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Coach driver photographed reading at the wheel

7:40am Thursday 8th October 2009


A HORRIFIED passenger took a picture of a coach driver reading at the wheel while travelling on a busy motorway.

National Express has suspended the driver while it investigates the incident.

The Poole woman took photos on three occasions as the man read a logbook while driving.

The incident happened on board the number 35 4.10pm National Express service from Poole to London’s Victoria coach station on October 1.

The woman said the driver looked at the book on the A338 near Bournemouth, the M3 near Winchester, and on the busy streets of Knightsbridge in central London.

She said: “I couldn’t believe when I saw him do it the first time. He opened the book up and put it across his steering wheel, then he kept looking up and down at it as he drove along. Last lasted for a few minutes, maybe five.

“He did the same thing again on the M3 then again in Knightsbridge. At one point he was steering with just his arm while he held on to the book with his hand.

“I felt very unsafe during those moments because it was rush-hour and the road ahead of you can change very suddenly so you have to have full concentration.

“He is a coach driver and has got people’s lives in his hands.

A National Express spokesman said: “The driver has been suspended while we carry out a full investigation into this incident.

“Our priority is always the safety of our passengers and we would encourage anyone who sees an incident to report it to us immediately.”


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Your Say YourEcho

ferret38, bournemouth says...
7:47am Thu 8 Oct 09

Even thou its wrong what hes done its even worse to be snooping and grassing up . whats wrong with ya !

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Was Charlie, says...
8:30am Thu 8 Oct 09

No.

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souwest, Bournemouth says...
8:50am Thu 8 Oct 09

How do we know the coach is moving?

Did the driver give his permission, did the coach company permit photography on its vehicle?

Does the "Poole woman" have the guts to admit her name or is this an under the blankets -our little secret?

Smug smug smug.

SW

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Aviewoneverything, Bournemouth says...
9:12am Thu 8 Oct 09

I agree the driver shouldn't have done this. He is a position of great responsibility when driving his coach. However, snapping the bloke without his knowledge and then running to his bosses and the local paper is just wrong. Did you confront the driver and voice your concerns, I imagine not. I hope the driver is reprimanded but keeps his job, it would be silly to lose a job over such an incident.

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crispy_pants, Canford Heath says...
9:12am Thu 8 Oct 09

I can't believe these comments. If the coach had been involved in an accident and people killed, would it have still been snooping?

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magicmonkey, Bournemouth says...
9:19am Thu 8 Oct 09

Sack him. No excuses. He's lucky that the passenger saw him instead of the police. If I'd have been on the coach with my daughter I would have kicked off there and then, and told his bosses.
As well as a book, he had people's lives in his hand - passengers and other road users.

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Southbourne resident, Southbourne says...
9:41am Thu 8 Oct 09

I cannot believe people are defending this idiot. He should not be driving.

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anderton, whitecliff says...
9:45am Thu 8 Oct 09

crispy_pants wrote:
I can't believe these comments. If the coach had been involved in an accident and people killed, would it have still been snooping?
The defensive comments show the mentality of some on this site.

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GB916, christchurch says...
10:30am Thu 8 Oct 09

I too am amazed by the people defending this drivers action,sack him,i wonder if these same people would be defending a driver who killed one of there relatives because he was reading a book while driving,i doubt it,they would be the first to dive in and say he should not be reading a book,and should be imprisoned and sacked,fortunatley this coach driver was lucky,he did not have an accident,but no excuse for reading a book while driving.

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ben111, Ringwood says...
10:45am Thu 8 Oct 09

anderton wrote:
crispy_pants wrote: I can't believe these comments. If the coach had been involved in an accident and people killed, would it have still been snooping?
The defensive comments show the mentality of some on this site.
I do agree .... But its all a bit BIG Brother

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rainbowkisses, Bournemouth says...
10:49am Thu 8 Oct 09

I think the woman who took the photos and reported him did the right thing. I hope he does lose his job and hopefully when he has, the police will nick him and then he might lose his liberty. As for the ones who say it was wrong to report him. I wonder what your attitude would be if your family was on the coach and it crashed? Why should the woman have brought it up with him first? If you see somebody breaking into a house, you dont go and tell them how wrong they are, you call the police. He was lucky she didnt do that. I know some people make comments on here designed to wind people up, it's how they get their kicks.... but if any of those who have backed this driver and his actions really do believe what they say, they I truely believe they have mental health issues.

