Photo by Mark Nessia
Real People
Golden Empire Transit Bus Driver Joanne McNally
By Breanna Fields
W
hether she’s driving a local GET Bus or transporting co-workers of the U.S. Air Force reserves, Joanne McNally is a community figure well-respected for her services in transportation and reserve duty. Driving GET buses for six years, McNally knows familiar faces of regular customers and welcomes them on board for a comfortable and safe journey to their destination. What is your most memorable moment working as a bus driver? I was very excited to get hired to drive a bus. I was learning something new, and it was an accomplishment when I completed all the training, passed the road test and got my commercial license. What do you enjoy about being a bus driver? I feel like I am part of a team that cares about their employees, and we get to serve the community. 142
Bakersfield Life
November 2012
How does driving a bus differ from driving a car? You have a lot more responsibility because you are carrying a lot more people. It is bigger, and it takes longer to stop. You have to be more observant and safety conscious. It is actually easier in some ways to drive the bus because I am up above traffic and the front (of the bus) is straight down. Have you ever driven school buses? No, but I did drive a bus transporting my fellow workers to and from work when my reserve unit was deployed. My job in the reserves is actually aircraft maintenance, but because I had a commercial license, I was tasked with that extra duty. Do you have a funny on-the-job story that you’d like to share? Just after I started driving, I had a customer who apparently wanted off the bus at a stop, but did not pull the cord. When I didn’t stop, he came up to the front of the bus and growled at me. I pulled over! As a bus driver, do you get to know some of the regular passengers? Yes, I meet a wide range of people.