Ipswich bus driver fired after threatening a passenger
An Ipswich bus driver was up in court this week after he threatened a passenger. 53-year-old Peter Harris pleaded guilty to the charge of threatening behaviour at South East Suffolk Magistrates Court. As a result of the incident on August 19th this year, Harris lost his job as a bus driver, a position he had held for a number of years.
The female passenger who brought the charges against Harris, boarded the bus on the date in question and presented him with a ticket which she believed was valid. However she was then told “abusively” that the ticket could not be used, she then presented the driver with a travel card, again he reacted negatively snatching the card from her hand and screwed up the ticket.
Following this the passenger then bought a new ticket from the driver and took up a seat on the bus. As the vehicle pulled into Ipswich station, the passenger disembarked the bus and was then followed by the driver. Harris is then said to have confronted the passenger and demanded that she delete photographs she had taken on her mobile phone.
The driver Peter Harris is then understood to have attempted to grab the phone from the female passenger reaching around her as she stood with her back against a wall. As Harris walked away he threatened the passenger saying “If you get on my bus again you’d better watch out.”
Judge David Cooper issued Harris with a conditional discharge for one year saying he thought the former bus driver had received sufficient punishment for his actions after losing his job. The judge added that he regarded Harris as having a “good character” but conceded he was caught on “a bad day”.
This is why bus drivers should never check tickets, just let them ride for nothing. The driver was presented with 2 invalid tickets which he declined, the passenger then winds him up by taking photos of him. The driver then loses his job, funny old world unless your a bus driver.
This is why Ipswich buses should wake up and have the same type of system as London Transport, the Oyster card system – the journeys would be quicker, easier for passenger and driver, and would therefore encourage less car use. Forget park and ride, get touch and go Oyster system in place then people will use the buses.
But drivers anyhow, should stay calm and polite no matter what the passenger appears.