National Transit Driver Appreciation Day

March 18th

On March 18—Transit Driver Appreciation Day—join us in showering MTD operators with appreciation for their essential work. Here are several ways to express your gratitude and support:

• Bring your own or pick up a card from the Transit Center with a personal note and hand it to the customer service representatives at the Transit Center.
• Say “Good morning!” or “Good afternoon!” when getting on the bus, and a hearty “Thank you!” when getting off the bus.
• Submit your commendation in the form below.
• Tweet or post to Instagram a photo of yourself at the bus stop or relaxing on the bus, using the #TDAD hashtag and tagging us at @SantaBarbaraMTD.

MTD Behind the Scenes

In honor of all that MTD Drivers do for passengers every day, we want to highlight some of the things you may not know drivers do both behind the scenes and while driving you from place to place.

They operate under an inflexible schedule to keep us moving.

Our drivers show up to work every day, rain or shine, and are ready to go. They inspect their bus, both for mechanical-related reasons and to ensure it’s clean. They operate it with safety and timeliness always in mind and do it all with a smile on their face (even under the mask).

They work early and late hours, on weekends and holidays.

While you’re at home with family celebrating Christmas Eve, enjoying Fourth of July fireworks, or bringing in the New Year, our drivers are out there getting people where they need to go. Being a MTD driver means showing up for our passengers even during holidays.

They go above and beyond for everyone, no matter their age or ability.

Drivers go to educational presentations to help our youth and senior riders learn how to navigate transportation on their own.

Every day drivers support disabled and senior riders when they need some assistance or patience in a fast-paced environment.  They assist customers with using the ramp and help secure them in place.

Last but not least, they extend their helping hands when our community is in need.

Drivers assisted hundreds of rescued individuals with transport to the Red Cross shelter during Santa Barbara’s devastating debris flow tragedy.

During this unparalleled time in our history, our operators kept our community moving. While many people followed public health guidance to stay home, our operators never stopped. From essential work to critical medical appointments and grocery trips, they were, and are, with us every step of the way.