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frank bills, says...
11:12am Thu 8 Oct 09

he was only glancing at a bit of pepar not writing a short ******* novel

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frank bills, says...
11:27am Thu 8 Oct 09

What i mean is ,he was not reading The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, just a bit of paper was he not, if the driver don't flirt,
.dish the dirt

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Laurie H Marsh, brisbane says...
12:20pm Thu 8 Oct 09

frank bills wrote:
What i mean is ,he was not reading The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, just a bit of paper was he not, if the driver don't flirt, .dish the dirt
When you get up in the morning do you have trouble removing your foot from your mouth to put it in the leg of your trousers?

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Upkeep, By the river says...
12:36pm Thu 8 Oct 09

Give the bloke a break. He`s only reading his Polish-English roadsign translations.

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frank bills, says...
12:55pm Thu 8 Oct 09

Laurie H Marsh wrote:
frank bills wrote: What i mean is ,he was not reading The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, just a bit of paper was he not, if the driver don't flirt, .dish the dirt
When you get up in the morning do you have trouble removing your foot from your mouth to put it in the leg of your trousers?
Thanks for quoting me os whats the weather doing down there beneather, also thank you moderator for you kind offers. F B

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frank bills, says...
1:01pm Thu 8 Oct 09

When you get up in the morning do you have trouble removing your foot from your mouth to put it in the leg of your trousers?


.naaahhh I allways hang on to my zimmer frame.

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djd, bournemouth says...
1:02pm Thu 8 Oct 09

I do not understand some of the comments.
If this driver had had an accident and killed somebody would you have been so lenient.
Deserves to lose his job, he has responsibility for up to 49 passengers and a potential lethal machine.

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Laurie H Marsh, brisbane says...
1:57pm Thu 8 Oct 09

Moderator?
Do you mean that this site has a censor?
What the hell happened to FREEDOM OF SPEECH?
Please feel free to put your foot back in your mouth!
The sun is shining, I can also (freely) take a breath of fresh air!
Or the sun would be shining if it was not night-time!
I can still take a breath of fresh air and say what I please (without a "MODERATOR").
Please feel free to abuse my comments or attack my ideals at your leisure, no-one is "protecting" me!
I am glad to say!
If "someone" is protecting you, you have lost more than you know!
DO SOMETHING!

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frank bills, says...
2:40pm Thu 8 Oct 09

Or the sun would be shining if it was not night-time!...thats a full moon you looking at dude ,its easy to make a small mistake, they are both round.

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Polemicist, says...
5:06pm Thu 8 Oct 09

Laurie, I know it's well past your bedtime, but..
(1) do they have buses in Brisbane, or is it still horse-drawn ?
(2) can the drivers read, in the dark?
(3) lightning has struck my postillion, can I get a refund ?

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Emulated, Bournemouth says...
7:16pm Thu 8 Oct 09

Tut tut, almost as bad as train drivers working out their overtime whilst going through a red signal.

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peterreid, oxford says...
8:41pm Thu 8 Oct 09

yes it is wrong but ,how many of us have not EVER glanced at something whilst driving even for a split second- a map, something interesting on the road,the radio, i still see MANY people on their mobile phones-it seems this book was work related. If the lady was so horrified she should have approached the driver, it is hardly comparable to a burglar-this maybe a hard working man trying to make a living for his family who made a mistake- which many of us have made. I would have asked the driver firstly, had he not complied (which would be unusual) i would have gone to the company, but going straight to the media makes you wonder if this lady had other motives?(£££s)she may be a nurse but that doesnt make her mother teresa! (and obviously she isnt as it comes across quite sly what she did!- she was probably all smiles on board!)

