O'Hare Bus Driver Shirley White 'Knows How To Deliver' A Warm Welcome To Travelers
CHICAGO (CBS) -- When you land at O'Hare International Airport, Shirley White might be one of the first people you meet, and she'll give you a ride like none other if you hop on her bus to the airport's rental car center.
Anyone renting a car at O'Hare needs to take a bus to the airport's consolidated rental car center to pick up their vehicle. That ride could be a genuine bore, but passengers on Shirley's bus are in for a treat.
"It was fun, relaxed, and very interactive," passenger Paige McPeek said.
CBS 2 photojournalist Tim Viste tagged along with White, who has proven to be a terrific ambassador for Chicago, who sings to and jokes with her passengers.
"Can I get you guys to have a little bit of fun on the way to the rental center, play a little bit of trivia, a little bit of knowledge?" she asked, quizzing her passengers about everything from the world's busiest airport to what country came up with the Christmas tree.
"I see you looking at me like I'm crazy," she joked with travelers.
When she asked passengers to name the worst airport in the U.S., she jokingly threatened to kick off anyone who answered O'Hare. For the record, a recent study by travel startup AirHelp ranked Newark Liberty Airport as the worst in the nation.
Before driving the bus at O'Hare, White was a truck driver and a Megabus driver, and has visited 48 of the 50 states.
"Yeah, I've been around," she said.
Chicago Department of Aviation chief operating officer Kieran Sheridan called her "someone who knows how to deliver the welcome that we as Chicagoans wish to deliver to folks who are coming into the city."