PSTA’s Longest-Serving Bus Operator to Retire

Before power steering and air conditioning — there was Dave Beck.

The year was 1975. The hourly wage for a bus operator at the St. Petersburg Municipal Transit System (SPMTS) was just over $2, and a ride across town would cost you 10 cents.

Forty years later, Dave Beck will retire from the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) as the agency’s longest-serving bus operator — ever.

“It’s been a long journey,” said Beck. “In a way, I am ready to see it go, but it is like a second home to me. There are people I met on the bus who are still friends of mine fifteen years later.”

Born and raised in St. Petersburg, Beck said he always wanted to be a bus driver. “My first word was bus,” said Beck. “It wasn’t mommy or daddy — it was bus.”

He said it was preordained for him to drive a bus and never looked back.

The son of a Greyhound bus mechanic, Beck remembers a time when transit meant more than just getting from one place to another.

“It was a way of life back then; people wanted to ride the bus,” he said. “I remember riding the scenic cruises on the Greyhound and thinking it was the coolest thing.” 

Being a bus operator forty years ago had its own quirks.

“You had to hand-crank your sign, then the side sign, and then the sign in the back,” said Beck.

The buses also did not have power steering. “We all looked like Popeye,” said Beck. “And it wasn’t the spinach.”

It would be nearly another decade before PSTA would even come into existence.

Beck’s greatest accomplishment at PSTA is his 38-year safe driving streak—the longest in the history of the agency.

“Dave is a reminder of the timeless impression we have on our community,” said PSTA Chief Executive Officer Brad Miller. “His hard-work and dedication will not be forgotten.”

PSTA appreciates the dedication of its nearly 600 employees and is thankful to Beck for his four decades of service to our community.

Beck currently lives with his wife in St. Petersburg and has one daughter. He looks forward to spending time with his family and grand-cats.