Kev wrote:
Had a run in with a nice employee of Arriva this morning who called me
a ****ing moron because I didn't know that PSV drivers aren't allowed
to reverse. Now I am not an expert on the law regarding PSV drivers so
can somebody confirm that it is a fact that they are not allowed to
reverse. Seems bonkers to me.
Whether thay can or can't reverse I take it that they can't call
members of the public ****ing morons or threaten to punch them in the
face.

"No reversing on the public highway with passengers onboard". Comes in
handy when dealing with other motorists who expect you to reverse back
10 yards instead of their reversing back half a mile. Well, actually
normally reserved for when that situation is, itself, reversed.

Bus station land is not the public highway. Other vehicles without
permits are invariably banned from it.

In practice the "No reversing" rule is widely ignored by drivers when it
suits them. Mostly because of sympathy for the other driver who either
doesn't have the skill, has a trailer, or has a bigger bus.

Sorry if he was rude or threatening. Not a good idea as passengers tend
to report such things. It can, I'm told be quite stressful driving a
bus. I found it the opposite. Getting the bus through Moretonhampstead
on a market day in Summer was like this super game of chess with dozens
of players, plus the joy of solving this 3D dynamic jigsaw puzzle,
whilst allowing for the massive overhang on the back of the bus. I
really felt like turning the bus round and going through again - just
for the fun of it..

--
Sue

On 7 Feb 2006 00:52:06 -0800, "Kev" wrote:

Had a run in with a nice employee of Arriva this morning who called me
a ****ing moron because I didn't know that PSV drivers aren't allowed
to reverse. Now I am not an expert on the law regarding PSV drivers so
can somebody confirm that it is a fact that they are not allowed to
reverse. Seems bonkers to me.

Of course it isn't a fact.

If that were true, then many motorway service areas and tourist
attractions would have coach areas that couldn't legally be used. Some
of which are roadside parking areas where the coach will have to
reverse from the public road to get into them.

As would some bus stations.


Whether thay can or can't reverse I take it that they can't call
members of the public ****ing morons or threaten to punch them in the
face.


There is no specific law preventing that for PSV drivers, although the
same public order laws apply to them as anybody else.

But I imagine their employers would take a rather dim view.
http://www.arriva.co.uk and click on "Contact Us" to send them a
message (there is no point writing to TFL as the other poster
suggested, unless the incident involved a PSV within the TFL area).
--
Alex Heney, Global Villager
My attention isn't hard to get. It IS hard to keep...
To reply by email, my address is alexATheneyDOTplusDOTcom

Not Here wrote:
"Graham Murray" wrote in message
...

"Kev" writes:


Had a run in with a nice employee of Arriva this morning who called me
a ****ing moron because I didn't know that PSV drivers aren't allowed
to reverse. Now I am not an expert on the law regarding PSV drivers so
can somebody confirm that it is a fact that they are not allowed to
reverse. Seems bonkers to me.

That cannot, in general, be true as it is very common for buses and
coaches to reverse out of the stands at bus stations. I have also been
on buses which have reversed on 'normal' roads.


Arent they allowed to as long as there is someone guiding them out of
the stand - when they used to have conducters etc?


Bus stations invariably have signs and barriers keeping pedestrians
off the "roadway". So, if you hit a pedestrian - it is their fault, they
shouldn't have been there. I don't know of any bus station, where you
have to reverse off, that provides any assistance to drivers.

Bus depots are a different matter, they have rules about reversing. But
rules are only there to hang you by, if things go wrong. I did ask once
(I was at the Truro depot for the first time and there are BIG notices
about it). I won't repeat what the duty manager said..So I ignored the
signs, the same as everyone else.

--
Sue

Palindr☻me wrote:
Kev wrote:
Had a run in with a nice employee of Arriva this morning who called me
a ****ing moron because I didn't know that PSV drivers aren't allowed
to reverse. Now I am not an expert on the law regarding PSV drivers so
can somebody confirm that it is a fact that they are not allowed to
reverse. Seems bonkers to me.
Whether thay can or can't reverse I take it that they can't call
members of the public ****ing morons or threaten to punch them in the
face.

"No reversing on the public highway with passengers onboard". Comes in
handy when dealing with other motorists who expect you to reverse back
10 yards instead of their reversing back half a mile. Well, actually
normally reserved for when that situation is, itself, reversed.

Bus station land is not the public highway. Other vehicles without
permits are invariably banned from it.

In practice the "No reversing" rule is widely ignored by drivers when it
suits them. Mostly because of sympathy for the other driver who either
doesn't have the skill, has a trailer, or has a bigger bus.

Sorry if he was rude or threatening. Not a good idea as passengers tend
to report such things. It can, I'm told be quite stressful driving a
bus. I found it the opposite. Getting the bus through Moretonhampstead
on a market day in Summer was like this super game of chess with dozens
of players, plus the joy of solving this 3D dynamic jigsaw puzzle,
whilst allowing for the massive overhang on the back of the bus. I
really felt like turning the bus round and going through again - just
for the fun of it..

--
Sue

The guy actually drove past a gap in parked cars that he could have
pulled into to allow me to proceed without the need to reverse myself.
Reversing is clearly hazardous even for a car driver.
I'm not surprised that driving a bus is stressful if you go around
telling other road users that they are ****ing morons. I understand
that they are short of drivers but Arriva really dragging the barrel
getting their current drivers.

Kevin

Dave the exTrailer wrote:
On Tue, 07 Feb 2006 09:02:07 GMT, "Fray Bentos"
wrote:


"Kev" wrote in message
groups.com...

