On the Navy Yard bus, which runs all year, McKnight sees mostly city residents who are on their way to or going home from work.

Before starting an early-morning shift of the loop last Friday, McKnight draped the driver’s seat of his bus with a fuzzy pepperoni pizza blanket (he almost went with his Golden Girls blanket that reads “Thug Life,” but chose the pie instead).

His first pickup was at Broad and Pattison, where he kept close watch on the clock to make sure he left at the scheduled departure time — 7:10 a.m.

“Gotta go!” he yelled.

Over the course of the next several hours and several loops (McKnight can drive up to 32 loops on a split-shift day), he picked up riders who were still half asleep, a man heading to a job interview, a woman in from out of town on business, some stone-faced shipyard workers, and longtime passengers like Lennora White.

White, 65, of Overbrook, has worked at the Navy Yard for 40 years and said she enjoys riding with McKnight, whom she exchanges treats and snacks with from time to time.

“He’s a good guy,” White said. “He’s on point, he’s on time, and he wants to get you to work on time, which I love.”

‘Impart a lesson’

McKnight’s punctuality and penchant for rising early comes in handy at his second job, with a company that places substitute teachers in K-12 charter schools in Philly.

He said his first day subbing was “laid back, pleasant, and enjoyable,” but other days, it’s been challenging.

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