I'm posting this message for a friend who had an unpleasant encounter with a M4 bus on Ft. Washington Ave.
North of 181st Street the southbound bus edged him off the road as if there was a passenger to stop for. During this time, the bus driver made eye contact with the cyclist and was fully aware of his presence while continuing to pull over. As the bus didn't stop, my friend managed to then catch up to the bus and approach the driver's window to ask what the maneuvering was about. The driver laughed while shutting his window.
Being on the driver's side of the bus, my friend then thought he would lead out of the intersection and get ahead of the bus so it could pass. The bus driver seemed quite intent on making this impossible and chose to force the cyclist into oncoming traffic - refusing to allow him the courtesy of being in a safe position. It was all very intentional and our concern is for the safety of other cyclists on Ft. Washington Ave.
How receptive is the MTA to driver complaints? My friend was told that he could fill out a form and file a report or dial a number. As an alternative, it was suggested that he let MTA dispatch take care of it. He received this information from a bus monitor stationed at 168th and St. Nick.
Any other M4 experience to share?
thanks,
Nancy
Bus behavior
It doesn't seem to exist only in the M4 realm. Its happened to me all over the city. I can be going at a good clip and a bus will overtake just to pull over in front of me forcing me to the side with nowhere to go. Until an incident with contact, I don't think that a complaint will get very far unfortuneately.
"Bus drivers, like every other work group, are human and individual. I had a really good experience with a bus on Riverside Drive (is that the M7?). I was cycling north on the Drive after a rain storm. I reached a point where there was a huge ""lake"" covering the entire roadway just as the bus approached me from behind. The driver slowed down and waited for me to get to the other side of the water before he drove the bus through it. Had he not done so, I would have been drenched by the wash from the bus.
It's very unfortunate that a bus driver chose to endanger a cyclist and I do think it should be reported."
>It's very unfortunate that a bus driver chose to endanger a
cyclist and I do think it should be reported.
I agree 100%, especially about reporting. However, I also must say that I have ridden along side many considerate bus drivers on Riverside Drive so I would not say that all of them are bad apples.
