Buses Today

[The Egg Man]

The relevant bit of the Highway Code reads

"204
The most vulnerable road users are pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and horse riders. It is particularly important to be aware of children, older and disabled people, and learner and inexperienced drivers and riders.
Pedestrians
205
There is a risk of pedestrians, especially children, stepping unexpectedly into the road. You should drive with the safety of children in mind at a speed suitable for the conditions.

206
Drive carefully and slowly when

•in crowded shopping streets, Home Zones and Quiet Lanes (see Rule 218) or residential areas
•driving past bus and tram stops; pedestrians may emerge suddenly into the road
•passing parked vehicles, especially ice cream vans; children are more interested in ice cream than traffic and may run into the road unexpectedly
•needing to cross a pavement or cycle track; for example, to reach or leave a driveway. Give way to pedestrians and cyclists on the pavement
•reversing into a side road; look all around the vehicle and give way to any pedestrians who may be crossing the road
•turning at road junctions; give way to pedestrians who are already crossing the road into which you are turning
•the pavement is closed due to street repairs and pedestrians are directed to use the road
•approaching pedestrians on narrow rural roads without a footway or footpath. Always slow down and be prepared to stop if necessary, giving them plenty of room as you drive past "

I don't think it's so much that pedestrians have a right of way but that there's an expectation that car (and bus and lorry and taxi etc drivers) will exerise greater care in area where pedestrians are around.

Given the distractions available to pedestrians (drink, drugs, mobile phones, iPods and just eyeballing other pedestrians) drivers have to put in a little extra effort to keep them safe.

[Josef]

Ta.

[RDR]

Possibly the best summary is always give way to pedestrians

[Dexter St. Clair]

Thank you Egg man and yes RDR.

[hound dog]

I would think any responsible driver would take care on the roads and most would be totally traumatised if they hit a pedestrian. . However, to imply that any time a pedestrian is knocked down by a vehicle that it is ALWAYS the driver's fault, is ludicrous -and thankfully the law does not take that view and automatically prosecute the driver in every single instance.

Seems to me that without knowing any of the facts, there are people on here blaming the bus driver

Given the distractions available to pedestrians (drink, drugs, mobile phones, iPods and just eyeballing other pedestrians) drivers have to put in a little extra effort to keep them safe.

As I said, most drivers do take care and put in a lot of effort into driving safely - maybe if we could away from this blame culture (where it's always someone else's fault) and this nanny culture (where adults are deemed incapable of acting responsibly), the country might be in a slightly better state

[Doorstop]

I had a very courteous driver today.

Stopped for an old dear struggling to make the stop. Pulled the bus up to a prompt and safe stop behind two schoolkids acting like extras from Jackass .. and let an exceptionally old boy find a seat before pulling away from the stop (after asking where he was going and subsequently giving him a shout when we got there.

Not all drivers are arses.

[Josef]

There are loads of really good and nice drivers. It's generally just that unless they dive out of the cab to save a small child from drowning and then carry on on schedule then we don't bother to mention it. However, when you get one complete dickhead then it's straight online to complain.


And I don't diverge greatly from that template myself.

[busdriver]

I had a very courteous driver today.

Stopped for an old dear struggling to make the stop. Pulled the bus up to a prompt and safe stop behind two schoolkids acting like extras from Jackass .. and let an exceptionally old boy find a seat before pulling away from the stop (after asking where he was going and subsequently giving him a shout when we got there.

Not all drivers are arses.

[Fat Cat]

I had a very courteous driver today.

Stopped for an old dear struggling to make the stop. Pulled the bus up to a prompt and safe stop behind two schoolkids acting like extras from Jackass .. and let an exceptionally old boy find a seat before pulling away from the stop (after asking where he was going and subsequently giving him a shout when we got there.

Not all drivers are arses.

Well said. Good to hear this.

[gap74]

As a pedestrian, I know fine well that I'm almost certainly going to come off worse in any kind of human-vehicle interaction. I know I'm vulnerable. Mistakes will be made by both drivers and pedestrians, to be sure, but those crossing roads have as much of a responsibility to themselves as the drivers whose paths they might be crossing. If they chose to dither across whilst distracted, and there's nothing even the most alert driver can do to avoid hitting them, then sorry, that's their fault.

