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Deaf youngster 'stranded' by bus driver

6:52pm Sunday 25th November 2007

comment Comments (26)   Have your say »

By Lucy Ewing »

A PARTIALLY deaf teenager was left stranded at her school after a bus driver refused to accept her disability pass.

Rebekah Fairhurst, aged 18, of Caldbeck Avenue, Heaton, tried to catch her regular 969 bus from Canon Slade school, in Bradshaw Brow, when the bus driver told her she could not use the pass.

She was so taken aback that she stepped off the bus and was left outside the school as it drove off.

Her furious father, Geoff Fairhurst, has hit out at bus company First after the incident, which happened on Friday afternoon.

He said: "Rebekah has got on the bus every day since she was in year seven. She's now in year 13.

"She was so shocked and embarrassed by what the driver said that she got off the bus.

"As you might imagine, we are very unhappy about this."

He said it was not safe for Rebekah to get a public bus into the town centre, and another bus home, because she cannot hear the traffic.

The youngster was left to phone her Mum, who had to come to collect her from the school.

A spokesman for First said: "The company would like to apologise to Rebekah and the Fairhurst family for any distress and anxiety that has been caused.

"The details that have been reported will now be thoroughly investigated so that the facts from both sides can be clearly established."

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Your Say Yourtheboltonnews

dear anti yobs, breightmet says...
6:59pm Sun 25 Nov 07

investagated this is a b.loody disgrace and this driver should be sacked instantly that poor kid any thing could have happened and thankfuly nothing did i hope the father of this gorl sues the company first more like last and inconsiderate they work for the people looks like it

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Icemoose, Bolton says...
7:15pm Sun 25 Nov 07

It’s a disgrace and nothing but discrimination, what makes me more angry is the bus driver was employer and working a school route yet he leaves a young adult at the school because by the sounds of it he didn’t believe she had a bus pass genuinely.

He should be sacked, no questions asked, people like this should not be given second chances. I hope herself and her parents take legal action under the disability discrimination act.

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tom3465, farnworth says...
7:32pm Sun 25 Nov 07

what can they claim ?that the driver thought she could hear or as he put it under health and saftey he was responsible for dropping her off in a dangerous environment ie a busy bus station where she could have been run over by any vehicle because she could not here the audible alarm he would and could be held responsible for her downfall regardless of any pass she may have because he put her there as in previous posts they say sue the sh1t out of them im sure if she went under the wheels of any vehicle after being a passenger the same sue em all bods would be out in force to do the same its a can of worms and its been opened i hope more drivers do the same and then this health and saftey sh1t will have to be re-evaluated big time.

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Son of Bolton Reader, Amsterdam says...
7:41pm Sun 25 Nov 07

Fact is if you complain to Fist bus you will get a holding letter and then thats it. It will be a case of First trying to brush it under the carpet - thats the sort of company it is. One has to percevere to get this sort of thing investigated and acted upon by First.

Its no wonder more and more people are calling it Worstbus. Servies they provide are utter rubbish. The Buses are rubbish. The attitude of a lot of their drivers are rubbish and more importantly trhe customer service of Worstbus if utter rubbish!

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dear anti yobs, breightmet says...
7:56pm Sun 25 Nov 07

tom3465 wrote:
what can they claim ?that the driver thought she could hear or as he put it under health and saftey he was responsible for dropping her off in a dangerous environment ie a busy bus station where she could have been run over by any vehicle because she could not here the audible alarm he would and could be held responsible for her downfall regardless of any pass she may have because he put her there as in previous posts they say sue the sh1t out of them im sure if she went under the wheels of any vehicle after being a passenger the same sue em all bods would be out in force to do the same its a can of worms and its been opened i hope more drivers do the same and then this health and saftey sh1t will have to be re-evaluated big time.
and why ever not they rip us off at every chance they get so yes get what you can they can afford it i think i would rather see this kid get some sort of compo and that would be justice

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dear anti yobs, breightmet says...
8:21pm Sun 25 Nov 07

another point to this what if something had happend to this kid glad it didn't but what if and it was down to this driver refusing to let her on i wonder if he has any feelings or even guilty about leaving her behind

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tom3465, farnworth says...
8:32pm Sun 25 Nov 07

oh i do work with the public but if you want to spit at me now i can knock you out i can call you a turd tickler and if you dont like it you can always p1ss off. One can easily communicate in a civilized manner when dealing with civilized people. on the buses you get the dregs of society thrown at you all day and sooner or later you snap i left before i snapped now if i am abused by a piece of sh1t i can retaliate with justified impunity. i take it you cruds are not bus drivers then?

