Historical Background/Career Description
According to the Occupational Handbook, bus drivers are responsible for transporting people
between various places. They may have an established route, or transfer passengers through
sightseeing tours/trips (Bureau of Labor Statistics). Typically, bus drivers have a variety of tasks:
they check tires of their vehicles, do basic maintenance, pick up and drop off passengers, follow
a planned route set in place with a timed schedule, and overall keep the bus clean and presentable
to the public.
The name ‘bus’ is derived from the Latin word ‘Omnibus’, meaning “for all” (“The History of
the Bus”). The existence of buses dates back to 1662. The idea came from Blaise Pascal who was
an inventor, physicist and general savant. He “hatched the idea and secured financing from some
friends in the nobility” (Alfred). It started with horse drawn carriages that could carry six-eight
passengers. The fares increased over time and thus was only available to members of the high
society. The service ceased to exist by 1675. There were no sightings of buses until the early 19th
century when the horse-drawn buses began to appear again.