After retiring, one of city’s first female bus drivers reflects on 45 years with Edmonton Transit

After 45 years, Georgina Eccleston decided it was time to unbuckle her seatbelt and retire from her position at Edmonton Transit.

It closes a chapter on a career that began in the mid-1970s.

“Some days it was really tough being out there in a man’s world,” said Eccleston, reflecting on her early days as a bus driver.

“I’ve had people tell me I should be staying home and taking care of my house and children because I was taking a job away from a man.”

But Eccleston still got behind the wheel. She was one of the first 10 female bus operators in Edmonton.

She says she was inspired by Kathleen Andrews, who was Edmonton’s first female bus operator, and now has a garage named after her.

Eccleston says she amassed some memorable moments at her time with Edmonton Transit, but one late night in particular stands out.

“I sort of glanced to the back of the bus and nobody was on the bus, so when I was on Groat Road, I pretended to be a race car driver and went around those curves, and up the road. And suddenly I hear ‘wonk’ and I turn around and someone was sitting in the jump seat right behind the driver’s seat and he fell off the seat when I went around that curve,” said Eccleston with a laugh.

Today, any industry is much more accepting of women working in their field, however Eccleston hopes her story can encourage women to work in male-dominated industries.

“If you can dream it, you can do it,” she said.

Over the weekend, the Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents transit workers in Edmonton, hosted their first in-person event since COVID-19 to honour 224 retirees for 2020-2022.

In a statement, Steve Bradshaw, the president of ATU Local 569, said: “We are marking years of commitment as an essential service, which keeps cities moving. Behind every operator are mechanics, dispatchers, security, and other personnel, who keep buses on the road. Thank you to all the retirees and current city workers, who work tirelessly to move passengers safely to and fro.”

Eccleston has been retired for nearly two years now, and but was one of the honoured retirees over the weekend.

Although she’s enjoying her retirement, she says she misses everyone she worked with.

“The people of transit become your second family and sometimes you spend more time with those people than your own family because of the hours you work, so I really miss the people.”