Route 40 Inbound is Always Late in the Afternoon

I've been riding Route 40 to and from Bear several times a week for almost two years. For the last couple of months the afternoon inbound runs are always late. Not once in a while, but always. I usually catch the bus at Governor's square, across the street from the K-Mart shopping center. The Route 40 bus that is supposed to be there at 4:38 p.m. never arrives until 4:50, 4:55, or even later. Instead of arriving at Rodney Square at the scheduled 5:15, we typically arrive at 5:25, often later. So much for transferring to the 5:20 Route 6 bus, like I always used to do.

I'm not sure what is causing the tardiness. I know Route 40 has "a reputation," from speaking with drivers of other routes. But I've had a few drivers on Route40 who seemed almost always to be on time, or very close to it. Then the driver changed and the schedule was missed by 10 or more minutes, consistently. So I suspect it's to some extent a function of the driver's efficiency. And let's face it... some drivers are efficient , and some are not. Some clearly care about their schedule, others obviously don't give a rip.

But it is unfair to passengers to have bus schedules so consistently blown. Are there managers watching? If a bus is always late, isn't it time to amend the schedule? Allow more time? Make sure drivers are able to get a timely start, and not have to take "potty breaks" that cause them to lose time? (Yes, this is a not-unheard-of occurrence on Route 40, as drivers take a break at the park-and-ride on Routes 7 and 273.)