Why Drive a School Bus? One Plymouth Driver Explains

For three years Marc Anderson has been transporting precious cargo.

“We’ve got 10,000 kids in this district and most of them get to school by school bus,” said Anderson.

As a First Student company bus driver in the Wayzata School District, Anderson is focused on getting kids to and from school in a non-eventful way.

“It’s not about trying to be a hero, a friend, cool or anything like that,” Anderson said. “It’s about getting them there safely.”

Being a bus driver means dealing with ice, snow and other weather conditions

“Basically I’d rather be in a bus like this then sliding around in my car some days,” Anderson said.

Anderson says the yellow giants  are built to handle most road challenges.

“Fortunately these buses are pretty fleet-footed,” Anderson said. “They’ve got duels in the back. They’re very heavy, 26,000 pounds. They can handle the weather  pretty well.”

Driving More Than a Job

CCX News recently went on a simulated ride with Anderson before one of his stops. He says bus driving now fits perfectly into his day.

“I’ve done the corporate world,” said Anderson, who also chairs the Plymouth Planning Commission. “I consider myself semi-retired and it worked well with my schedule. “I have a shift in the morning, a shift later in the afternoon.”

For Anderson driving is more than a job. It’s a chance for him to reflect on his Plymouth roots. His kids and grandchildren went to school in the Wayzata School District.

“This is a place where they get to mingle you might say with their neighborhood,” Anderson said. “Where as in school they’re different ages, they’re in different classes.”

Anderson also gets to see some of these youngsters grow up.

“The kindergartners will arrive just timid as can be,” Anderson said. “They’ll begin to express themselves.”