At THS, there are many different bus drivers who each live completely different lives. With different routines, each one’s day-to-day lifestyle can be different in many ways. Some individuals take for granted how much the bus drivers do for them. Do you ever wonder what a bus driver does when they are not picking you up? The driver of bus 172 has an interesting life when she is not sitting behind the wheel greeting her kids. 

Cheryl McDaniel wakes up each morning at 5:30 to start her day. “After getting up and getting myself ready, I do a few things around the house until it is time for me to go out and do my morning pre-trip check to make sure the bus is safe. I leave my house each morning at 7:10 ready and eager to greet each student,” McDaniel said. 

It takes McDaniel 45 minutes to complete her bus route each day. “Between my morning and afternoon route, I come home after I let my students off and run whatever errands I might have that day, do laundry, or whatever chores I might have. At 11:30, I head back to the high school to pick up a load of students to take to the Pittsylvania County Career Tech Center in Chatham. I stay there until they are dismissed and I return to the high school at 3:00 ready to load my afternoon load to go home,” McDaniel explained.

In the afternoons, McDaniel does whatever her grandchildren have in store for her. Whether it is sports practices, games, or just dinner and relaxation, she enjoys spending time with them as much as she can. McDaniel loves and enjoys being a bus driver. “I have been driving for 10 years and the students have become like my children, I see them grow and mature,” she stated.

Each number on the side of a bus tells a story of the driver. I am sure if one were to ask, any bus driver would love to tell them what they do in their free time. Without bus drivers, there would be no one to transport children to school that do not have a ride. This is why being a bus driver is one of the most important jobs worldwide.