Autistic boy thrown off Bus because he didn't "look" disabled.

[kay]

Doesn't appear the bus company is just for disabled people, it's just public bus service. From looking at their website it looks like the company is very aware of hidden disabilities and so it doesn't seem likely that the driver was merely ignorant. And it does seem odd that the driver even paid much attention to this one particular person. Where I live I don't even think we need a photo id for any kind of bus pass except possibly the ones that come to your door. But that is for people who can't get to the bus stops and it seems this kid can get to bus stops and such so I assume it was the regular bus. Of course I don't live in the UK so only have limited information. I do know that there are plenty of bullies out there and there is nothing stopping one from getting to drive a bus. There could be more to the story, of course, but I'm willing to guess it was the driver at fault this time. I've been bullied in a college disability office by the staff for being a slow test taker. I've been discriminated and bullied by the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge in St. Louis, Mo simply for not eating in the main dining area and attempting to socialize. The story of the kid getting unfairly accused of fraud and being kicked off the bus doesn't sound like a stretch to me, seems quite likely.

 

[Bolletje]

Another thing to consider is the duty owed by the transit company and driver to ensure the safety of their passengers. A consideration that is elevated given the vulnerability of these particular passengers.

If they are lackadaisical about who boards the bus, that also could potentially result in some nasty losses in both property and bodily injury. So while the driver may have messed up this time, it doesn't disqualify him from a fundamental obligation to monitor who boards his bus. A more serious exposure than just transit fraud when it comes to the disabled.

With such considerations, would it have been better for the driver to just ignore a passenger whose photo doesn't seem to match their appearance? Maybe not.

This isn't about prejudice. It's about liability. With the driver damned if he does, and damned if he doesn't.

Exactly, there was no way for this bus driver to “win”.

 

[Mary Anne]

I once rode a town bus for four days using an ID that I'd found on the sidewalk. I had mine with me, it was just an experiment to check whether drivers looked at the card. The ID card that I found belonged to a large black man, and I'm a small white woman. The man who lost the card wasn't able to retrieve it from me for a few days, so I ran my experiment as long as I had the card. Not one driver said anything. I rode 2-4 times daily.

This was about 25 years ago. Maybe they look now.

I would guess this was not in a super large city. In Chicago they might have arrested you. Called the transit police because you were engaged in illegal activity. I am not making this up.

People pull cons and scams on transit companies all the time. The bus driver was just doing his job.

 

[Smiley]

I would guess this was not in a super large city. In Chicago they might have arrested you.

No, it was a smallish college town. Later I drove the buses, and people tried the same trick on me. I called them out for it, but didn't make a big deal of it. The University subsidized the fare for all the students, so if a person looked to be college student aged there really was no need to look too closely. Most of the people trying to sneak onto the bus with a fraudulent pass were local teenagers.

 

[Ezra]

When I was 14 I Iooked about 10 years old. Now at almost 18 I look like I'm around 21.

 

[Mary Anne]

Well, then it just might be completely different in a larger city. It is absolutely different in Chicago, or NYC Where you can be arrested for jumping turn styles, or scamming bus drivers. The transit companies are funded by government, and are not private companies (which it should not matter though). As an aspie, I also need and want clear sets of rules to follow at my own job. I can totally see the driver’s POV. People are so quick to judge the bus driver, without knowing all the details! He was doing his job - according to the rules.

I have a handicap parking tag. I can walk, and it must infuriate others. What they do not know is that I suffer from agonizing spinal stenosis, which can be as some times of the days than others. I might look like I am not handicapped, but I am totally disabled with back pain sometimes to where I cannot move. So I get it that others might not understand. I ACCEPT that.

I also have other disability challenges that I work hard to mask. I feel that we fight to be treated like everyone else, and then we scream “unfair” when we ARE treated like everyone else. It does not make sense.

 

[GrownupGirl]

What is it with the bus drivers these days? I know carrying a bunch of passengers that invade personal space and are often noisy and germy and there's always at least one guy who smells like he came from a country where soap and toothpaste are legally banned, but still! No wonder I don't go on the bus anymore. I haven't been on a bus in several years now, since the... incident.

 

[xyzzy]

What is it with the bus drivers these days? I know carrying a bunch of passengers that invade personal space and are often noisy and germy and there's always at least one guy who smells like he came from a country where soap and toothpaste are legally banned, but still! No wonder I don't go on the bus anymore. I haven't been on a bus in several years now, since the... incident.

Well, the buses here in Northern Virginia aren't too shabby. Metrorail and Fairfax Connector buses tend to be clean and well ordered. I don't take the bus much because I have a car and can drive, but I don't mind the bus.