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KT, says...
8:35pm Sun 25 Nov 07

Tom 3465...what a fantastic advert you are for firstbus and the fact that they can only manage to employ people like yourself and the person mentioned in the report.
You assume that anyone getting on with a pass is trying to pull a fast one and get you into trouble.
Unfortunately you and your like also seem to think fare paying passengers are trying to put one over on you too.
We need to have the correct change, know exactly where we want to get off, not complain that the bus is late/early/not turning up at all.
We are to shut up and put up with a disgraceful service and bad manners.
Bus drivers aren't the only people who are put in the firing line of the public at work.
This girl, regardless of whether the driver thinks it or not, has a right to that bus pass, and a right to be transported, not to be left on the roadside.

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KT, says...
8:49pm Sun 25 Nov 07

Lol!
And i suppose bus drivers will always drive buses if the public don't use them?
Fortunately i only had to use Boltons buses as a last resort when no other transport was available to me..very rarely.
I know a couple of people who used to be Bolton bus drivers, and they tell me the main reason for leaving was having to put up with the bad attitudes of their colleagues.
Congratulations for proving that.

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william gallagher, says...
8:56pm Sun 25 Nov 07

This is a growing problem and all bus companies should maybe look to changing the way they work and give orders to all drivers to check passes and contact the depot i do still assume they have radios on the buses.

And i have to say the disgusting language on this story is a disgrace and this tom3465 should be banned from posting on here.

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don060541, devon says...
9:13pm Sun 25 Nov 07

What can you expect in this day and age.
alot of kids think being rude and arrogant are part and parcel of life.
Well thanks tom for just doing that very thing.
If that girl had a pass surely thats good enough for the driver but you never leave a female stranded not with the physcos about today.
Commonsense should prevail to the benefit of all.

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VickyM, Blackrod says...
9:27pm Sun 25 Nov 07

I use busses every day and i am generally charged at least 2 different prices for the same journey every week, i have given up arguing over the different prices i am charged it can cost me £1.80 to get to work and £2.20 to get home some days, using the same bus and getting on and off at the same stops!
The other day the bus driver asked a child(who looked no older than 13 in my opinion) who was wearing a school uniform and carrying a school bag, for his pass as the child had asked to pay 70p to the bus stop outside his school. The child didnt have one and the driver said he had to pay the adult fare.I could of understood this on a saturday afternoon if the driver thought the child looked over 16 but not when he is stood there obviously on his way to school in his uniform!

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Horwich Allstars, Horwich says...
9:41pm Sun 25 Nov 07

The father should report this to the Disability Rights Commision.. get them to investigate - make First Bus explain themselves properly, instead of trying to fob him off with a letter.
I hope that the BN is going to folow this up

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Icemoose, Bolton says...
9:59pm Sun 25 Nov 07

Horwich Allstars wrote:
The father should report this to the Disability Rights Commision.. get them to investigate - make First Bus explain themselves properly, instead of trying to fob him off with a letter. I hope that the BN is going to folow this up
I agree, by the sounds of it she was refused to get on and my guess is the driver didn't believe the pass she was using was her's, I mean it's hard to point out a disabilty such as being deaf. It is not exactly visual.

If the First Bus investigation shows this then they would have a case with the DRC or rather it's new name now as of September 2007 "Equality and Human Rights Commission" ...

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tom3465, farnworth says...
10:09pm Sun 25 Nov 07

equality and human rights theyve got you by the nads all round then no way out if i was the driver i would hang my head in shame and submit myself to the judiciary for the thirty thousand lashes i thoroughly deserve.............
... NOT.

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Whos Daddy, f/w says...
12:31am Mon 26 Nov 07

another brainless bus driver, blast him , hes useless to the comunity, he shud ask him self...is life worth living o shall he blast himself. the answer is yes

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Dave, Westhoughton says...
9:20am Mon 26 Nov 07

And yet when drivers like me, who do the job the way i think it should be done, ie, i always try to use common sense and dont think i have ever 'left' anyone unless they have decided to start having a go at me when im only trying to explain a situation, yet everyday all i get is k.n.obheads, drug abusers and ignorant idiots just walking on and talking to me like sh!t, and treating me like nothing, its a wonder i lost my head and ended up getting sacked for taking out the wrong bus from my depot, the culture in First doesnt help, but it also doesnt help when Joe Public tar all bus drivers with the same brush and treat them all with the same bad attitude henceforth the driver thainks, 'Why Bother!' and starts treating the public in the same way back.

