By the Way... Thank You

A few years ago when I began riding the buses in Vancouver, BC, Canada, I was struck by and amazed at the fact that most of the people getting off of the bus would yell out, ‘thank you’ to the driver as they left.  Seeing it once, interesting, but I began to see it over and over again from most of the bus riders leaving the bus.  Why are they thanking him/her I asked myself.  The bus driver gets us where we are going, on an established route, no less.  Sometimes the driver accomplishes that fact better than other times.  So the bus driver is doing a job, not even necessarily a good job.  But people are still saying thank you.  I can’t say that I can think of too many jobs where you are thanked for doing a job, so often, by so many. 
I thought perhaps this was a Canadian phenomenon and chalked it up to that. 
I am now riding the bus in Bellingham, WA, and guess what?  People do it here also.  People leaving the bus are constantly saying thank you.  I am just deciding to not think it odd anymore and just accept it.  I am going to watch other places and see how many people say thank you for someone doing a job they are supposed to be doing.  We tip waiters and waitresses.  Sometimes we say thank you to them, mostly if they bring us something we asked for.  I guess its good that people are polite.  and perhaps they are teaching us something about gratitude. 
Oh, and by the way...  Thank you all who follow this and read these words.  I really do appreciate it. 
Thank you...