Uncommon courtesy? Viral video shows Victoria transit riders thanking bus drivers
A U.S. woman's visit to British Columbia's capital city has been making waves on the internet.
A viral video by Corrin Carlson shows Victoria transit passengers thanking their bus drivers as they leave.
The video was uploaded to TikTok on Monday, and has garnered more than 6 million views and tens of thousands of comments in about 24 hours.
Subtitles also indicate another polite aspect of the post; drivers can be heard happily responding with cheerful goodbyes.
'INCREDIBLY ENDEARING'
Carlson was visiting Victoria with her partner, who is originally from the West Coast city.
"I had just fallen in love with the way that Canadian buses, or at least in Victoria, say, 'Sorry not in service,' which is something that I just hadn't seen before," she told CTV News from Minneapolis, Min.
"I used to live in New York City and I can tell you their buses never apologized for not being in service," she said.
BC Transit buses are pictured in downtown Victoria. (CTV News)
Carlson shared her appreciation about the "not in service" signs with her partner's friends, who told her to wait until she was on the bus and heard how people thanked the driver.
"So I went onto the bus prepared for this and I just found it incredibly endearing," she said.
"There was so much joy, certainly, but I tried not to be creepy about it. I didn't want to start giggling on the bus while people said 'Thank you,'" she explained.
Corrin Carlson is pictured on a bus in Victoira, B.C. (Corrin Carlson/TikTok)
Carlson says she was also happy to see that passengers from a range of different ages and backgrounds all thanked the bus drivers in Victoria.
"You can see the oldest person is probably in his late 60s, and you can hear from the youngest person that she was probably about five," she said.
'IMPORTANT TRADITION'
The province's transit operator has been watching the video catch fire online.
"The relationship our drivers have with our customers is really important to them, and that greeting when people get on the bus, and the 'thank you' when they depart, is greatly appreciated," said Jamie Weiss, senior media relations advisor for BC Transit.
"We realize this isn’t something that happens everywhere, and BC Transit wants to say thank you to all our customers who keep this important tradition going," he said.
Carlson is a travel and food blogger, as well as a content creator, and she says this video is her most popular yet.
"Whenever I do have a video that goes 'viral,' when you look at the comments just like in this video it's people saying, 'That's how I do it in my home.' Or, 'That's not how I do it in my country.' And people really enjoy getting to see how things are different or similar all around the world," she said.
Carlson says comments from across the globe seem to indicate that other residents also thank their bus drivers, including commenters from Australia, Hawaii, New Zealand, South Africa, and from "around Europe."
Even some Americans have said it's normal for passengers to thank their bus drivers in their community.
"It's just because I lived in New York and no one did it there," said Carlson.
At the same time, she notes that some Canadians have said "we definitely don't do this [over here]."
"As an American I just have this stigma, 'All Canadians are nice,' right? And so I see something that affirms that, I post a video about that," she said. "But I understand Canada is huge and it has many different regions, just like the U.S."
At noon on Tuesday, the video had 6.1 million views, 753,000 likes and 26,000 comments.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Iran's president and foreign minister die in helicopter crash at moment of high tensions in Mideast
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the country's foreign minister were found dead Monday hours after their helicopter crashed in fog, leaving the Islamic Republic without two key leaders as extraordinary tensions grip the wider Middle East.
Woman in her 30s in critical condition after her truck collided with a Via Rail train near Montreal
A woman in her 30s is in critical condition after the pick-up truck she was driving was struck by a Via Rail passenger train Monday morning in Quebec's Monteregie region.
What is BORG drinking, and why is it a dangerous trend? An expert explains
If you’ve been to a party lately and haven’t seen someone drinking a BORG, you’re likely not partying with college students.
Five weeks stand between MPs and the BBQ circuit, here's what the Liberals want to pass first
When MPs file back in to the House of Commons on Tuesday, it will be for the final five-week parliamentary push before hitting the barbecue circuit. Looking ahead to what could be a raucous rush to the summer hiatus, CTVNews.ca spoke with top House representatives to get a sense of what's atop their priority list.
ICC prosecutor seeks arrest warrant for Israeli and Hamas leaders, including Netanyahu
The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Monday he is seeking arrest warrants for leaders of Israel and Hamas, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, over actions taken during their seven-month war.
The world's best airline is paying staff a bonus of 8 months' salary
Singapore Airlines will reward its employees with a bonus worth nearly eight months of salary, a person familiar with the matter told CNN on Friday.
Britain slammed in inquiry for infecting thousands with tainted blood and covering up the scandal
British authorities and the country's public health service knowingly exposed tens of thousands of patients to deadly infections through contaminated blood and blood products, and hid the truth about the disaster for decades, an inquiry into the U.K.'s infected blood scandal found Monday.
What we know so far about the helicopter crash that killed Iran's president
The apparent crash of a helicopter carrying Iran's president and foreign minister on Sunday sent shock waves around the region.
Red Lobster seeks bankruptcy protection with US$100 million in financing commitments
U.S.-based restaurant chain Red Lobster has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a Florida court after securing $100 million in financing commitments from its existing lenders, the company said on Sunday.