Had a run in with a nice employee of Arriva this morning who called me
a ****ing moron because I didn't know that PSV drivers aren't allowed
to reverse. Now I am not an expert on the law regarding PSV drivers so
can somebody confirm that it is a fact that they are not allowed to
reverse. Seems bonkers to me.
Whether thay can or can't reverse I take it that they can't call
members of the public ****ing morons or threaten to punch them in the
face.

Kevin


We are not allowed to reverse a vehicle which is carrying passengers.

Wrong !!

I don't know whether it is illegal or not. If you can get fired for
doing it, that pretty much makes whether it is illegal or not somewhat
academic, for me, at least.

I have just dragged out my driver's handbook and it states quite clearly
that, "You must not reverse on the public highway with passengers on
board". Which is pretty much saying, "We are not allowed.." It goes on
to describe unloading the passengers to a place of safety, etc.. Much as
the rules for a breakdown where it would be unsafe to leave the
passengers on the bus.

The evacuation of passengers in the event of fire on the bus is quite
interesting reading too - particularly if you happen to be a passenger
in a wheel chair or otherwise have impaired mobility.

No mention of "get out of jail free" cards of, "under supervision","when
instructed to do so by a police officer" etc.

--
Sue

Kev ) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying
:

Reversing is clearly hazardous even for a car driver.

Driving *forwards* is "clearly hazardous even for a car driver".

With proper observation, reversing is no more hazardous than that.

"Graham Murray" wrote in message
...
"Kev" writes:

Had a run in with a nice employee of Arriva this morning who called me
a ****ing moron because I didn't know that PSV drivers aren't allowed
to reverse. Now I am not an expert on the law regarding PSV drivers so
can somebody confirm that it is a fact that they are not allowed to
reverse. Seems bonkers to me.

That cannot, in general, be true as it is very common for buses and
coaches to reverse out of the stands at bus stations. I have also been
on buses which have reversed on 'normal' roads.

I also see ppl using mobile phones whilst in control of a vehicle oh and
also seen them going over the speed limit.

"Kev" wrote in message
oups.com...
Had a run in with a nice employee of Arriva this morning who called me
a ****ing moron because I didn't know that PSV drivers aren't allowed
to reverse. Now I am not an expert on the law regarding PSV drivers so
can somebody confirm that it is a fact that they are not allowed to
reverse. Seems bonkers to me.
Whether thay can or can't reverse I take it that they can't call
members of the public ****ing morons or threaten to punch them in the
face.

Kevin

So, you have tried to get a bus to reverse to let you through? Presumably
you have told him to reverse? I am not surprised he told you your fortune.
The safety of a bus reversing manoeuvre on a crowded street is clearly not
good.

All bus drivers are told not to reverse except in the depot (unless with
helper, policeman or whatever)
I have always been aware of that, I would say it is common knowledge.

No-one should foul mouth anyone, but in a heated situation it is quite a
common occurrence and is better than getting thumped.

Let it go and move on, learning from the experience.

mrcheerful

On 7 Feb 2006 02:53:33 -0800, "Kev" wrote:


snip

The guy actually drove past a gap in parked cars that he could have
pulled into to allow me to proceed without the need to reverse myself.
Reversing is clearly hazardous even for a car driver.

Given the situation you now describe, if I had been that bus driver,
you would certainly have got a mouthful of abuse from me too.

I suppose I should have guessed the subtext, rather than just
answering the bald question as you put it.

And it is many times more dangerous for a large bus to reverse on the
public road than it is for a car to do so.

Unless you are a *really* crap car driver, of course.

I'm not surprised that driving a bus is stressful if you go around
telling other road users that they are ****ing morons.

It was clearly justified, but he still shouldn't have called you that.

I understand
that they are short of drivers but Arriva really dragging the barrel
getting their current drivers.


It isn't that surprising he lost his rag a bit when faced with a moron
like you.
--
Alex Heney, Global Villager
The young know the rules, the old know the exceptions.
To reply by email, my address is alexATheneyDOTplusDOTcom

Alex Heney wrote:
On 7 Feb 2006 02:53:33 -0800, "Kev" wrote:


snip

The guy actually drove past a gap in parked cars that he could have
pulled into to allow me to proceed without the need to reverse myself.
Reversing is clearly hazardous even for a car driver.

Given the situation you now describe, if I had been that bus driver,
you would certainly have got a mouthful of abuse from me too.

I suppose I should have guessed the subtext, rather than just
answering the bald question as you put it.

And it is many times more dangerous for a large bus to reverse on the
public road than it is for a car to do so.

Unless you are a *really* crap car driver, of course.

I'm not surprised that driving a bus is stressful if you go around
telling other road users that they are ****ing morons.

It was clearly justified, but he still shouldn't have called you that.

I understand
that they are short of drivers but Arriva really dragging the barrel
getting their current drivers.


It isn't that surprising he lost his rag a bit when faced with a moron
like you.
--
Alex Heney, Global Villager
The young know the rules, the old know the exceptions.
To reply by email, my address is alexATheneyDOTplusDOTcom

So I am a moron for expecting a bus driver to pull into a space rather
than pulling up to my car bumper to bumper then getting so ****ed of
that I didn't reverse at high speed to allow him unhindered access then
to swear and threaten violence.
Well al least we all now know that you support violence and aggression
and fowl language rather than do what is expected.
If you see another car coming the other way do you also deliberately
drive past a space then tell the other driver he is a ****ing moron and
threaten to punch him in the face.
You don't have to answer that.

Kevin