Bus Service To Stop For 2 Hours Tomorrow
[Updated] The Transport Ministry issued a reminder that bus service will be suspended for two hours starting from 10.30am tomorrow morning [May 29].
A spokesperson for the Transport Ministry said, “The Bermuda Industrial Union has scheduled a meeting to be attended by Department of Public Transport (DPT) operators for Tuesday, May 29th, 2012 starting at 10:30 am and concluding at 12:30 pm. The purpose of the meeting is to present and vote on the introduction of a new work schedule.
“The time of the meeting was set to ensure operators can provide the critical early morning services to local residents and visitors. The meeting will be held at the Ocean View Golf Club which is adjacent to the DPT Headquarters so that bus service will be restored promptly following the conclusion of the meeting.
“The Ministry of Transport apologies for any inconvenience this interruption to service may cause.”
Update 9.06pm: The BIU has said the meeting is actually at BIU Headquarters on Union Street, not at Ocean View.
here we go again
Why couldn’t the BIU hold two meetings, at two different times, so there was no interruption to the bus service?
I’d like to know what the OBA’s position is on this. If they win the next election, will they require the BIU to hold these meetings in such a way as to cause no interruption to service? I remain amazed that the BIU are allowed to do this.
Yes, just what we need. The tourist are here and stranded for two hours. Why wait until summer season to redo the work schedule.
This is utterly preposterous. If dere’s no bus service for 2 hours, how de **** am I supposed to transport my son Higginsworth IV to his Ace Girl JaKrinka’s sitoff whilst my 3-man solar-powered bicycle is undergoing repairs? Do these bus drivers not KNOW what an inconvenience they are causing I, Jacob Leland Dejaune Sinead Le-Ah Zakiyah Darnell Crumblesworth-Gibbons VII?!?!
ya.
Don’t show up at work…. get the can!!!
The ‘meeting’ is for 2 hrs… the actual time that the service is stopping is more in the range of 2.5 – 3 hrs… smh
Dont worry, Im sure our hard working bus drivers will sprint back to work as soon as the meeting is over………….
They will all slowly waltz back in from Town with a box of Mr Chicken/KFC.
Why must there be an interruption in bus service?
Can’t the BIU hold two separate meetings, at different times? The BIU leader is on the Tourism Board, he must know tourists will be stranded.
This is crazy.
of course he knows… the more inconveniences, more power he has….
I think our new governor needs to be paying attention to Bermuda and it’s people…we have never seen Bermuda in the state that is in… the Premier said that our money went in to the infrastruture !!!! well hell out roads are deplorable, the buses and ferries are in a mess, the Lighthouse needs some serious paint…..and now we have our buses out for two or more hours in the height of our season !!!!!!!!!!!ENOUGH IS ENOUGH……and has anyone noticed the amount of people digging in the trash at certain restaurants in Hamilton for food ?
nuts!
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could “all” boycott riding buses for a week or two? If only. And if that were possible, we should do it in the wintertime when the tourist season slow..smh., but seriously, this is utterly ridiculous! Is this “new” schedule really going to make a difference? And is it absolutely necessary for them to disrupt the bus service at all? How about 2 separate meetings at different times, of course, so that there will be no disruption at all? Water on the brain, for real! How are people who make later time supposed to get to work? Go to work 2\3 hours early? How about the tourists? Get ready for some backlash! What an asinine move!
I agree cousin, I will have my WHOLE , I MEAN WHOLE GOD FORGIVE ME… Whole Fu&king neighborhood voting OBA…. I know for a fact they will not… I mean absolutely not allow this RIGHT HERE…….. And then they have the NERVE,Fu&king nerve TO USE MY HARD A$$ EARNED TAX MONEY to rent OCEAN VIEW, YEAH folks because they cant camp out and have THIS MEETING at the bus terminal for some lame reason….. Cannonier…. I will assist all you OBA polititians for sure, all my heart , I want PLP out. No wonder cruise ships don’t wanna be here. How soon do you forget how the locals had to transport the friendly tourist around last year for the same bull$hit… People had pink and blue ribbons on their personal trans…….. CHRIS ‘POKER HAND’ FURBERT….. YOU HAVE 4 OF A KIND, KEEP BETTING ARS, CAUSE I HAVE A ROYAL FLUSH, JOKER……. Get your a$$ to Vegas where you belong….
boycott the buses what a novel idea…only problem is that a prolonged boycott will hurt our economy-the buses are Govt Owned (DARN!!)
