NAVIGATING PUBLIC TRANSPORT

One of the reasons why I am most grateful for my current job is that I don't have to go out to face the razzness of the world outside. At least, not as often as it would have been if I had to drop by a physical office station.

Source

One of which is the buzz of getting into public transport, which can be both chaotic and exhausting during rush hours - early in the day or late in the evenings.

Months ago, I moved to another city. I had gotten my current job there and was made to go by the physical office for training. And it was while I was there that I accurately understood the phrase "to jump buses." People who live in Nigeria might already be able to guess where I'm talking about.

In my actual city of residence, it wasn't so difficult to get transportation with exception to times when it rained heavily or there was fuel scarcity(even then, it was the price fee for transportation that increased).

But when I moved to Lagos, first off, I had to leave my house really early in the day, ger to the busstop where I'd get a bus going my way, and then struggle to get room in the bus. There, it's survival of the fittest. It was weird and extremely bizarre to a gentleman like myself. Then when it was time to alight, these drivers barely ever came to a stop. They'd expect that you jump down the moving bus. I hadn't seen anything more strange. To think that the people there were somewhat used to this practice rattled me.

I do not own a car yet, and since using public transport is the means that makes mine and a host other people's movements easier, I can’t say I hate it. It's been helpful to us.
I just don't like the stress around it. First, you have to bear in mind that as you go out and would be using a public transport, there is the likelihood that you'd meet one drama. Most commonly, it's either you have a fight, not literally, with the driver/his conductor(some of them can be very rude and lousy) or with a fellow passenger. I rarely get into any but there always is one drama happening.

One thing I like to do before getting on a bus is to quickly scan the vehicle for anomalies, like dirty vehicle, faulty parts(windows, mirrors), even the face/mannerismsof a conductor/driver can be a repellent. The last point is not a yardstick for who would make my journey smoother but it can be helpful. I am.also very observant on inconveniences.

To be specific, one thing I dislike very much is getting sandwiched in between people. I like to pay for comfort. But there are unfortunate scenes where a person with more body proportion may join in and almost squash me with their size until I almost disappear. In those moments of discomfort, it'd seem like the journey is never ending, but, I wonder why these people never realize what discomfort they pose to others especially those who would not adjust even a bit so you can get some air. But I can't complain.

I only wished that there were more functional vehicles put there, better mannered and considerate drivers, less number of passengers per seat roll. These, and anything more to reduce the chaos causes by the above ills I mentioned would be a welcome development. It will make for a good start, at the very least.

Thanks for stopping by.
SOKA🖤