A Curious Stopover

Too Punctual: Bus Driver Took a Smoking Break

It wasn’t a delay, but rather excessive punctuality that led to an unusual stop on the Eisenstadt-Oberwart bus route—including a smoke break.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/VBB, FOTOKERSCHI.AT)

A curious stop on the Eisenstadt-Oberwart route in Burgenland: Because the bus was going too fast, the driver had to wait three minutes. This wasn’t due to a craving for nicotine, but rather a rule governing scheduled bus service.

Bus passengers are all too familiar with delays. But the fact that a public bus would voluntarily stop in the middle of the route because it was running too on time is something that has probably happened to very few people. Passengers on the B14 line from Eisenstadt to Oberwart recently had exactly this curious experience.

Instead of stepping on the gas, the driver made a stop about ten kilometers before Oberwart and lit a cigarette—not on the bus, of course, but outside. The reason, however, wasn’t a craving for nicotine, but the schedule.

“We’re too early”
When passengers asked why the bus had suddenly stopped, the answer was one no one had expected: “We’re too early.” The bus had to wait about three minutes before the journey could continue.

A public bus doesn’t always continue immediately. If a driver is ahead of schedule, he must wait until the scheduled departure time so that no passenger misses the bus.(Bild: VBB)

Behind this unusual stop, however, lies a clear rule in public transit. As the Burgenland Public Transport Authority (VBB) explained in response to an inquiry from the “Krone,” drivers are not allowed to “never leave a stop before the scheduled departure time. Otherwise, a person who arrives at the stop right on time for the scheduled departure cannot be picked up,” according to the VBB.

To ensure drivers always know whether they are ahead of or behind schedule, they constantly monitor their travel times. Via the onboard computer, they can see in real time whether they are traveling exactly according to schedule or deviating from it.

Summer Ensures Smooth Sailing
However, according to Verkehrsbetriebe Burgenland, it is extremely rare for a bus to be ahead of schedule at all. Normally, buses tend to be a few minutes behind schedule. The unusual stop was actually due to the summer vacation. Because there is significantly less traffic at the moment, some buses are making faster progress than usual. On the Eisenstadt-Oberwart route, this was only the second time this year that a bus had to wait for its scheduled departure time.

Why the Schedule Takes Priority
For the passengers, the stop was certainly an unusual experience. The brief pause initially drew puzzled looks, but ultimately demonstrated just how strictly the schedule is followed on regular service. After all, the VBB’s policy is: It’s better for a bus to wait three minutes in a parking lot than to leave a stop too early and leave passengers behind.