I don't see how that particular crossing could be made any simpler, short of a lollipop man - there's only one road with traffic going in one direction, and there's even a timer on the lights to tell you just how much of the maximum 30 seconds you have to wait till there's a green man.

Just as I'd pay more attention to such a pedestrian-heavy environment as a driver, I'd also like to think I'd be keeping a damn good eye and ear out as a pedestrian for noisy, muckle big buses on busy city centre crossings...

[scaryman2u]

As a pedestrian, I know fine well that I'm almost certainly going to come off worse in any kind of human-vehicle interaction. I know I'm vulnerable. Mistakes will be made by both drivers and pedestrians, to be sure, but those crossing roads have as much of a responsibility to themselves as the drivers whose paths they might be crossing. If they chose to dither across whilst distracted, and there's nothing even the most alert driver can do to avoid hitting them, then sorry, that's their fault.

I don't see how that particular crossing could be made any simpler, short of a lollipop man - there's only one road with traffic going in one direction, and there's even a timer on the lights to tell you just how much of the maximum 30 seconds you have to wait till there's a green man.

Just as I'd pay more attention to such a pedestrian-heavy environment as a driver, I'd also like to think I'd be keeping a damn good eye and ear out as a pedestrian for noisy, muckle big buses on busy city centre crossings...

5 star post well said sir.

[scott125]

Fifteen drivers were also found to be working in excess of their hours or unable to prove the hours they had worked, and were not allowed to drive until they had had a sufficient rest period

What's the score with that, anyway? I'm fully in agreement with the maximum periods and all that, but the practical impact appears to be that they kick all the passengers off the bus at the deadline, and then carry on driving the bus to the depot anyway.

A bit like those Number 9s that terminate at 'Paisley West End' but then carry on to Linwood Depot in any case.

Drivers swap at the Depot or near to the depot like the routes that go past Larkfield.

The Number 9s that terminate at Paisley West End would most probably start and do the route again to the City . No first depot in Linwood , Scotstoun is the depot for the 9

[Dexter St. Clair]

It's wonderful that you arseholes can't take a polite telling off but here it is again. Now lump it and keep your excuses for the the confessional.

You are supposedly in control of a heap of metal and you're well protected behind a load of legally compulsory safety devices but you expect to get away with maiming another human.

The relevant bit of the Highway Code reads

"204
The most vulnerable road users are pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and horse riders. It is particularly important to be aware of children, older and disabled people, and learner and inexperienced drivers and riders.
Pedestrians
205
There is a risk of pedestrians, especially children, stepping unexpectedly into the road. You should drive with the safety of children in mind at a speed suitable for the conditions.

206
Drive carefully and slowly when

•in crowded shopping streets, Home Zones and Quiet Lanes (see Rule 218) or residential areas
•driving past bus and tram stops; pedestrians may emerge suddenly into the road
•passing parked vehicles, especially ice cream vans; children are more interested in ice cream than traffic and may run into the road unexpectedly
•needing to cross a pavement or cycle track; for example, to reach or leave a driveway. Give way to pedestrians and cyclists on the pavement
•reversing into a side road; look all around the vehicle and give way to any pedestrians who may be crossing the road
•turning at road junctions; give way to pedestrians who are already crossing the road into which you are turning
•the pavement is closed due to street repairs and pedestrians are directed to use the road
•approaching pedestrians on narrow rural roads without a footway or footpath. Always slow down and be prepared to stop if necessary, giving them plenty of room as you drive past "

I don't think it's so much that pedestrians have a right of way but that there's an expectation that car (and bus and lorry and taxi etc drivers) will exerise greater care in area where pedestrians are around.

Given the distractions available to pedestrians (drink, drugs, mobile phones, iPods and just eyeballing other pedestrians) drivers have to put in a little extra effort to keep them safe.

[gap74]

Did a bus driver steal a woman of yours in the past or something, Dex...?

[The Egg Man]

I'd like to think someone with the correct authority will delete Dexter's post before the inevitable sobriety of daylight cuts in after the post has been quoted.