All the Bus drivers are PLP anyway & the end is near!
Fire their a$$.
We have to fire the PLP
Simple. Get those guys from the Regiment and Wholesale drivers at lunch and charge nothing. Just freeking drive…………………….
This is making Fidel Castro look like a real p%$sy.
They don’t care about the Tourists. It’s as simple as that.
What they need is some ‘Mystery Riders’ to travel on the bus to see how SOME of these drivers treat people.
I 100% agree with you. I experienced and reported a rude bus driver just the other day. I have just returned from school in the U.S and I always talk about the beauty of Bermuda and manners of her wonderful people. In fact I have a few friends travelling to the island over the cupmath holiday. So imagine my surprise when I encounterd a female driver with a very rotten attitude. Not only did she scream at an elderly tourist who kindly asked her to turn the ac down (which was on 67)but also screamed at the locals and other tourist on the bus who cracked their windows hoping to ease the bitter cold on the bus. She was more concerned about the fact the she was hot and her solution was to close the vents above our heads (keep in mind as i looked around all the vents that I could see were closed). Talk about being disgusted.
Another thing that I have noticed is that many drivers (not all but most) do not display thier name tags. The those that do seem to be the ones who are proud to be drivers and enjoy the work that they do. While many may not understand the importance of the name tags, I enjoy them being displayed as I love to thank the drivers by their names as I exit the bus.
It is actions like these that will either encourage tourist to return to the island or will deter them. When it comes down to it, we as a people decide what we will and will not tolerate.
It is ok to have a meeting at anytime at all. The problem is, why is there a need for all drivers to attend? I am sure 85% of them just sit and contribute nothinng. The bus service should be privatized.
Here it is a busy day on the island with two cruise ship that will be docked in Dockyard and tours that will need to be conducted that TOURISTS have booked and paid for and there will be no buses to take them. The union although strong and useful, the heads of the union are not very smart or i should say lack common sense as they could have held this informations session that will be nothing but a disruption to the entire island. Does the president of the the BIU not sit on th Tourism Board? I hope that the statistics when they come in with tourism dissatisfaction, that i hope he is made to answer as wearing too many hats is not a good thing Chris. Read the bible about serving to many masters.
we have a herd of SHEEP who are definitely adverse to change and prefer to be led rather than lead. anything the union says – the members do and/or believe. what a TOTAL LACK OF BUSINESS SENSE – i have a corporation (union) with employees/partner (sheepish members) who need to be informed of changes in a policy.
what do i do – shut the whole @#$%Q*%G company down to tell them verbally of what is going down.
is this the Jimmy Hoffa era of union who has a membership who is so uneducated that they have to be sat down like children?
these union meetings fail to remember that there is something called SERVICE that is being provided. Not SERVITUDE which is akin to the “slave mentality” that is still being promoted by our unions only in a reverse mode. BERMUDA is operating on a 1980′s model for operations and it is sinking us.
it takes years of inconsistencies like this meeting scheduled for the middle of the @&^$%#@@ day that we need to get away from. the union is not part of the workers employment when things are going well….so why is it that we the people have to suffer when something new is bwing prioposed.
i used to be a card carrying member of th union but have lost a lot of faith – not all as they are useful …
BUT THE MANAGEMENT TEAM IS STUCK ON NEUTRAL/IDLE/STUPID AND HAS TO GO. THE TRADE UNIONIST IN BERMUDA IS OUT FOR SELF AND THE MEMBERSHIP ON A WHOLE IS APATHETIC TO UTILISING WHAT IS BETWEEN THEIR EARS AND WHAT IS ON THE LOWER FRONT PART OF THEIR FACE AT THE SAME TIME AND COLLECTIVELY:
1. VOTE A NEW LEADERSHIP TEAM IN PLACE
2. PROPOSE BETTER SOLUTIONS RATHER THAN JUST APPEAR TO BE A BUNCH OF SHEEP LED TO THE SLAUGHTER
**I GUESS WHEN I AM GETTING PAID THE REST DON’T MATTER – AND WE SAY WE ARE STRUGGLING -HA!!
3. GET REALLY EDUCATED ON THE OMBUDSMAN, EMPLOYMENT ACT, ETC. it will illustrate just how the union is NOT as necessary in in entirety (THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE UNION WOULD SHRINK BY HALF)
this is for the birds….
