Recently, Asian Buses writer Shee Mun had a chance to talk with an enthusiastic bus driver, who has experience in driving both, single-decker and double-decker buses at the Cyberjaya Transport Terminal. Mr Khairulnizam, a passionate and calm bus driver who has almost 10 years experience in the field, is now working with Dedicated Transport System. In this one hour interview, Khairulnizam just cannot hide how much he loves his job as a bus driver.

“I started my career as a bus driver about ten years ago, before working at my current company; I was working at Rapid KL Sdn Bhd as bus driver for about 5 years. I am truly happy to be a bus driver, as I am able to drive different models of buses from different brands like Scania, Volvo, Hino and more. These experiences make me feel excited and satisfied, which I would perceive as a form of accomplishment of my career.”

“Put aside my job, I love to discover and learn about the new models from different brands or manufacturers. Therefore, I am always eager to attend commercial vehicle exhibitions and relevant events held in the city, like I attended one at The Mines Convention Centre two years ago. It is really a wonderful experience to me.”

He emphasizes, being a bus driver, safety on the road is always his outmost priority, as it is his responsibility to safeguard every single passenger on board.

“Sometimes, it could be stressful for drivers when handling a bus, particularly during the peak hours during which the bus is so full of passengers and the traffic on the road is extremely busy. For instance, during the peak hour, a double-decker bus can carry 66 to 69 passengers at a time, and it is an obligation for the driver to ensure the safety of all his passengers.”

Describing the usual challenges he faces at work, he says ,that there are many things for him to be concerned about as a bus driver. These include the problems of vehicle’s blind spots, road and weather conditions and so on.

“Thus, to avoid any accidents, we just have to be extra cautious and vigilant on the road.” Other than to ensure the safety and comfort of the passengers, a double-decker bus driver must also take into consideration the changing dynamics of handling the vehicle during the journey. “Most of the time, the passengers would prefer to sit at the upper level over the lower level, giving the driver the feeling like the bus is somehow manoeuvring in an imbalanced way. In such conditions, the driver has to drive, accelerate and brake carefully and slowly, so that the effect of inertia on the passengers on the upper level will not be too strong. Harsh breaking may lead to injury if anyone falls when the bus stops.”

“Meanwhile, when driving a double-decker bus, the centre mass of the bus itself is much higher than in a single-deck bus. Once the driver starts to manoeuvre the vehicle, he will immediately feel the impact. However, as long as the driver knows how to operate the bus efficiently and always be cautious when driving, he will be fine with that. ”

Asked about his advice to the junior bus drivers, Khairulnizam says, working as a bus driver is a career that requires patience and calmness. “No matter what happens along the journey, for example, if there are passengers fighting in the bus or other incidents that could be distracting, a bus driver must learn to stay calm, and put safety as the top priority.”

Describing how he feels about his career, Khairulnizam says that, unlike what some people might perceive being a bus driver is less of a decent and tiring job, he is really happy with his profession.
“In fact, the job as a bus driver is not as bad as peoples might see it is with irregular and long hours and working in shifts. In our company, we provide midnight coach transport service to clients that travel from Cyberjaya to Seremban. To ensure the safety of the bus driver and passenger, if a driver feels tired after travelling for few hours, he actually can have some good rest before the next departure as the demand for bus or coach service around midnight is normally not very high.”

“As for me, I am given a day off during the weekends, this enables me to spend my time with my family members and friends. Besides, I am satisfied with all of the benefits that are provided by the company; most importantly we have some good and close colleagues. For example, sometimes our company will also organize some internal events like soccer matches or Karaoke sessions, which helps to strengthen the relationship among staff. And we really enjoy it.”