It took Timothy Thompson a few tries to get into Metro Transit, but he’s glad he did.  

"I kept not getting a high enough score until I realized that there were a few trick questions,” Thompson said. “Once I figured that out, I passed.”

While he had experience as a school bus driver, he began his career as a vault puller because there wasn’t a need for more operators. He enjoyed the job, but it was his next career move that gave him his calling.  

“Being a cleaner is my career, and I loved doing it,” Thompson said. “My goal every day was to have the cleanest buses in the system, the region, and the nation.” 

He enjoyed it so much that others took notice, and he helped train in new cleaners that came onboard. Thompson also sees his work as integral to setting the mood for everyone in the system. As a customer himself, he was always checking every bus he rode to and from work.  

“When a bus operator gets onboard a dirty bus, it puts them in a bad mood to start the day,” he said. “And it impacts the customers who ride that bus, too. I just wanted to make sure everyone was happy onboard.”  

During the pandemic, the role of cleaner became the cornerstone of helping deliver essential rides to customers who had no other options. “We were cleaning, sanitizing, and fogging buses as often as possible,” Thompson said.  

Retiring after 34 years of service, Thompson plans to take up woodworking inside his new barn next to his home on about five acres of land. And as he leaves, he knows that his time here set him up for his retirement that he’ll spend with his wife, four kids, and grandchild.  

“I got my pension from a good company with great pay and good hours,” Thompson said. “I wish I would have started earlier.”