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Emmi Harlan | Northern Star
Tom Battista, a senior meteorology major, waits for the bus to fill up at the Holmes Student Center earlier this month.
Huskie Bus Line drivers make the ride safe
The road to driving a Huskie Bus down NIU’s roads has its share of curves.
Becoming a Huskie Bus driver is a long process, said Jason Culberson, safety manager for the Huskie Bus Line.
Criteria for being approved include being at least 21-years-old and passing a criminal background check, drug screening and a physical administered by the Department of Transportation.
The applicant must then pass a written permit test after completing 40 hours of classroom training and 40 additional hours of road training.
Finally, applicants must pass their final driving test to obtain their commercial driver’s license, Culberson said.
Erik Gillespie graduated from NIU in 2007 and was a Huskie Bus driver for six months during his senior year.
Complaints received from students during his shifts were minimal, Gillespie said.
“They complain that I was late and that I didn’t allow them to smoke on the bus,” he said.
Doug Meenan, who also graduated in 2007, was a Huskie Bus driver for three semesters. One of the biggest obstacles Meenan faced was maneuvering around his fellow students, he said.
“The job is fairly easy,” Meenan said. “You do need a lot of patience though, as the students are about as blind as a bat when they walk or drive around campus.”
Brent Keller, director of mass transit for the Student Association, said the Huskie Bus Line, which is a subsidiary of Veolia Transportation, has an exemplary safety record.
“The accident record being the lowest in Veolia Transportation speaks volumes for our training,” Keller said.
Senior nursing major Nichole Stockton said her main complaint about bus drivers is not from riding the bus, but from being held up by buses while trying to get around campus.
“Obviously, this is a part of having any bus line or public transportation system; however, it is bothersome when people are on time frames,” Stockton said. “To be totally honest, this probably reflects good driving habits by the bus drivers since it’s not safe to drive fast in a large vehicle, especially when there are many pedestrians in the area.”
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