Two Columbus bus drivers and a bus mechanic are competing in a national event to honor the best public transit drivers in the country.
ColumBUS drivers Stacy Heagy and Derek Johnson, as well as mechanic Greg Noel, will travel to Palm Springs, California, to compete in the Community Transportation Association of America “Roadeo” on Saturday and Sunday.
About 80 public transit drivers from 30 states and Ottawa, Canada will compete in the event, said Rich Sampson, the association’s “Roadeo” coordinator at the CTAA. The winner will bring home a trophy and a $750 cash prize.
“I hope (the drivers) get a sense of camaraderie among their fellow drivers across the country as well as a chance to display their skills in safety and customer service that they do every day of the year,” Sampson said.
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The competition is broken down into two divisions — body on chassis, which features buses that are approximately the size of an airport shuttle bus, and standard-sized mini-vans. Heagy and Noel will participate in the body-on-chassis division, while Johnson will compete in the mini-van division.
Each participant must complete four tasks — a driving course, passenger assistance, pre-ride vehicle inspection and a written test based on transit driver training materials. Each task is assigned a point value for a combined total of 1,000 points. Points are deducted by judges whenever a participant makes a mistake. The highest point total wins.
The driving course consists of maneuvering around cones and barrels, making turns going forward and backward as well as making stops. During the passenger assistance part of the competition, participants help a person in a wheelchair or other device board the bus. The pre-ride inspection consists of reviewing the vehicle for four defects that range from out-of-date fire extinguishers to checking if the power steering is connected.
They have seven minutes to complete the driving course, pre-ride inspection and the passenger assistant portions of the competition.
Heagy and Noel qualified for the national “Roadeo” by placing first in the Indiana statewide “Roadeo.” Johnson qualified by coming in second place. The drivers who place first and second in the state typically qualify for the national competition.
Columbus bus drivers have fared well in the state and national competitions in the past, said Sampson, who added that “there has been a lot of historical participation from Columbus, Indiana, in our Roadeo.”
ColumBUS drivers have won 15 out of the last 20 statewide Roadeos, including bus driver Sheila Lyle, who took home the 2011 national championship in the van division, said Cindy Setser, Columbus transit coordinator.
“We have great drivers,” Setser said. “We’re very proud of them.”
The Indiana Rural Transit Assistance Program, or RTAP, is financing the trip for Heagy and Noel to compete in California, including airfare, hotel accommodation and food, Setser said. The Indiana Council on Specialized Transportation is paying for Johnson’s trip.
Indiana RTAP is an organization that offers technical assistance and training to small urban or rural transportation providers across the state, according to its website. Indiana RTAP is funded by the Federal Transit Administration and the Indiana Department of Transportation.
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To learn more about the Community Transportation Association of America, visit ctaa.org.
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