And for the record, i have driven schol buses, a lot of school buses in my time, i have never refused anyone travel, despite some school kids trying it on and saying they havent got any bus fare home, i still allow them to travel, so in this case, she would have been able to travel, and im sure in my time i have actually taken this young lady too and from the school after driving the 969 on quite a few occasions.

The driver needs to be educated, but knowing how First are at the moment, he will probably end up sacked, so you all get your wish.

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Icemoose, Bolton says...
9:55am Mon 26 Nov 07

Not all bus drivers are bad, some are very friendly and pleasant – normally those that you know have worked for First for years and you just know there faces….

I actually think they would be better replacing a lot of younger drivers with people from Poland at least you’ll get a friendly service with a smile!

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gazz_ball - Supera Moras!, bolton says...
10:46am Mon 26 Nov 07

I have worked the doors for the last 7 years, I also have to deal with drugged up alcohol fuelled idiots. It does not give me the right to start taking it out on everybody does it?

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jeanette, bolton says...
11:35am Mon 26 Nov 07

My daughter was also turned off the bus last week as she was going to bury college, she is 15 and does a part time NVQ from school, she also had a pass which said she was under 16 but the driver said that she could have made it herself! it took her 3 buses before she could finally get to college. thank god she only goes once a week!

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Bassington, Bolton Lancashire says...
12:26pm Mon 26 Nov 07

First Bus are rubbish! Some of their drivers are brilliant, most are not! I use buses around schooltimes and the standard of school kids in the main is unbeleivable! F ing and Blinding Talking filth in front of "old" folk talking to people like they are dirt.. I can fully understand some drivers loosing it and leaving. Unfortunately if you cant cope with the kids of today ( I know they are not all bad ) then you have no option but to leave and get another job if possible. This might not have happend in the "gold old days" when buses had conductors who could aid and assist drivers. It is just another example of First Bus and other bus companies putting profit before people. If I had been the driver I would have erred on the side of caution and let the girl use the service. After all what is one isolated possible "free ride" compared to the upset and possible harm to the girl. She and her parents have every right to be angry. Big mistake First Bus, you need every passengere you can get these days, judging by the number of empty buses you see driving around.

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tom3465, farnworth says...
12:40pm Mon 26 Nov 07

i know of driver being sacked for allowing a youth to ride for free at the time it was a 30p ticket because they did not have any money the revenue(inspectors) got on and he lost his job all for doing the right thing.he suffered the consequences so everyone must be refused or you will end up losing your job there is no margin for error in first/worst bus these posts should be forwarded to their head office im sure they will take good notice of the publics feelings.........NOT
.

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ziggyboo22, bolton says...
4:13pm Mon 26 Nov 07

my son is disabled and is due to start secondry school next year, probably using the school bus. after reading this i am worried if he will get home ok. the bus driver sounds like a control freak and jobsworth i hope hes proud of himself.

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netwiddow, Manchester says...
9:56pm Mon 26 Nov 07

and what about the fares they charge - notice last time was - we have to put up the prices due to increasing fuel costs - costs came down - DID THE FARES - DID THEY HECK

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Dave, Westhoughton says...
10:15pm Mon 26 Nov 07

gazz_ball - Supera Moras! wrote:
I have worked the doors for the last 7 years, I also have to deal with drugged up alcohol fuelled idiots. It does not give me the right to start taking it out on everybody does it?
All i was trying to say was, i faced it every day, i didnt take it out on anyone else, but it got to me and i made a mistake at work, in your job, you expect it because it is part of your job, when i started driving 10 years ago, it was not part of my job and wasnt such a 'problem' back then, also i dont get the same back up that you have when someone decides they are going to have a go for no reason. Same idiots, differant circumstances.

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Frank, Farnworth says...
10:47pm Mon 26 Nov 07

Yet the drivers DAREN'T ask an OAP for their permit: as they get moaned at.OAP says " mi face is mi pass" and the driver accepts it............double standards!

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