A former Arriva bus driver has been suspended from professional driving for four weeks after he did not stop to let an elderly passenger off a bus.
Piotr Chudzicki, 45, was banned following a decision by Deputy Traffic Commissioner (DTC) for the East of England, Marcia Davis.
Mr Chudzicki was called to a driver conduct hearing in Cambridge on March 2. During the hearing, the DTC was told Mr Chudzicki had taken the passenger around one mile past the stop she wanted to get off at.
A review of CCTV footage on the bus by the driver’s employer, Arriva, revealed that the passenger had moved towards the front of the vehicle as it was approaching the stop.
The operator concluded that the driver had an opportunity to stop his vehicle safely and allow the elderly passenger to get off the bus at the stop where she wanted to depart – but instead took her far beyond what was reasonable.
At the conclusion of the hearing, the DTC made an order to suspend the driver’s vocational licence from 2359hrs on March 3 to 0000hrs on March 31, 2016.
The actions of Piotr Chudzicki had resulted in a Facebook campaign which generated over 5,000 comments.
Robbie Lamerton, Area Managing Director for Hertfordshire & Essex at Arriva, told CBW: “We reported Piotr Chudzicki to the Traffic Commissioner after he was dismissed from Arriva due to this serious incident.
“We are a professional bus operator with a long track record of excellent customer service. All drivers receive 12 weeks of training when they join the company and customer service is an integral part of that.
“Fortunately this incident was a one-off but we are obviously extremely sorry for any distress caused to the passenger concerned.”
