Since starting work at the Cache Creek Casino Resort in August, Salim Khan has asked himself one anxiety-inducing question after working eight-hour shifts.
He explained that Yolobus’ Route 215 eastbound bus is responsible for transporting dozens of employees and patrons from the casino. This has caused people eager to get home to form lines to secure seats on the bus.
“I will soon be 60,” Khan stressed. “I have knee problems and there are people older than me working there.”
“What worries me is that when we leave work, we have to stand on the side of the road for more than 10 minutes with two buses parked with their doors locked,” he continued. “We have to start shifting one leg to the other. This guy is like hell for 10-15 minutes.”
bus driver problem
Initially, Khan and other employees claimed that one particular driver was the problem.
Several casino employees called Yolobus to complain about the bus driver because other drivers had no problem picking up passengers early.
Casino cook Farhat Khan, who has had problems with this bus driver since he started working at the casino six months ago, was one of the employees who called to complain, but they fixed the problem. I said I didn’t do anything to
She explained that other bus drivers driving the route always pick up passengers early if they notice a queue forming so they can rest.
“He just came and opened the door,” she said, describing one of the bus drivers. “If he’s resting or doing something, he doesn’t care. He just opens the door so people can just sit inside.”
But Erik Reitz, Yolo Transportation District’s deputy director of transit operations and planning, said bus drivers were actually following Yolobus employee guidelines and allowing people to board buses early. says no.
“There are two policies that come into play in this situation,” explains Reitz. “The first policy is to allow drivers to take no passengers while they are resting.”
He said drivers are given a long break of 18 to 36 minutes at the casino before driving the 11:15 p.m. bus.
This is the time for the driver to relax and go to the restroom if necessary.
Reitz noted that the policy is primarily based on driver preferences.
“But it’s considered their break, so they shouldn’t have to deal with the normal rigors of the job,” he stressed.
“The second policy is that drivers should not leave passengers on the bus,” he continued. “And I say this because in his one case on the current schedule, Cash He lunches at Creek He also has a break scheduled. Buses should be closed and passengers should not be ridden.”
He explained that allowing people to board buses unmanned has various safety and security concerns, including potential damage to buses and other criminal issues.
Reitz had not provided Yolobus employee guidelines prior to the publication of this article.
Facebook videos and amenities
Khan was tired of having to wait to catch a bus despite the rain and wind at the beginning of a series of winter storms that hit northern California in late December. , posted on social media.
A Facebook video showed about a dozen passengers stuck in the rain waiting to board the bus, which Mr Khan claims he should have let him in.
But Wrights was more concerned about the fact that passengers weren’t taking advantage of shelter spaces with benches and heaters to help protect them from the elements.
However, after speaking with Khan and learning that employees were concerned about securing seats, he realized that the shelter was far from where the bus actually stopped.
“Hearing about the anxiety, it’s been a long road and I really understood that it wasn’t a shelter issue, it was people worried about getting seats,” he said. I think there are better ways to deal with it than for them to sit on the bus and wait.”
Reitz said he is working to prepare discussions with the casino’s capital improvement officials to find ways to extend the overhang or find another solution.
need a second bus
Yolobus offered two buses departing the casino at 11:15 p.m. before the COVID-19 pandemic, but had to reschedule due to reduced demand.
Reitz said the transportation district is considering adding the second bus back to the schedule or finding other solutions.
“What the district has always done since I was there is try to fit in with the casino-run shifts, mainly because that’s when we have the heaviest passengers,” he said. He emphasized: “We currently have 9:45 pm and 9:55 pm buses, but we only have 11:15 pm and 12:07 am buses.”
As to why this happened, he’s still trying to get more information, but speculates it “has something to do with the after-shift getting off at midnight.”
After speaking with Khan and other passengers, Reitz said he understands the anxiety of having only one bus available.
“There’s a planning process that needs to be done and we have to have the right steps in place and we plan to do that,” he said of the potential addition of another bus line. We also work closely with Cache Creek and would love to speak with them as partners.”
Additionally, Reitz assured that the transportation district is considering conducting a separate study on Route 215. Because the last time he investigated the route was in 2011, and in the afternoon he focused only on two travel times.
At the time, 44% of respondents said they traveled this route 4-5 times a week, and 35% said they would drive if transportation wasn’t available.
Additionally, 52% said they had a valid driver’s license and 32% said they didn’t.
Another employee, Jeffrey, argues that he could drive to work to avoid dealing with this problem, but prefers the bus because it saves gas and takes an hour each way to commute. Did. he catches up with sleep.
“I have a car, and Cache Creek gave me a discount that saved me a lot of money on gas,” he stressed. “I prefer to take the bus, so at least I can save money on gas, and if I get an hour of sleep, I can save my energy for work.”
He added that this would also help the community by reducing the number of cars on the road and allowing more parking for casino customers.
The next step for transportation districts is to conduct an “onboard survey”. This means sending an employee out to talk to passengers on the 11:15 p.m. bus leaving the casino, get the latest research information, and give them a survey. A better idea of what needs to be done.
