How Can I Take A Job If There’s No Bus?

Owning your own vehicle is a privilege that not everyone has. Oh sure it comes with its share of costs; oil and gas, repairs and insurance, but for many who drive, it makes getting around so much easier.

Let’s suppose though that you don’t have a vehicle and you rely on public transit for all your transportation needs. When it comes to employment, one of your first considerations is whether the job is on a bus route, or even if it is, you have to ensure that there’s a bus running whenever it is that you finish your work shifts. With no bus option, you can’t possibly consider taking a job right?

Well, not necessarily. While it’s only being responsible to look at how you’ll get to and from a job from wherever it is you live, I would advise you not to categorically rule out a job if the only problem you see is this. You are right though to realize this barrier to employment exists, and it now becomes a challenge for you to put your problem-solving skills to work; the same problem-solving skills you’re marketing on your resume!

Here’s a few things to consider as possible solutions to the, ‘no car’ issue. With no bus route, every other employee with no vehicle who currently works where you’re considering working has had or continues to have, the same problem. Planning on asking how they’ve addressed this problem might reveal a carpool you can join. Or perhaps the usual practice is for 3 or 4 people to jointly call and share a cab just far enough to get to a bus stop and from there they go their separate ways. What you assumed might be a $25 cab ride every day might in such a case only be a $5.00 ride.

Another possibility is that there is a bus that gets you to work, but the bus no longer runs when you get off at 1 a.m. for example. Okay that’s a problem, and for reasons of safety, you sure don’t want to be walking alone at night from some isolated industrial location. This only makes sense and I entirely empathize as I wouldn’t want that walk either. However, there’s still options. First of all, the transit problem is only one way; you can get there on the bus during the times it runs. You might ask in advance of applying if the company has made arrangements you are presently unaware of to safeguard their employees. There could be a practice of leaving in pairs, some provision for company-assisted cabs rides, and yes, maybe calling Uber or some ride share program.

There is another thing you can do and that is to ascertain how many employees are getting to and from work who rely on transit. If you were to lobby the Transit Company, would they see the profit in extending their route or the hours of an existing route to pick you all up at the end of your shifts? If you don’t ask, the status quo remains.

Another option is the combination of a bus ride and your bicycle. There are many buses running now that have storage racks for bikes at the front. Is it possible then to travel on the bus and when it gets to its closest destination, you can depart and ride your bike the final kilometre or two? Maybe this doesn’t work year-round, but for 8 month’s or more of the year, it could be your solution. Fresh air and some exercise benefits you won’t get on a bus alone. Maybe you can borrow the car of a friend or family member too.

Finally, another solution is perhaps the one that most people actually report is how they solved their own issues. Have you guessed already? Talking to your co-workers and asking if someone goes your way and might be willing to drop you off. Offering to share the costs of getting a lift might be the answer and you’ll only be able to do this once you start working and talking to co-workers.

The point I am making here is that there are essentially 3 reactions you can have when you realize there is no transit option for a job posting you’d love to apply to.

1. You can immediately dismiss the job as an option
2. You can look at transit as a problem to solve and the degree to which you really want the job will determine how little or great the effort is to solve it.
3. You can inquire of the employer if there is another shift you’re unaware of that better aligns with when buses do run if it’s a case of being on a bus route but no buses run when you start or end a shift.

Like all problems and personal weaknesses or challenges, it’s not so much having them but what you’re doing to actively work on them that is important. How long have you had this travel problem? Have you made any progress in fixing it? So for example how much money have you saved up in a dedicated fund to buy your first car? You might only need $500 or $1000 to get a used car, insure it and get it on the road. Dream car? No. But, this starter car might allow you to get that good paying job and from there work on getting a better one down the road. Down the road…. ha! I made a funny.