Inspiration Behind the Curse of the Possessed Bus Series

Ever go into a place that gives you the creeps, or an uneasy sensation? Weather it be a building, woods, or a vehicle?

For a while, I was a commercial driver. I got my commercial driver's license by practicing on a tractor-trailer. However, I decided to go into being a bus driver after I got my license. Side note: Yes, I am a woman who KNOWS how to drive a standard transmission.

Anyways, I've drove a number of different buses during my time as a bus driver. I've driven nice ones, and down right shitty ones! One bus in particular stuck out like a sore thumb. I will not mention the company name, but I will say the last three numbers of the seven character bus number was 340. The same number I put in the story.

I only had 340 for a few months. It was a spare. My bus had gone for inspection then they were in a bind and gave my bus to another driver. Leaving me with 340. *Insert forehead smack here*

Bus 340 was dropped off at my house and they took my bus back to base. I was out for a couple days do to a concussion I had suffered after being knocked in the noggin by a passenger. I went out to help swap busses. I stepped inside 340 for the first time. Right away, I felt uneasy. It looked like it was pieced together.

Two different style of seats? What is that stain on the ceiling?! Also, what the hell is that death raddle for the first ten minutes of it running, and I got to do WHAT to start it?!

Yes, bus 340 didn't always start by just turning the key. SO when I wrote about the headlight switch and hitting the accelerator to start it... I wasn't joking. Something was definitely wrong with it! I had a major "da'fuck?!" moment with that piece of crap bus.

After my first day with the bus, I was already pissed off with it. I constantly said "This bus needs to be torched and tossed into Lake - " I'm not going to say the Lake because that will revel where I live.

My bus run began before sunrise. I never felt alone on that thing. Ever get that feeling someone is watching you? My passengers sensed something too.

Bus 340 also kept breaking down on me. Lights would flicker, random alarms would blare for no reason. I would have an issue, but the moment I'd go get it repaired... nothing would be wrong with it. I kept saying "Check the electrical or the wiring."

One day, I had to take a day off to attend a good friend's wedding. I dropped 340 off and I told the driver who was going to be doing my run, "this bus is a piece of shit." He laughed it off. I didn't tell him I strongly believed the bus was haunted!

My friend ended up going with that driver. I hadn't told her much of anything except that the bus gave me the creeps!

The next day I was scheduled to work, I went to the bus garage to get my bus. HOPING to maybe get a different bus... nope. The driver who covered my run approached me and said "you didn't tell me about the ghost on your bus..." his voice was serious. Okay, confirmed. It wasn't my imagination!

My friend told me that while it was just her and the driver, they were hearing noises on the bus. Like seatbelts unbuckling.

Then one day was the LAST STRAW! I was doing my afternoon run and without warning, bus 340 got stuck in park. I couldn't get it into drive. Then all my lights went out. I lost all accessories. I tried manually cranking my wheelchair lift, only to get covered in hydraulic fluid.

My passengers were taken off my bus while I kept calling work for assistance. I managed to get my bus out of park AFTER a few hours of struggling and coming to the conclusion nobody was sending me a tow truck.

I got the bus in Neutral. Applied the parking break and waited for a worker from the place I was at to come out. The workers kept checking in on me and told me to let them know when I was leaving. Someone eventually came out and I stepped outside the door for a moment.

I'll never forget the look of fear on that lady's face. All color drained as she pointed into my bus. Like she had just saw a ghost! I hear the clear sound of the emergency/parking break being released. I turn around and bus 340 is rolling backwards towards the woods. I ran after the bus. Got inside and jumped onto the break. It wasn't stopping. So, I tossed it back into park.

Needless to say... it was stuck in park again. But now it had NO BREAKS! So, I wasn't leaving any time soon.

I was fuming! That was the straw that broke the camel's back. The cherry on top! The next work day, I said "give me a different bus or I quit!" They gave me a new bus.

Bus 340 gave me such the uneasiness of feelings that I jokingly said "I could write a horror book about this piece of shit!" Eventually I decided to do so. But I had to make it "book" worthy. I needed a storyline. It took a couple years of brainstorming and note taking before I began writing. I knew I wanted the "Curse of the Possessed Bus" series to be a trilogy.

For privacy, I covered up the company name of the bus. The company has since gone out of business. But this bus was the inspiration behind the series! I was the last driver to ever drive that bus. Nobody else would.