by Jim Campanini

LOWELL – For thousands of people over the past 50 years, LRTA bus driver Norris “Bucky” Chew represented a welcoming sign of a new day as he greeted riders with a “good morning” smile and a steady presence behind the wheel.

On Friday, June 26, the LRTA will recognize Chew’s five decades of dedicated public transit service with a ceremony at the company’s Hale Street bus and maintenance headquarters in Lowell.

Norris “Bucky” Chew, 78, is retiring, noting with a touch of humor that it is time to ride off into the sunset on his cherished Harley Davidson.

“My partner (Linda) has a note pad at home and she’s making a honeydew list (of things to do). I think I’m going to be busy,” he says. “I think it’s going to be fun.”

A proud U.S. Army and Vietnam War-era veteran – and an equally proud member of ATU Local 1578 representing LRTA union employees – Chew says he has many good memories on his career, which began in June 1976 during the Lowell Regional Transit Authority’s initial year of operations.

Chew, then 28 years old, was among the inaugural group of bus drivers hired by Jim O’Sullivan, the LRTA’s first of five administrators over 50 years.

“Originally, we had 14 routes and maybe two dozen buses,” recalled Chew. “We used MBTA buses.”

Later, as the LRTA expanded into surrounding communities, Chew says he wanted to drive the Chelmsford/Westford route “because I thought we could stop at Kimball’s (in Westford) and get an ice cream cone. Not a chance.” He laughs heartily about the memory.

The LRTA now has its own fleet of 54 buses and has expanded to 21 fixed-bus routes serving 14 member communities.

“Yeah, you can say I’ve grown up with the LRTA. I’ve seen the communities change too, some for the better and some maybe not so good,” says Chew. “But the best part of the job,” he adds, “was getting to know some of the regular riders …. I’ve had two generations of families riding the bus. I took them to school, work, shopping, doctor’s appointments … We’d share stories. I love to talk about food.”

Chew grew up in North Providence, R.I., where his father owned a machine shop and taught his curious teen-age son how to manufacture tools – and use them.

The skillset served him well.

Drafted into the Army at 19, Chew was classified as an “engineer” and sent to Germany to help build out military outposts and bomb storage facilities. He completed his military service two years later.

Eventually, he took a job driving long-haul produce trucks from Massachusetts to the Midwest and back.

“It was a long trip in those days, and I’d be away from home and the family for a week or more at a time,” says Chew, who is the father of two children. “I wanted to get a job close to home. That’s what led me to the LRTA.”

Chew says he never really contemplated leaving the LRTA – even when things could get frustrating.

“Bus drivers have a lot of responsibility and public safety is the top priority. Sometimes riders don’t understand what we do … The best bus drivers must learn to bite their tongue. Stay calm,” he says.

LRTA General Manager George Anastas credits Chew for “building good relationships” with riders and LRTA co-workers.

“We’ve never had a complaint on Bucky, because he puts out fires in a professional manner and respects people,” says Anastas.

By LRTA estimates, it is believed that Chew has logged more than 750,000 miles in his 50 years of public transit service. That’s like driving a bus from the LRTA to the moon (238,855 miles away) three times.

LRTA Administrator Dave Bradley marvels at Chew’s longevity and outstanding career.

“Do you know how many lives he’s touched in Greater Lowell? It’s very impressive to say the least,” he says. “Bucky has been an integral part of the LRTA, from its early beginnings to the present day. We wish him the best.”

Chew lives in Nashua, N.H., with his longtime partner Linda Ferris. Both are motorcycle enthusiasts and regularly plan New England trips with friends on their vintage Harley Davidsons.

They also participate in fund-raising events for U.S. veterans and VA hospitals and have ridden in several Rolling Thunder DC Memorial Day rallies that attract up to 100,000 motorcyclists annually to the nation’s capital.

So, there are still plenty of rides left in Norris “Bucky” Chew’s future and hopefully one of them is to Kimball’s Ice Cream stand – either by bus or motorcycle. #30#