for “outside the boxx”
I totally agree with you on the points you make about changing the times of the meeting and voting on a new management team as it needs to happen sooner than later.
Unfortunate, I was just admiring the arrival of one cruise ship as another was leaving. No, I’m not a big believer that these tourist will ever spend the amount of money in Bermuda a one that flies in. However I am a true believer that “half a loaf is better than none” and all tourist should be treated to the best possible experience while visiting our island.
Could we not ensure Dock Yard (our now main dock), has adequate bus service during this time. I’m sure there are some drivers who would volunteer not to be at this meeting (from personal experience). That way they can provide service on the Dock Yard to Hamilton via South Shore Route and not be looked down upon by their colleagues for the sacrifice they are making.
Just a thought; I’m sure there are drivers out there that feel the same way.
Has this even been tried? An incentive the Union can start seeing C. Furbert is on the new Tourism Board. Sure he feels the need for this service.
Or is he scared they may get too many volunteers (just kidding)
here we go again!
Has CF been asked to leave the tourism board yet because clearly he does not have our interests at heart when it comes to our visitors. Where is the outrage?????? I repeat: Where is the outrage???
Brannon was fired presumeably because he is extremely irritating. But I do believe his heart was in it. CF is clearly the wrong person for our tourism board. He should be dismissed immediately.
Where in the world does a worker get to “vote” on a new schedule? One of the fundamental rights of management is the right to schedule its employees. Wow.
Tourism incentive: have chris furburt “volunteer” to be locked in the stocks in st. Georges square for the same amount of time the buses arent running, sell tomatoes and eggs, and the tourists can make their way to the historic town for their dramatic re-inactment of the old days. While they have some fun taking their frustration out they can scream “take that you bloody wanker” in their best old english accent, best accent wins a photoshoot in the stocks next to mr.tomatoe head and a free dinner at a local restaurant courtesy of the department of tourism. Flawless.
Are they being paid?
I’m sure the answer is “YES”.
Shameful…..the dial certainly has been reset….NOT!
This lot are a bad joke gone wrong.
God help our Island ! We MUST vote out the PLP – and that includes Chris “Egomaniac” Furbert !
Coming from a reliable source I’ve found out that this meeting has been scheduled at this time particularly because the majority of the workers attending will do so in there work hours. It was to be first scheduled later in the week but this is when some have their day off so it was rescheduled so no one misses their off day & all still get paid for coming. In short they want to be paid to sit & watch a bunch of clowns talk about nothing.
Another thing I’ve found out is that the only change in the bus schedule will be one route that will have running times cut short. This meeting is a complete waist of time & will hinder tourist & locals for at least 4 hours from catching the bus because they already only run every half hour & this is in the morning when most tourist have planned to go to the site seeing spots.
I’ve noticed many are putting the sole blame on chris furbert who I agree definitely deserves most of the blame but derrick burgess deserves much of the blame also being the transport minister who has agreed on this disrupted. Derrick also deserves the blame for our already poorly run transportation service that leaves tourist & locals stranded waiting for cancelled & late busses & then the one that comes is so full from the pile up of waiting people that they pass the rest waiting by so they must wait again. What a disgrace our public transport is that it is easier to travel around Kathmandu on public transport than here.
I’m PLP… But not no more, Can you imagine also if this island went independant….. Please USA come and get us from all these damn people……( i know its criminals there too, but boy when they are caught do they do REAL FUCCING TIME) 75 years 6 life sentences, yeah, really Why cant we hold all these Ministers liable for all the dumb sh$t going on, bring in the FBI to investigate cause England is a joke.