It took less than a day in Panama City to notice the crazy bus system they’ve got going on here. The city buses are privately owned and operated completely independent of the city.

The “Red Devils,” as they are affectionately called, were obvious to us for a few reasons.

1 – They are recycled US school buses.

2 – The Red Devils are packed so full of passengers that people are normally spilling out of the doors.

3 – Since they are all private, each individual bus owner does their best to make each bus splashier and more eye-catching than all the others. Bright colored paint, air brushing, and graffiti-style designs decorate many of the buses.

4 – The bus’ destination is printed on the wind shield in wild and wacky colors, and there is normally a man that stands on the steps of the bus and yells out the destination.

Red Devil Panama City

While I really like Panama’s Red Devils, I could see why others look at them as an eye sore and a hazard. Apparently, they aren’t always that safe.

Straight out of our Fodors travel book it says: “Tourists are most comfortable in cabs here. There are no written bus routes and the “Red Devil” buses are often in the news for their unsafe conditions.”

This, to me, is a bummer. I’m a fan of mass transportation. I feel like you haven’t really explored a city until you’ve navigated the maps and routes of mass transit. But, I’m also a fan of safety. On top of that, we can walk many places and cabs are only $2 within the downtown area so I’m not complaining.

If you want to know more about the Red Devils, check out my Squidoo lens on Panama Red Devil Buses. Time magazine published an article about the buses yesterday too. There’s a link to the article on my lens.