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sea poole, poole says...
8:46pm Thu 8 Oct 09

Hang him, flog him, disembowel him and sit there whilst his entrails spill over the ground. He really is a serious criminal and everyone should be forewarned of his approach. It's good to see we have judges, juries and executioners posting comments

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peterreid, oxford says...
8:49pm Thu 8 Oct 09

Its good to see we have cave men posting comments!

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frank bills, says...
9:17pm Thu 8 Oct 09

you really do need a protector ... what about Ronnie Corbett

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pete0404, boscombe says...
10:22pm Thu 8 Oct 09

i think what a lot of people are forgetting is that the driver is being paid to drive & by looking at his logbook , ect while driving is proberly a breach of the companys health & safety rules, which the driver can be done for as well as the company

health & safety rules are getting stricter all the time due to the nanny state regime where you can sue over scallding yourself on a hot drink

road safety should be taken searlly the amount of people on mobile phones while driving they are idiots

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Julian1964, Somerset says...
11:19pm Thu 8 Oct 09

This kind of person is what you get all the time.Drivers still using mobile phone while driving,disgusting and tougher measures should be put into place a fine is not enough.This coach drive should have known better,hope he loses his job over this,will make him and others think.

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peterreid, oxford says...
9:49am Fri 9 Oct 09

well lets SECRETLY recoerd every person that drives for a profession and i wonder how many of them NEVER glance away (even police officers) and lets record every doctor and nurse and see which ones ALWAYS wash their hands between patients (potentially lethal!). lets record all parents and see who haven't lost their concentration or glanced away whilst driving with their children in the car or who haven't even slightly crossed the fine line of abuse (of which there are many forms). lets record ALL people and see who does things perfectly 100% of the time. the solution to this problem isn't to make someone lose a job- that would mean most of the decent people working would be out of work! and a lot of decent people would be in trouble for something, the solution is to teach/train these people. its all good pretenting to be prim and proper and horrified but living in the real world and not disney world the majority of people have done something wrong at some point- they just dont get recorded!

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djd, bournemouth says...
10:24am Fri 9 Oct 09

We do live in the real world and driving without due care and attention is an offence.
Causing death by careless driving is an offence which carries a term of imprisonment......FA
CT.

Had this driver had an accident (and thankfully he didn't) what would be the stance of those bleeding hearts who seem to support the driver's actions.

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mark0peters, Bournemouth says...
10:58am Fri 9 Oct 09

Unbelievable!

I agree that the driver is driving dangerously - but if it was about safety the lady could have asked him to stop politely.

It seems that this beech merely wanted to get him in trouble.

If she claims that the driver was putting lives at risk then why did she not act immediately and ask the driver to stop reading and or phoned the police to stop the Coach.

The worst job in the world is one that involves working with the general public.
Everyone thinks that they are your boss and everyone is watching you.
When you work with the Public you face the most abuse possible and generally little pay.
When you do something right - you do not get any thanks and when you fail then you get shot to ribbons.
Bitter bored beeches complain and whinge and spit venom at public servants because their husbands are not about.

If you are a customer - then have some respect for those who do their jobs day in day out.
These are the guys who get you to the place you want to go quickly safely and they are experienced.

Coach drivers are professionals and they have the skills and experience to drive one handed if necessary.

I bet this lady cant even manage a 3 point turn.

Can we know how many points she has on her licence and if she has her no claims bonus still?

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Laurie H Marsh, brisbane says...
11:22am Fri 9 Oct 09

Polemicist wrote:
Laurie, I know it's well past your bedtime, but.. (1) do they have buses in Brisbane, or is it still horse-drawn ? (2) can the drivers read, in the dark? (3) lightning has struck my postillion, can I get a refund ?
Hmmm,
It seems that you live in a world of imbalance.
On one hand your sense of humour is so small and on the other hand your ignorance is so large that it defies description!
Have a good life!

