Mum gets left on the pavement after being told the bus was too full
A mum-of-four had a bus drive off with her 5-year-old daughter onboard, after she was told the bus was too full and the doors were shut in her face, reports the Daily Mail. Mum Claire Raddon, 30, had collected her children from school in Exeter, Devon, and was queuing with the four of them when her daughter, Jessica, jumped on the bus ahead of her family. As Claire went to board the bus, she was told by the driver it was full, and he shut the doors in front of her and drove away.Mum Claire shouted that her daughter was on board alone, but it wasn’t until 10 stops and 15 minutes later that they were reunited.“It was terrifying. I was hysterical. So many things were going through my head and I was thinking about how I would be able to get her back. I was going to get on the next bus and get them to contact the driver,” said mum Claire.Luckily, a neighbour was on board the bus, and after realising what had happened, was able to take care of Jessica. The neighbour contacted Claire, who boarded the next bus and meet them at the bus stop near home.“The driver apparently had tried to say the bus was full but my neighbour said there were several empty seats. I was screaming and shouting, but he just shrugged his shoulders and carried on,” Claire has commented. The bus company, Stagecoach, has apologised and the driver isn’t on the rota while Stagecoach investigates. “We have already made contact with Ms Raddon to ascertain what happened. It appears that her daughter boarded our bus unnoticed by the driver along with 10 other passengers ahead of Ms Raddon. Regrettably, there was not enough space to accommodate Ms Raddon and in the confusion the bus departed with her daughter still on board. We realise that this was an extremely traumatic experience for Ms Raddon and her daughter and apologise for the distress they experienced,” said a spokesman for Stagecoach.Have you had any hairy moments on public transport? Let us know your stories below…
Posted: 17/11/2009 19:33
Posted: 17/11/2009 20:32
That's so scary !Nearly happened to me on the train but managed to grab my son just as door alarm started - really scary as happened at a unmanned station.
Posted: 24/11/2009 23:58
