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Do you trust your bus drivers?
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tanklor1



Joined: 13 Jun 2006

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 7:20 am    Post subject: Do you trust your bus drivers? Reply with quote

I found this video on youtube. He's driving a stick while talking on the phone. A bit much.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfTdvV2Vc2U
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capebretoncanadian



Joined: 20 Feb 2005

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 7:32 am    Post subject: Re: Do you trust your bus drivers? Reply with quote

tanklor1 wrote:
I found this video on youtube. He's driving a stick while talking on the phone. A bit much.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfTdvV2Vc2U


If you don't, what can you do? fight with him?
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Milwaukiedave



Joined: 02 Oct 2004
Location: Goseong

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 7:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Some of the bus drivers in Korea are pretty wacked. I remember when I was in Daegu thinking I was going to die a few times the way the driver swarved all over the place. It probably didn't help that I sat behind the driver (so I could see which stop to get off at). I remember one time I did that and the driver must have been watching me, because he actually apologized (in English) before I got off the bus. I'm not sure if my face had turned purple or what, but I guess that tells you how scared I was.
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Qinella



Joined: 25 Feb 2005
Location: the crib

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 7:40 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

As a scooter driver, I will tell you that I absolutely do not trust Korean bus driver. They are constantly making sudden lane changes, running red lights, and making fast right-angle turns into oncoming traffic. In the past month, I've witnessed one impatient bus driver honk his horn and then smash into the back of a car at a red light and saw the aftermath of a bus driver smashing a car into the side railing of a road, apparently trying to change lanes on top of the car.
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uberscheisse



Joined: 02 Dec 2003
Location: japan is better than korea.

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 8:29 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

one of our school's bus drivers slapped a dude three times in the face for speeding past the school when kids were present.

he pulled the guy over, leaned into his equus and slapped him hard, three times.

of course the little girlboy called the cops and uttered the requisite number of "shippals" but by then we were on a break and got to taunting him by going "shippal! shippal" like the superjunior guy on the lemonade commercial.

i trust that bus driver. he exercises good judgement.
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Milwaukiedave



Joined: 02 Oct 2004
Location: Goseong

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 8:36 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Uber,

Good story..that would have made for some funny pictures. Did the guy who was getting slapped cry?
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mindmetoo



Joined: 02 Feb 2004

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 3:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The bus drivers are quite polite, always saying hello, but then they drive like demons. But in Korea, if they don't run red lights they will probably get yelled at or attacked by the passengers. All 'n' all, though, a bus ride is the single most unpleasant method of travel in Korea. Especially if you have to stand.
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spliff



Joined: 19 Jan 2004
Location: Khon Kaen, Thailand

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 4:18 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

They don't take any crap and a lot of them are good fighters as well.
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Kenny Kimchee



Joined: 12 May 2003

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 6:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I've seen many a Maeul (small green local route bus) driver talk on his cell while driving a stick while trying to navigate the twisting, turning roads on the back side of Haebangchon.

I love riding shotgun in the Maeul bus...
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sojourner1



Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Location: Where meggi swim and 2 wheeled tractors go sput put chug alugg pug pug

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 7:31 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

OMG, they are so crazy, but I have never seen an accident despite all this lunacy. I have even seen them drive with their big bottle of Soju sitting behind the money box near the seat.

They speed, drink and drive, constantly change lanes, stop way before a bus stop and expect everyone to run to them, and are often rude. The police do not have much control like they might in a western country. This kind of environment invites corruptions so be careful when running around out there in Asia.
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GoldMember



Joined: 24 Oct 2006

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 8:08 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Putting small men with small willys, and big egos in charge of big machines is not a very good idea.
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RACETRAITOR



Joined: 24 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul, South Korea

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 8:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

As another scooter driver, I trust bus drivers. I trust that they are dangerous and that it's just best that I stay far away from them. Also, I've seen way more nice bus drivers than nice taxi drivers.
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Zyzyfer



Joined: 29 Jan 2003
Location: who, what, where, when, why, how?

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 8:12 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

mindmetoo wrote:
...a bus ride is the single most unpleasant method of travel in Korea. Especially if you have to stand.


I love taking the bus, but I know which routes have fewer people on average. Only sucks for me when I'm trying to sit and the guy starts jerking the bus around with some stop-and-go madness.

As for them being polite, many are, but I love being within earshot when they start going off on some driver who did something stupid (or sometimes when they didn't do anything). There was even one driver on a certain bus route down in Cheonan who seemed perpetually pissed, even when he was out in the country with no cars on the road.

Driving fast and running red lights is due to being behind schedule. Some buses are equipped with a simple route tracking system situated right next to the driver. When the bus in front is ahead by 13 minutes and the bus behind is only 2 minutes behind the driver, yeah, he's probably got to make up some lost time. Opposite applies when the bus in front is too close; the driver will try to go as slow as possible.
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endo



Joined: 14 Mar 2004
Location: Seoul...my home

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 8:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Could you imagine driving a bus in this city?

Hell, bus drivers in Seoul should be paid like doctors.
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mindmetoo



Joined: 02 Feb 2004

PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2007 9:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Almost as disturbing is cab drivers who watch TV while they drive. Oi. I feel bad for bus drivers since most of them have to drive stick. Stick is no fun in stop and go traffic.

I love when customers start yelling at bus drivers. When Seoul changed its bus system a few years back you saw a lot of people just spouting off at bus drivers.
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