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peterreid, oxford says...
12:03pm Fri 9 Oct 09

i couldnt agree with you more markopeters!!!!!!!

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frank bills, says...
12:53pm Fri 9 Oct 09

If she felt unsafe like she says, she could have climbed out of the window and jumped on to the hard shoulder and walked it.

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daveb0789, London says...
1:38pm Fri 9 Oct 09

Some very interesting views. It is true that what was being read by the driver was not a book but it is forbidden to read anything while the vehicle is in motion - even a schedule card or pick up list. But after blowing up the picture I can see the vehicle is definitely in motion and probably doing some speed.

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marksaunders01, bournemouth says...
2:45pm Fri 9 Oct 09

yes this lady is so concerned for her safety and that of her fellow passengers that she cant be bothered to get off her backside and ask the driver politely to stop, whom seems to be not too far away from her. yet she can be bothered to sit there recording him and making sure she gets a good image, then going home digging out the phone number and phoning the newspaper to arrange a meeting, then have a short interview and probably go to the shops the next day to buy the paper so that she can proudly view her work as a fake do-gooder!. strange!

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pipistrollers, Bournemouth says...
3:03pm Fri 9 Oct 09

Hope he looses his job. He put passengers' lives in danger.

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pipistrollers, Bournemouth says...
3:03pm Fri 9 Oct 09

Hope he looses his job. He put passengers' lives in danger.

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daveb0789, London says...
5:59pm Fri 9 Oct 09

marksaunders01 wrote:
yes this lady is so concerned for her safety and that of her fellow passengers that she cant be bothered to get off her backside and ask the driver politely to stop, whom seems to be not too far away from her. yet she can be bothered to sit there recording him and making sure she gets a good image, then going home digging out the phone number and phoning the newspaper to arrange a meeting, then have a short interview and probably go to the shops the next day to buy the paper so that she can proudly view her work as a fake do-gooder!. strange!
There is nothing wrong with what she did. Some drivers are completely unapproachable. No driver likes to be told what he or she should be doing. He might have pulled over and chucked her off, or he might have got angry and shouted or insulted her and driven dangerously after that!

Working in a highly visible position with the general public, the driver should be aware people are watching and not do stupid things like that. I work in a highly visible public role and representing my company I am not scared of anyone filming me or reporting me as I don't do anything that would endanger lives at work.

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samsmith, Dorset says...
9:29pm Fri 9 Oct 09

daveb0789 wrote:
marksaunders01 wrote:
yes this lady is so concerned for her safety and that of her fellow passengers that she cant be bothered to get off her backside and ask the driver politely to stop, whom seems to be not too far away from her. yet she can be bothered to sit there recording him and making sure she gets a good image, then going home digging out the phone number and phoning the newspaper to arrange a meeting, then have a short interview and probably go to the shops the next day to buy the paper so that she can proudly view her work as a fake do-gooder!. strange!
There is nothing wrong with what she did. Some drivers are completely unapproachable. No driver likes to be told what he or she should be doing. He might have pulled over and chucked her off, or he might have got angry and shouted or insulted her and driven dangerously after that!

Working in a highly visible position with the general public, the driver should be aware people are watching and not do stupid things like that. I work in a highly visible public role and representing my company I am not scared of anyone filming me or reporting me as I don't do anything that would endanger lives at work.
If she approached him and politely voiced her concerns and then took it up with the company later, and then pulled over and chucked her off, or got angry and shouted or insulted her and driven dangerously after that... ...then that'd BE a story and i'm sure there'd not be a drop of sympathy on this forum for the driver!

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Comments are closed on this article.

FRIGHTENING: A woman passenger from Poole snapped a series of pictures on her iPhone of a National Express bus driver reading while driving on a motorway between Bournemouth and London FRIGHTENING: A woman passenger from Poole snapped a series of pictures on her iPhone of a National Express bus driver reading while driving on a motorway between Bournemouth and London


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