Lothian bus drivers hauled in front of senior staff for enforcing social distancing

Drivers are being hauled in front of senior members of staff at Lothian Buses for stopping people getting on already full buses, it has been claimed.

Management are reportedly telling drivers they are not allowed to stop people getting on already full buses nor question those getting on buses without facemasks.

Speaking to the Evening News, one driver said that the decision had been made to prioritise the number of passengers rather than passenger safety.

Claiming that social distancing regulations were being ignored on many of the buses, the driver said it should be within the power of drivers to stop people boarding the buses.

He said: “Lothian are more interested in getting people on the bus. It’s to hell with social distancing and to hell with passenger safety, let’s get punters on the bus.

“I am getting sick to the back teeth of Lothian’s attitude and I am sure that Nicola Sturgeon would have something to say about their attitude of cramming people into buses.

“We should all be singing from the same hymn sheet here. We should not be encouraging people to sit beside each other and we should be speaking to people when they get on the bus if they are getting on the bus without masks.”

Nicola Sturgeon has said it should not be the job of bus drivers to enforce mandatory face coverings on public transport, instead appealing to the collective responsibility of the population to comply.

Labour councillor Scott Arthur said: “If Lothian Buses is to rebuild its customer base, now more than ever people must feel it is safe to travel with them.

“Given that drivers are already empowered to stop people boarding eating fish suppers, surely Lothian Buses’ management can give drivers the support they need to ensure passengers wear face coverings.

“With schools re-starting next week, the board of Lothian Buses must up their game on this.”

Liberal Democrat transport spokesman, Cllr Kevin Lang said it would be “astonishing” if the allegations were true.

He said: “It would be astonishing if the management of Lothian Buses was actually discouraging its drivers from keeping their passengers safe.

“The distancing guidance and limits on numbers are there for a reason, not just to reduce the spread of the virus but to ensure passengers feel confident in using buses once more.

“Drivers have always shown a strong sense of responsibility for the safety of the passengers on their bus. Lothian Buses should be praising that kind of attitude, not penalising it”.

A spokesman for Lothian Buses said: “Customer numbers on board our vehicles is a difficult issue for our driving teams to manage, but we have no report of the alleged behaviour or drivers being disciplined for enforcing social distancing.”

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