A BUS driver was commended for her bravery after throwing a group of abusive men from her vehicle.
Sally Riley from Middlesbrough warned a group of four men on her bus to calm down and stop intimidating other passengers with their abusive language. But when they refused to curb their behaviour, 39-year-old Sally stopped the Stagecoach bus en route from Stockton to Hartlepool and ordered them to get off.
“It was during the Stockton Riverside Festival,� said Sally. “They started using foul language in front of everybody on the bus.
“I told them to knock the language on the head. They didn’t so as we went through Greatham, I asked them to remove themselves.
“They gave me a bit of stick - they weren’t kids either - I’d say they were in their early 20s and apparently they had been out on Stockton High Street.
“I felt the adrenalin kick in but I just thought that people shouldn’t have to put up with that sort of behaviour when they take public transport.
“Eventually they did all get off.�
Sally was given the commendation by Stagecoach after her conduct was praised in a letter from Iris Ryder of Hartlepool, a passenger on the bus.
Ms Ryder said: “The group were shouting obscenities at the tops of their voices.
“It’s frightening and intimidating for other passengers and the driver was very brave to stand up to them and put them off the bus.�
Sally has been a bus driver for just six months. She previously worked in sales and carried out voluntary work.
Eddie Porter, Stagecoach operations manager, said she is “a credit to her profession�.
“Incidents like this are rare, but in this situation Sally put her passengers’ safety before her own and dealt with a frightening situation in a calm and professional manner,� he said.
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