Life on a school bus: Games, gossip and noise

"I love my job," said Trish Henifen, who has been driving the same southside route for the Bellingham School District since 1986. "I love the kids, I love the ride."

A normal work day for most school bus drivers in Whatcom County starts around 6:30 a.m. Drivers spend 10 to 15 minutes examining the bus, checking lights, alarms, emergency exits, brakes, engines, seats and more, before hitting the road to pick up the first load of sleepy kids.

For Mount Baker driver Dinah McAbee, that means a scenic 35-minute drive to Glenhaven, with only the radio and the smell of vinyl seats to keep her company.

When McAbee picks up her first Acme Elementary School students, she greets them by name and with a cheerful "Good morning." They quietly find their seats and spend time thinking, listening to music and doing homework.

But by the time the bus is half full with 30 students, the peaceful drive becomes a eavesdroppers paradise, with discussions about the latest sixth-grade dating gossip, mild arguments over the best movies and young boys making sound effects for their toys.

"It's so fun," said Evan Moothart, a second-grader at Acme Elementary School. "You get to sit with your friends."

"And play with toys," added his seatmate Chason Critchley, 7, holding up an action figure.

Periodically, McAbee's voice comes over the loudspeaker.

"Sit in your seat.

"Please keep your feet and bag out of the aisle."

"The number one concern is kid safety," she said. "I have a good time with my kids, but I expect them to behave."

Since school buses don't have seatbelts, it's important for students to sit in the seats properly. The high-backed padded seats are designed to create a compartment for the students, keeping them contained in the event of a crash.

But even without seatbelts, school buses are a safer than riding in a personal car. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1,536 people died in school-transportation related crashes across the country from 1996 through 2006. Of those people, only about 114 were school bus or school district vehicle occupants, with 48 of those being the driver.

In comparison, about 111 people younger than 20 died in car crashes in Washington in 2007 alone, according to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission.

By the time students get to school around 9 a.m., they're awake, socialized and ready for the day.

"I'll see you this afternoon when you're so much smarter," McAbee tells her riders as they disembark.

When the bus is empty again, drivers feel good that they've taken students to school safely yet again. But a driver's day isn't over until all the kids are back home.

Work starts again for afternoon routes around 2 p.m., with drivers repeating the safety checks before heading off to high schools, then middle and elementary schools.

"It's an interesting job because you're driving this big bus and then you're watching traffic and also watching kids ... and it's all behind me," veteran Bellingham driver Henifin said. "Mirrors are your lifeline while driving."

Riders on her bus enjoy her attitude and games, even if they don't enjoy spending 20 or more minutes riding the bus every day.

"It's funner than riding in a car because you don't have to wear seatbelts," said Nathan Swets, a second-grader at Happy Valley Elementary School. "And it's bigger."

One of Henifin's favorite parts of the day is around 4 p.m. when the last student is off her bus, but not because she doesn't like them.

"I feel good at the end of the day because I know they got off the bus, they have gone to school and they're safe for another day," she said.

"I may drive them nuts, but they make my day."