12 Bus Driver Interview Questions and Answers

Updated on: October 25, 2022

The interview is a crucial stage in the bus driver job-hunting process, and it is the deciding factor for at least the next few years of your career.

Bus driver interview questions can range from fundamental ones to extremely complex ones. All of them have to be answered with caution. This requires only one thing – preparation.

All bus driver interviews are an amalgamation of different types of questions as such:

  1. Questions for assessing decision making and risk-handling abilities
  2. Questions aimed at determining interpersonal and communication skills
  3. Job-specific questions

The exact questions depend on the needs of the employer, but if you prepare a variety of them, you will have a good chance of success.

For example, they will not only test your knowledge of charting routes and driving different types of buses but also evaluate your passion.

To give you an example of what a bus driver’s interview will consist of, here are some questions and answers:

Bus Driver Interview Questions and Answers

1. Why did you decide to take up a career as a bus driver?

I love driving large vehicles. And I am especially talented at driving a bus. This coupled with my thirst to work outdoors helped me decide that I wanted this to be a career.

2. Tell us a little bit about your main duties as a bus driver.

I have performed many duties while working as a bus driver. Some of the main ones include:

  1. Checking engines at the beginning of each day
  2. Monitoring fluid to ensure optimum levels
  3. Keeping the bus clean and presentable at all times
  4. Assisting passengers to embark and disembark from the bus
  5. Mapping routes using conventional maps and the GPS
  6. Driving buses on assigned routes
  7. Making station announcements
  8. Overseeing timely pick-ups and drop-offs
  9. Ensuring the safety of all passengers
3. What skills do you possess which make you an excellent bus driver?

I am skilled in many areas, including:

  • Traffic and weather conditions awareness
  • Route planning
  • Vehicle safety
  • Fuel consumption monitoring
  • Passenger support
  • Emergency management
  • Vehicle inspection
  • Luggage loading and unloading
  • Safety rules and conduct enforcement
4. What do you feel that your present employer likes about you the most?

I am positive that they are proud of my sense of safety and responsibility.

5. How do you feel about working in a role where you have dozens of passengers’ responsibilities on your shoulders?

Responsibility is all part of the work. I feel honored that people trust me enough to sit in a vehicle that I am driving. And I have never disappointed anyone.

6. What is your main concern when a breakdown happens?

My main concern is the passengers’ safety. On the rare occasion that my bus has broken down, my first instinct has been to ensure that the passengers remain safe.

7. Have you ever been in an accident? Tell us what happened.

A bus assigned to me was unfortunate enough to have been standing still at a red light when a sedan bumped into it at quite a lot of speed. Thankfully, the bus remained almost unscratched, and no passenger was affected. However, the car driver was quite badly injured.

8. How do you feel about working in inclement weather conditions?

Driving a bus in inclement weather is all in a day’s work for bus drivers. I do not mind it one bit. In fact, it adds variety to my work.

9. How would you rate your ability to drive a bus at night? How do you handle night shifts?

Staying awake at night is not something natural for a human being, so night shifts are obviously more difficult than day shifts. However, if one gets sufficient rest and sleep during the day, night shifts are not too difficult to manage. On a scale of one to ten, I would rate my ability to drive a bus at night at 8.

10. How would you handle it if a fight broke out on the bus that you were driving?

I would have no choice but to stop the bus and intervene to stop the fight immediately. I would then make sure that the perpetrators are seated furthest away from each other for the rest of the ride.

11. Have you used technology to help you with driving?

Yes, I have. I use GPS to chart short and safe routes to my destinations.

12. Have you ever been in a situation when you had to deal with a difficult situation and came out shining?

I was once driving a school bus, and a student insisted that he had permission to get off at his friend’s place and that I should let him. Since I had not been given any specific instructions to support this, I called the school and confirmed. The child was fibbing. My diligence saved the day.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *