Dublin Bus Driver Insults Disabled Student

Azalea · 29-11-2015 12:08am

Yakkyda wrote: »

there was a long haired ginger French guy that used to drive on the 41 routes a few years back, a great character, great craic no matter what. Once seen him kick the dashboard after overloading the bus on a Friday evening into town(to shut the overlead buzzer up) , because he didn't want to leave anyone at the bus stops. An absolute gent, anyone that has come across him would surely remember him.

Oh my god, forgot about him - fantastic fella, so lovely!

moneymad wrote: »

waaaaaaaaaa

Stand up for yourself and stop looking to get offended at every turn. He was obviously having a bad day, get over it.

If it's true, no, the driver is at fault, and objecting to that is not looking to get offended or being a baby.

Mesrine65 wrote: »

My disabled son had his Free Travel Pass confiscated by a Bus Eireann bus driver during the school holidays, despite him explaining that he had applied for & was waiting for the new Public Services Card.

He effectively left my son stranded, without a way of getting home, as he had no money with him.

Complained to Bus Eireann via e-mail & have yet to receive an reply/explanation/apology.

Use social media instead of email - tweet or public post to Facebook. Be polite about it and bear in mind the social media staff won't know about the incident, aren't responsible for it, and will be limited in what they can say, as they will only have your word for it. But that is likely to get actioned more promptly than email.

moneyman wrote: »

Fair point, but most of the people defending the driver are saying that the passenger deserved it (maybe so), but it doesn't work like that when you're working.

I deal with an insane amount of ****heads every day on the phone (not customer service). But I can hardly say "I'm going to take my time helping you now since you were a smart c*nt, put the f**king phone down if you don't like it). Work is work. No matter how wrong the customer is, you can't abuse them. Unless you're employed by an awful company who is willing to overlook that sort of stuff.

As I said, 90% (at least) of DB drivers are great. But anyone who takes DB regularly knows there is a small % who are absolute dickheads and will happily ruin your day and pretend nothing happened.

But what I'm saying is, we don't actually know the true details of the engagement, so we don't have much grounds for judgement of the driver OR passenger. All we can do is speculate - in relation to both - but not decide just because of our personal prejudices (e.g. being anti public sector) to choose which one to believe because it suits us.

foggy_lad · 29-11-2015 12:48am

Mesrine65 wrote: »

My disabled son had his Free Travel Pass confiscated by a Bus Eireann bus driver during the school holidays, despite him explaining that he had applied for & was waiting for the new Public Services Card.

He effectively left my son stranded, without a way of getting home, as he had no money with him.

Complained to Bus Eireann via e-mail & have yet to receive an reply/explanation/apology.

There was a lot of that on Bus Éireann services earlier in the year with some drivers believing that the old passes had been withdrawn completely once the new passes started to appear.

They listened to canteen gossip instead of waiting for a memo to be posted on the notice boards about it and the funny thing is they would get into serious trouble if a complaint was made especially about a child being left stranded! It says a lot about some drivers that they would drop their colleagues in it so deeply with their idle gossip.

As for Dublin Bus drivers, they do put up with some crap from passengers but more so from other road users including cyclists who don't appreciate the danger posed by these massive buses and especially taxis who think it is ok to stop dead in front of a bus in traffic as they pull in to pick up or drop off a passenger.

This type of thing happens when a driver lets all the crap of the shift build up and overflow onto some innocent person.

Berserker · 29-11-2015 1:29am

Flatzie_poo wrote: »

No joke - was living in the Russell Square area, travelling to Fulham broadway in most cases - they were great!

Was in that part of London too and they were really friendly.

Iwasfrozen · 29-11-2015 1:31am

Joeytheparrot wrote: »

Why on earth would you contact a solicitor first?

Why on earth wouldn't you? If a person insulted my character and threatened violence against me why would I go to their employer before my solicitor?

Yakkyda · 29-11-2015 1:56am

[Deleted User] wrote: »

If he was there he was driving the bus

Or perhaps a passenger that witnessed the alleged situation?. Most likely a few people witnessed this incident , if it actually happened I'm surprised that no footage has emerged or is there a picture of the bus driver. It seems like pure bull**** to me tbf.

Dyr · 29-11-2015 1:59am

Azalea wrote: »

Use social media instead of email - tweet or public post to Facebook. Be polite about it and bear in mind the social media staff won't know about the incident, aren't responsible for it, and will be limited in what they can say, as they will only have your word for it. But that is likely to get actioned more promptly than email.

Dublin bus will delete any complaint that's put on their facebook page, they say its only for news.

Just another reminder of why they're one of the most unpopular companys in Ireland

Azalea · 29-11-2015 2:06am

Had a look there - they take queries on Twitter. It must be annoying for the person manning Twitter to get blamed for a particular bus being delayed, but still good to give feedback and put queries to them that they can look into.

Annasopra · 29-11-2015 2:10am

Bambi wrote: »

Dublin bus will delete any complaint that's put on their facebook page, they say its only for news.

Just another reminder of why they're one of the most unpopular companys in Ireland

Are they?

Iwasfrozen · 29-11-2015 2:15am

Azalea wrote: »

Had a look there - they take queries on Twitter. It must be annoying for the person manning Twitter to get blamed for a particular bus being delayed, but still good to give feedback and put queries to them that they can look into.

They really need to sort their **** out when it comes to timetables. It seems no effort at all is put into matching the timetables.

Yakkyda · 29-11-2015 2:31am

Azalea wrote: »

Oh my god, forgot about him - fantastic fella, so lovely!

So glad somebody here remembers him, he was/is an absolute star, such a nice guy, always in great form. Thanks azalea!

Dyr · 29-11-2015 2:34am

Joeytheparrot wrote: »

Are they?

http://www.thejournal.ie/irelands-least-favourite-companies-revealed-2088804-May2015/

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime · 29-11-2015 3:11am

As a bus driver here.

Those old school paper passes need to be gone already. It should be new cards only. Too much fraud going on with them.

Generally when someone shows me a pass and they sort of look like they would have it then no problem. But the ones that are young, look perfectly fine etc. They get looked at.

Once had a foreign bloke get on the bus and flash his paper pass. I called him back to check his pass and he ran off the bus down the road !

But more enforcement and checking is needed also.

For this incident I'd wait for the outcome and the facts before passing judgement.

Also I've asked about that 769 a week wage. It doesn't really exist! I've brought it up with unions etc and feck all has been done about it. The actual wage is about 500 - 560 a week after tax etc. which is making me think twice as i can make the same money elsewhere with less crap.

etoughguy · 29-11-2015 10:13am

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime wrote: »

As a bus driver here.

Those old school paper passes need to be gone already. It should be new cards only. Too much fraud going on with them.

Generally when someone shows me a pass and they sort of look like they would have it then no problem. But the ones that are young, look perfectly fine etc. They get looked at.

Once had a foreign bloke get on the bus and flash his paper pass. I called him back to check his pass and he ran off the bus down the road !

But more enforcement and checking is needed also.

For this incident I'd wait for the outcome and the facts before passing judgement.

Also I've asked about that 769 a week wage. It doesn't really exist! I've brought it up with unions etc and feck all has been done about it. The actual wage is about 500 - 560 a week after tax etc. which is making me think twice as i can make the same money elsewhere with less crap.

I hope you dont drink Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime while driving the bus?

You'd probably spill loads of it

Ray Palmer · 29-11-2015 12:04pm

foggy_lad wrote: »

As for Dublin Bus drivers, they do put up with some crap from passengers but more so from other road users including cyclists who don't appreciate the danger posed by these massive buses and especially taxis who think it is ok to stop dead in front of a bus in traffic as they pull in to pick up or drop off a passenger.

There have been a few comments on how stressful their job is and cyclists being some special stress. That is their job and if they can't handle it don't do it. From my experience most bus drivers can handle their job dealing with all traffic. There are of course those who can't and aggressively bully other road users.
Here is an example of a bus driver veering into a cycle lane and being aggressive. I know some people seem to think the cyclist is in the wrong but he is in a cycle lane that the driver is not meant to enter as it is a continuous white and isn't indicating. Then happily says he will kill the cyclist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwqRqIvo4GU

suicide_circus · 29-11-2015 12:34pm

That video appears to show a cyclist deliberately putting themselves at risk in order to try out their new GoPro camera.

Teyla Emmagan · 29-11-2015 12:37pm

Like hell did the bus driver chase him up the road.

The rest of it might be true, but who knows.

Dyr · 29-11-2015 1:35pm

Teyla Emmagan wrote: »

Like hell did the bus driver chase him up the road.

The rest of it might be true, but who knows.

we need to erect cycling tunnels or soemthing to protect everyone else from cyclists

AlekSmart · 29-11-2015 3:05pm

suicide_circus wrote: »

That video appears to show a cyclist deliberately putting themselves at risk in order to try out their new GoPro camera.

C'mon lads keep up there....the clip in Ray Palmer's post is 18 months old now.....our Go-Pro man has not alone survived,but has actually thrived out there on the mean-streets...

Fair point on the "Deliberately" issue though....kinda begs the question as to why other cyclists can progress through the Same Locations as this gent,yet experience no problems ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Saimakt6hrI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sR-MlmcuCl4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq9K4Z3Nnbk

Poor oul Mrs Go-Pro must get some earful when her man eventually gets home...?

AlekSmart · 29-11-2015 3:32pm

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime wrote: »

As a bus driver here.......

.......Also I've asked about that 769 a week wage. It doesn't really exist! I've brought it up with unions etc and feck all has been done about it. The actual wage is about 500 - 560 a week after tax etc. which is making me think twice as i can make the same money elsewhere with less crap.

I'd have to disagree with this interpretation of wage rates.

Apart from post 2012 drivers pay scale being extended from 4 years to 6,the start and end points remain unchanged and apply across the board.

One significant misunderstanding,judging from your post,is your use of the AFTER TAX figure.

This net figure is different for each individual depending upon their circumstances and is in no-way,an indicator of the overall wage rate/scale.

I doubt very much whether ANY employee,anywhere,can ever be said to be satisfied with their take-home pay !!!!

Azalea · 29-11-2015 3:38pm

Ray Palmer wrote: »

There have been a few comments on how stressful their job is and cyclists being some special stress. That is their job and if they can't handle it don't do it. From my experience most bus drivers can handle their job dealing with all traffic. There are of course those who can't and aggressively bully other road users.
Here is an example of a bus driver veering into a cycle lane and being aggressive. I know some people seem to think the cyclist is in the wrong but he is in a cycle lane that the driver is not meant to enter as it is a continuous white and isn't indicating. Then happily says he will kill the cyclist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwqRqIvo4GU

"If you find your job stressful, don't do it" is very simplistic, and could be said about any job. If people took this approach there would be no nurses or doctors or teachers or chefs. People can be good at their job, love their job, yet still have instances of stress due to time constraints and lack of resources and dealing with idiots - it's life. And this should be respected and empathised with in my opinion. It does not give anyone in any job the right to be rude or bullying though, of course, but it is worth bearing in mind if they're not being very cheerful.

extra gravy · 29-11-2015 3:41pm

Flatzie_poo wrote: »

You might be happy with "grand," but when I'm a paying customer I expect a little more.

Such as? As long as they get me from A to B in one piece, that's all I care about and it's what I pay for. After all that is their job, not to humour needy people with idle chitchat and empty platitudes.

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime · 29-11-2015 4:15pm

AlekSmart wrote: »

I'd have to disagree with this interpretation of wage rates.

Apart from post 2012 drivers pay scale being extended from 4 years to 6,the start and end points remain unchanged and apply across the board.

One significant misunderstanding,judging from your post,is your use of the AFTER TAX figure.

This net figure is different for each individual depending upon their circumstances and is in no-way,an indicator of the overall wage rate/scale.

I doubt very much whether ANY employee,anywhere,can ever be said to be satisfied with their take-home pay !!!!

Before tax in the first year its 107.80
In the sixth year before tax is 124.82

All per day before tax. They are the official rates.

So in 6 years the pay goes up by approx 20 euro per day before tax. Which in my opinion is still not worth it for this job.

Also in my opinion the drivers can be worse to deal with than the passenger's

AlekSmart · 29-11-2015 6:19pm

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime wrote: »

Before tax in the first year its 107.80
In the sixth year before tax is 124.82

All per day before tax. They are the official rates.

So in 6 years the pay goes up by approx 20 euro per day before tax. Which in my opinion is still not worth it for this job.

Also in my opinion the drivers can be worse to deal with than the passenger's

All valid points,for sure...however,in relation to wage rates,you originally suggested that the upper figure "Does'nt really exist",but as you point out here,it actually does.

What any job is "worth" is always up for debate,and I suppose,it resolves back down to what an individual is prepared to do it for.

Both Irish PSV,and Road Haulage sectors have plenty of people working for similar or lesser amounts.9

What each individual employee takes home,is a very big variable,as so many personal decisions influence it.

The only other variable is the time taken to reach that rate.

For sure the Busdrivers pay is not in the IFA league,however I would suggest that,as with the general workforce,any increases will be tied to "productivity" deals.

With over 2,500 individual drivers now employed in Dublin Bus,I'd agree that some of them could be "worse to deal with"...although,you can be sure that some of those will say pretty much the same about you.

...It's kinda like life itself really....some of it's good,some of it's crap ?

Not really relevant to this thread though,is it ?

Vandango · 29-11-2015 7:55pm

suicide_circus wrote: »

How is one persons unsubstantiated claim about something worthy of an article? How is this news? The Indo keeping up its rag credentials.

Paper never refuses ink.

Flatzie_poo · 30-11-2015 10:12am

extra gravy wrote: »

Such as? As long as they get me from A to B in one piece, that's all I care about and it's what I pay for. After all that is their job, not to humour needy people with idle chitchat and empty platitudes.

I'm not looking for empty platitudes. I simply don't want to be on a bus where somebody lights up a cigarette or is playing music out loud. I don;t think that's unreasonable.

I've raised other passengers smoking numerous times to a driver to be told, "oh. just sit downstairs then."

That level of service isn't good enough.

If they display no smoking signs it should be enforced.

Stephen Gawking · 30-11-2015 10:28am

Just who do you expect to enforce the no smoking rule then? The driver? He's on his own as far as I can see. The perspex screen is there because I can remember seeing drivers battered by the dregs back in the 90s for next to nothing. Can any Dublin bus drivers here explain if there's a guideline they have to follow in the event of someone smoking?

ThinkProgress · 30-11-2015 11:06am

Ray Palmer wrote: »

There have been a few comments on how stressful their job is and cyclists being some special stress. That is their job and if they can't handle it don't do it. From my experience most bus drivers can handle their job dealing with all traffic. There are of course those who can't and aggressively bully other road users.
Here is an example of a bus driver veering into a cycle lane and being aggressive. I know some people seem to think the cyclist is in the wrong but he is in a cycle lane that the driver is not meant to enter as it is a continuous white and isn't indicating. Then happily says he will kill the cyclist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwqRqIvo4GU

That youtube video is a great example of why so many people get pissed off with cyclists...

They think their cycle lanes are like a foreign country, and aggressively enforce THEIR space... Even if it possibly means playing chicken with a bus!

I've seen so many examples of this behaviour where cyclists try to engineer a situation so they can have a confrontation.

Speeding past a bus on the inside while it's in full motion is a foolish thing to do... Regardless of wether you are in the right or not!

Technically the bus driver might be in the wrong here by entering the cycle lane. But the cyclist is still a gobsh**e because they are acting like their cycle lane gives them licence to ride as fast, reckless and carelessly as they wish...

It doesn't!!!

The bus driver is not totally in the right here, but I understand why they get pissed off.

They have to deal with idiot kamakaze cyclists everyday... Would drive a person to the brink of homicidal tendencies!! lol

extra gravy · 30-11-2015 11:28am

Flatzie_poo wrote: »

I'm not looking for empty platitudes. I simply don't want to be on a bus where somebody lights up a cigarette or is playing music out loud. I don;t think that's unreasonable.

I've raised other passengers smoking numerous times to a driver to be told, "oh. just sit downstairs then."

That level of service isn't good enough.

If they display no smoking signs it should be enforced.

It's not the driver's fault that he's on his own and has no help in enforcing the signs. Why would any of them want to stop the bus and confront some scumbag who could easily pull a knife or syringe on them? It's the management of Dublin Bus you should direct your complaints at rather than the drivers.

Walter Bishop · 30-11-2015 5:09pm

dd972 wrote: »

Erm, I was kinda....there... when it happened :rolleyes:

No matter what sort of mood a DB driver is in, he's not going to shout 'prick' at you or tell you to **** off without some reason to i.e. your acting the bollocks, or unless he has Tourette's Syndrome. So I'm afraid your anecdote is a load of crap.

Dublin Bus Driver Insults Disabled Student

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