DAF95XF:
If youve seen the standard of driving from First Bus that will come as no surprise…
Being a bus /coach driver with a 28 yr unblemished record i applied to first for a driver position when they were advertising for drivers.At the same time my 18 yr old son applied for a position for a trainee bus driver.
I got a reply from them saying i did not fit the required criteria
My son got the job as a trainee driver.
No wonder they hit low bridges on a regular basis if someone with all my experience doesnt fit thier criteria
Thats because companies want new drivers, because they can train them the ‘company’ way.
Over the last 30 years I can remember many lorries and buses hitting that bridge, I very nearly hit it myself with a brick crane lorry when working for Frank Tucker many years ago . So why is it that there isn’t some form of traffic calming approaching it for drivers who have loss consentration . He’s not the 1st and he won’t be the last to hit it so engineer a solution.
When things were nationalised we didn’t have this problem. Drivers were in the job for the long term, They showed the new boys the ropes, and this experience was handed down from generation to generation of driver.
But nowadays any sod can jump in one providing he fits the right criteria (the right critera being cheap).
first group eek i did a stint for them in glasgow always amazed me the one route 26 miles from end to end and it was a full shift doint it both ways that was one of them silly split shifts 9 hrs to do 52 miles ,mind u got the boot after 9 months as i kept forgetting to stop for passengers .I always used to say to the other drivers it would be good job if it wasnt for the passengers
keano1:
How in God’s name does the driver not realise when he’s approaching it …uh oh “that bridge looks a bit low. I better slow down and have a bit of a re-think”.
Whenever I approach a bridge that is OK but maybe a little too close for comfort, I slow down & have a quick recheck that I know my height etc. Unfecking believable Just imagine if some poor git was on the top deck!!!
One good thing about Stagecoach is they taught us no matter what we’re driving always take a low bridge through the middle and to this day even in my coach i still do
As to how the driver did it, probably a single decker route and it got substituted with a 'decker
I had the same thing, had my HGV licence since 2006, never had a smash, only 3 points, excellent work history and i was told i did not fit their criteria for a trainee job??!! When you see the state of some of their drivers maybe what they meant was im too good for them!
merc0447:
First bus still do that spilt shift pish? You need to be aff your head to be a bus driver.
All the bus companies do it. The one at Stagecoach used to be 7am-11am, then 3pm-7pm. Alright if you live within a decent distance of home, but a bit boring if your not.
,mind u got the boot after 9 months as i kept forgetting to stop for passengers 
Just imagine if some poor git was on the top deck!!! 