By Dave Millhouser

Hammering his Scenicruiser west through the night, Leon noticed a familiar odor wafting through his coach.

A couple of facts might bring clarity to the situation. In his life before buses, Leon had been a musician and had some familiarity with the aroma illegal substances make when burning.

And, one of the weaknesses of the Scenicruiser design was the fact the air intake for the HVAC was next to the lavatory door. The whole coach smelled like marijuana and all the passengers were giggling.

Always the clever one, Leon stopped the bus, knocked on the bathroom door and told the three kids inside to come out and throw away the dope.

In ye olden days, we hauled mostly high school kids and every trip was an adventure.

With some of our passengers, the cloud of hormones hovering above the group was so thick that, at sundown, we put boys on one bus, girls on the other, and NEVER passed each other.

One group opened the windows and stuck lacrosse sticks out, rowing in unison, as if we were a Viking longship.

Two things to consider: Yes, I am old enough to remember buses with windows that opened. And, second, we always tried to be aware of what was happening behind us, inside the coach -- whether it was responsibility or self preservation.

Back in the day, one objective was making sure the kids werent hanging body parts far enough out the window to get them lopped off.

Some recent incidents make it clear that what is happening behind the driver remains a major concern.

The tragedy involving hazing in the back of a charter coach is one example. The jury is out as to the ultimate responsibility but there is a ton of anguish for everyone involved. A major concern is what the driver knew and when.

A line carrier was recently embarrassed nationally when a passenger exposed himself to a lady (who later complained the company did not take the incident seriously).

Lavatory wrestling matches have resulted in the loser being ejected and quickly becoming a tumbling pedestrian when window latching let go.

California is considering a "Party Bus" law that would hold drivers legally responsible for such things as underage passengers using illegal substances.

If we accept the concept that drivers, like ship captains, are responsible for all that happens on their passage, then its worthwhile to give thought to how you want them to handle things.

One part can surely involve training.

Bus builders mount mirrors, inside and out, for a reason. Remind drivers to use them for both traffic and awareness of what is going on inside the coach.

In driver meetings, consider discussing how to handle situations that might arise. Role playing might work and you can bet many of your drivers have stories to share.

Sometimes (GASP!), alcohol may be aboard, and ultimately it may be the carrier who pays for any mischief that results, so have policies in place.

There are some new technologies that help. One major carrier that operates double-deck coaches has monitors on the upper level, so the driver can see what is happening. A mirror does fine on most buses but the fact this company spends big dollars on an electronic system demonstrates how important it considers the interior environment.

Some "event recorders" have the ability to record the interior if there is an incident, and many school and transit operators now mount interior cameras to capture unusual occurrences. These generally are "after the fact," but may provide deterrence, as well as evidence.

Not so long ago, sophisticated operators boasted of having "Radio Equipped" coaches accurately implying that communication via airwaves was a safety feature. Medical, logistical or police help was immediately available (a big deal to seniors).

With cell phones and other modern electronics, virtually every coach is "Radio Equipped" but its worthwhile to provide training in how you want them used.

In addition to explaining new regulations regarding driver cell phone use, consider offering guidance on who to call in various circumstances how, and what, to report.

Scenicruisers had another quirk. The batteries were on a rolling tray above the radiator. Someone forgot to replace the locking pin one day, and a left turn rolled the tray out. Then, those jewels fell off.

As the coach rolled down the two lane, banging, dangling batteries spewed acid all over the bus back end, as well as fellow travelers. Then the cables broke.

The drivers first hint of trouble came when he tried to re-start the bus after a stop. When he called in, we told him to check the batteries.

"What batteries?"

An early glance at the mirror might have given him a hint of trouble, and prevented the convoy of acid-etched "fellow travelers" that soon "explained" to him where his batteries had gone.

Dave Millhouser is a bus industry marketing consultant and freelance writer. Contact him by email at Davemillhouser@gmail.com.