Woman refused bus travel at 3am for being 20p short on bus fare is raped... What would you have done

[Pestilence]

I'd like to think that I'd give her the extra cash without hesitation, but in reality I'd likely be sitting about mid-way up the bus with my iPod on, not understanding in the slightest what she and the driver are conversing about. And therefore not caring.

 

[Glaucus]

My local bus company has a policy of not refusing any single women late at night if they are short. If this company had the same policy then maybe they would have let some people travel for free but this women would not have been raped.

And maybe if we did everything differently, we could stop another thousand people being raped or other crimes.

I doubt they had a policy as that would be all over the article.
It's far to easy to abuse such policies and I expect most companies don't have such policies.

 

[Westyfield2]

Would have given her 20p . There's no-one to blame other than the rapist, but a bit odd that she was on her own though.

or the driver doesn't have the change they're supposed to get you to fill out a form

Buses at Uni are always giving "change receipts" rather than actual change .

 

[muon]

My local bus company has a policy of not refusing any single women late at night if they are short. If this company had the same policy then maybe they would have let some people travel for free but this women would not have been raped.

Maybe this company didn't. Having such a provision would just be an exercise to make the company look good (of course company managers are generally decent people and wouldn't mind helping people, but their bottom line is more important, the police are responsible for preventing crime and not them).

Would you be happy say using council tax money in your area to cover such costs? Or would you prefer it to go to your local police?

 

[Castiel]

Bus drivers in general are absolute sour ****, they have a very strongly exaggerated sense of self importance. I bet she would have done the same if she's turned up with a £20 note. Anything is too much trouble for them.

There is an issue with this kind of generalisation.

To begin with a Driver carries hundreds of passengers a day on average....he is personally responsible for the money he takes in relation to the tickets and if he is short by 20p then he is responsible for making good on that...you might say, "well what is only 20p?"...that is right, but then you consider just how many times someone comes up short and you can see a Driver being hundreds of pounds out of pocket each year.

Also there is the attitude issue.....many drivers are subjected to a whole range of insult and rudeness, from the casual to the personal, from passengers, pedestrians and other road users, often for simply doing their job and complying with legal and company regulations, it soon gets demoralising when you are abused regularly, add to this poor working conditions and long driving hours and you can see why some drivers are sourpusses on occasion.

As for this particular incident then I would never have left a vulnerable person at night alone, however you cannot blame the Driver, or the other passengers for what happened to her...the blame for that lies entirely with the rapist....if not her then I suspect that it would have been someone else that evening. Also the attitude of some people who give the incorrect change leaves much to be desired and while I am not judging this girl specifically, often it is the initial attitude of the passenger that forms the response form the driver.

Some operators have specific policies for dealing with this, some do not. I know this because I used to work in the industry and bought in policies that would cover this and related incidents such as not being able to cover change and children without the right money to get home etc....but this is not across the industry.

 

[Beasty]

I remember when it happened, they were doing forensics etc down there for days.

Bit of inspector calls about it really.

Really at that time the driver should have let her off, really someone should have given her money if he wasn't going to. She rang I know the location she was raped and a lot of people get attacked down there, there is quite often a paramedic or police car right nearby actually as it is well secluded at night despite the location. 8 minutes seems a bit much, someone should have given her 20p in that time.

You could also argue it was foolish of her to go down there, it is poorly lit and not visible to anyone really due to the level of the road above. She rang her mother to say she couldn't get on the bus, really she should have gone back down mansfield road into town or to the pub nearby to wait or ask for bus fare.

And finally it is of course vile of anyone to commit such crime in the first place above any of the other ifs and buts to do with the crime.

 

[JAzz]

Personally I think the driver is being a bit of a knob by first not letting her off for 20p and then more importantly not letting her quickly get some money from the cash point if it was just nearby. It was 3am in the morning and imo he should have shown more common sense, if it is 3pm then I guess I would understand but it wasn't like she only had £2 on her. Obviously he didn't know she was going to get raped and he shouldn't be blamed here.

Also can't believe it is £5 for a bloody bus, used to be like 70p last time I got on a bus!!!

 

[deusexlumina]

The story pretty much sums up humanity tbh.

 

[Things change I've changed]

there is no line to be Shawn, he was doing his job. There isn't a line to be drawn. How many drunk people do you think try getting on the bus short. Tons and tons.

There is always a line to be drawn, this isn't a military operation, what if he saw her actually being raped by the the side of the road and just carried on because he didn't want to be late to his next stop?, so please don't tell me there is no line to be drawn, we have a personal responsibility to help those that could be in danger, the bus driver was being a dick simple as, this goes beyond policy, there are people in this thread that I believe would let her on, myself included, we would have decided that the risks were to high regardless of company policy, this driver didn't, I think we have the right to disagree with his decision and even to a certain extent condemn him for it.

Should he be punished no, but should he be immune from any criticisms with regards to his decision, no.

 

[DirtyJester]

The story pretty much sums up humanity tbh.

..yeah bus fares are too high







I'd have made up the difference.

 

[PapaLazaru]

There is no way for me to say what I would have done. The unfortunate outcome would have not been known, so it would depend on any number of circumstances. What kind of mood I was in at the time? How was the girl acting? Was she being rude? Did I find her attractive?

 

[NiCkNaMe]

I freaking hate getting the bus. They all seem to have ridiculous fairs for stops, e.g. 2.70, or 2.30 and then expect everyone to have the exact change, every day. I make an effort to have change available if I know i'm catching one however sometimes it's unavoidable, and without exception if this happens then the bus drivers are always visibly annoyed, very obnoxious and totally PMT.

 

[Glaucus]

There is always a line to be drawn, this isn't a military operation, what if he saw her actually being raped by the the side of the road and just carried on because he didn't want to be late to his next stop?, no, but should he be immune from any criticisms with regards to his decision, no.

lol, hardly the same. He would stop and call 999.

He's got a job to do, when doing a such jobs, you aren't paid to think and thinking lands you in trouble. Or in this case. Disaplinery/having to pay for the huge loss of money.

So don't try making stupid incomparable scenarios.

As long as he followed company policy, then there is nothing you can say about the driver.

 

[Deluxe1]

Bus driver should be named and shamed.

 

[PapaLazaru]

Bus driver should be named and shamed.

I was going to write a long post slating this comment but I just cannot be bothered.

 

[Luke]

Rapist should be named and shamed.

Fixed.

Whilst the bus driver wasn't particularly charitable he was doing his job and the girl was in the wrong for not having the fare.

 

[^TANK^]

Would have given her the 20p. Seriously people are making jokes about rape? That's quite low for GD.

 

[^TANK^]

Bus driver should be named and shamed.

Seriously? For what doing his job, its not the bus drivers thought she got rapped although he is a bit of a ******* for not letting a woman off of 20p to travel safely at night.

 

[Things change I've changed]

lol, hardly the same. He would stop and call 999.

He's got a job to do, when doing a such jobs, you aren't paid to think and thinking lands you in trouble. Or in this case. Disaplinery/having to pay for the huge loss of money.

So don't try making stupid incomparable scenarios.

As long as he followed company policy, then there is nothing you can say about the driver.

The driver wouldn't of had any disciplinary action over this, I think we both know this, we even have a guy here that said he would back he drivers either way, whether they choose to let her on or refuse her, anyway you seem to live by different ethical values than I and others here, you believe in protocol beyond all else, perhaps you should join the army.

 

[Robbo]

I was going to write a long post slating this comment but I just cannot be bothered.

Indeed. I simply don't understand people blaming the driver. Utterly bizarre.