns green she passes the bus, gets in the right lane, I pass her, and she gets behind me, going 10 miles slower than the traffic. I think she thinks I was going to ram her so she wants to get out of the way. So I think she never realized the light was green.

[Department stores *sigh*]

Had the opposite happen to me once at a crosswalk. Since a bus stopped for me at the crosswalk the driver in the left lane decided the bus was at a bus stop. If not for the bus driver's frantic gestures warning me of a speeding vehicle I would have been plastered on the front of a B-Clean van.

[LillFilly]

Maybe she thought she had to stop with ALL buses; not just school buses.

Heehee,

Bet it takes her a LOOONG time to get anywhere if she lives in the city!

[Pagan]

As people probably notice, bus stops are usually 5 feet from the corner of an intersection.

For some reason that I don't get, they aren't 5 feet in front of the intersections here, they're about 10 feet after them....which makes things really interesting at rush hour around the red-light intersections.

[Chromatix]

In Helsinki, the buses and trams get signal priority - they have devices on board which communicate with the signalling equipment. There's a tiny flashing light on each equipped signal head which indicates when priority is being requested.

Some of the tram and bus stops are immediately after a junction. In these cases, the lights will let (eg.) the tram through, and immediately change to red behind it. This is obviously designed to prevent gridlock.

[Andara Bledin]

Had the opposite happen to me once at a crosswalk. Since a bus stopped for me at the crosswalk the driver in the left lane decided the bus was at a bus stop. If not for the bus driver's frantic gestures warning me of a speeding vehicle I would have been plastered on the front of a B-Clean van.

And this, my friends, is why you never assume that anyone other than the person who has obviously stopped to let you cross will do the same. If you're crossing and you can't see that there is no traffic coming, or you can't see that all traffic has stopped, don't step into the lane.

One of my co-workers lost her mother to this situation. Her mother was crossing in the middle of the block (not at a designated crossing point) and the car in the first lane stopped to let her cross. The car in the second lane never saw her until it was too late.

The co-worker made a point of letting the kid (only 19) who was driving the second car know that it wasn't his fault and that nobody blamed him for what happened. Poor guy.

Some of the tram and bus stops are immediately after a junction. In these cases, the lights will let (eg.) the tram through, and immediately change to red behind it. This is obviously designed to prevent gridlock.

We have something similar for our rail transit, I believe, but some of the bus companies can't even manage to keep their change boxes working, so I can't imagine they'd do any better with other parts that don't have an immediate impact on their ability to make money.

^-.-^

[Geek King]

One spectre I'll bring up about the OP: The woman could have been mostly blind. We had one old woman in the city near where I grew up that couldn't see the lights anymore, so would stop at intersections based on other traffic. One day there was no other traffic...ending was not happy other than no one died.

[greek_jester]

Since a bus stopped for me at the crosswalk the driver in the left lane decided the bus was at a bus stop. If not for the bus driver's frantic gestures warning me of a speeding vehicle I would have been plastered on the front of a B-Clean van.

This is why, when I'm at a zebra crossing, I always pause for a moment if I'm about to step past a stopped bus/van/lorry to check what's behind it. I've had a few near misses over the years, & so far most of the drivers have actually found the sight of me leaning around them quite amusing.

[Magpie]

For some reason that I don't get, they aren't 5 feet in front of the intersections here, they're about 10 feet after them....which makes things really interesting at rush hour around the red-light intersections.

I think they do it so that the bus doesn't get stopped at as many red lights. I'm not sure though. Those ones aren't as odd as the intersections where they have stops on BOTH sides of the other road.

[Andara Bledin]

I think they do it so that the bus doesn't get stopped at as many red lights. I'm not sure though. Those ones aren't as odd as the intersections where they have stops on BOTH sides of the other road.

We've got a few like that near my work.

But the street they're on is a major arterial road and less than a mile from the local transit center where it meets up with the rail line. There are at least 4 different bus companies that stop at that intersection with a minimum of 10 different lines passing through. I'd hate to think of how messed up it would be to try to make them all stop at the same side of the street. It's crazy enough when you've got a couple from the same company who manage to show up at the same time.

^-.-^

[Chromatix]

There's a stop almost outside my office where almost every bus coming from Espoo into Helsinki stops, plus about three lines that have come from a western island of Helsinki. That's a *lot* of buses.

At peak times, there are often three or more buses stopped at once, one behind the other. This goes on for hours at a time.

[Andara Bledin]

At peak times, there are often three or more buses stopped at once, one behind the other. This goes on for hours at a time.

See, that's when you have a second stop set up for one or more of those lines so that you don't end up with all the riders playing, "Guess where in line your bus is going to stop."

Because I've seen buses pull up when there was already a bus stopped, and if people didn't make their way from the actual stop down to where the bus itself stopped fast enough, they'd just close the doors and leave.

Of course, I also once saw a bus driver get his ass chewed out by a Metro Transit guy for showing up at the transit center, opening his door for about 5 seconds, then closing it and leaving, with a dozen people who had already been waiting for him at the stop. The Transit guy was pissed. I feel sorry for the riders he ignored, since they'd have to wait another hour for the next bus in that line. Why the Transit guy didn't make him go back and get them, I will never know.

^-.-^

[Pagan]

I think they do it so that the bus doesn't get stopped at as many red lights. I'm not sure though. Those ones aren't as odd as the intersections where they have stops on BOTH sides of the other road.

But you should see the back-up it creates. You can get maybe three cars through the intersection (which wind up waiting behind the bus) and then a stack-up on the other side of the intersection because nobody can move, literally. The one I used to go through every day near where I used to work, it's too busy all day to even contemplate changing lanes to get across. Doesn't make sense.

[Magpie]

We've got a few like that near my work.
... There are at least 4 different bus companies that stop at that intersection with a minimum of 10 different lines passing through.

See, I'm talking about when it's for only one route. Where I am now we have a lot more shared stops (the street system isn't really on a grid, so transit here is crazy stupid), but I don't really count those. Sometimes it's one shared stop, sometimes there will be four or five signs, with a bus-length between them.

But you should see the back-up it creates. You can get maybe three cars through the intersection (which wind up waiting behind the bus) and then a stack-up on the other side of the intersection because nobody can move, literally.

Wouldn't all those cars have been caught behind the bus anyhow though? I'm somewhat confused. Most people here try to not drive behind the bus unless they're about to turn, and in that case they're again better off if the stop is on the other side of the lights. Interesting how different areas can require different solutions. (A friend of mine is in planning, specifically transit, and it's a new world for me).

[Pagan]

Wouldn't all those cars have been caught behind the bus anyhow though? I'm somewhat confused. Most people here try to not drive behind the bus unless they're about to turn, and in that case they're again better off if the stop is on the other side of the lights. Interesting how different areas can require different solutions. (A friend of mine is in planning, specifically transit, and it's a new world for me).

Well, how 'bout my particular situation? I would try to get out from behind it, but some days, the traffic just didn't (and still doesn't) allow it. I would then have to stay behind it because where I turned into the parking lot where I worked, is just after the bus stop. And the streets where the bus stops and the red light/speed cameras combos are most common are very, very busy with lots of turning on and off for businesses (Wyoming and Menaul being the worst).

Gets even more fun in October during the Balloon Fiesta when parts of one of the three north ABQ river crossings is unavailable due to being closed down for all except Fiesta traffic. The effects ripple throughout the whole city.