"S.L.U.T." Takes Hold in Metro Bus Driver Lingo

"Third and Pine, rain or shine," the bus driver almost sings to his passengers.

As the bus approaches each and every stop, our driver offers a whimsical rhyme or at least a lengthy, informative spiel on what you'll find, should you choose to disembark here and now.

He is charming, jovial, and more importantly, a great driver. He doesn't feel the need to Top Gun his rig, only to come to a screeching halt fifty yards later. For that, we thank him.

We don't know his name but he was driving the 10/12 route from Capitol Hill to Downtown last week when he surprised us with this:

"Fifth and Pine, home of Westlake Center, Monorail, Bus Tunnel, or the S.L.U.T.!"

With that, everyone suddenly perked up a bit. We stole glances and smiled at one another. Like Grandpa had just made a dirty joke and we were all at the kid's table giggling under our breath.

Image courtesy of HeyRocker, of the Seattlest Flickr Pool.

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By Jack in Miscellaneous on March 17, 2008 2:10 PM

Comments [rss]

jessejb

I ride the 10/12 every day and I totally know said driver. He's always in a good mood like that (even in the dreariest mornings!) And its nice to see people have a good time on the bus. I hope he gets driver of the year or something.

mbq

I wish there were more drivers like that. Occasionally, one of my regular drivers will de-grumpify me with a few cheerful words.

I urge any of you with positive Metro experiences to let them know that they're appreciated:

http://transit.metrokc.gov/cs/metro-feedback.html

Troy Morris

Nice! I enjoy bus drivers that make riding the bus a little less crappy.

Although, this morning I was on a bus with a very friendly driver who told an old man regular (yeah, she knew the regular riders), "Be careful, John. You know that today, the Irish can get kind of crazy."

I'm sure she didn't mean Irish, but rather the fact that St. Patrick's day is amateur drinking day and people get really stupid. It still made me do a double take.

And there once was a driver who piloted the 174 (notorious route). He drove during rush hour. And he always managed to pass the really late 174s and was always on time.

I loved that man.