"Homeless" person removed from Megabus in the middle of the night

extendedpaul · 17 Oct 2018

On the Megabus twitter page on Monday there's a lengthy multiple tweet account of a "homeless" man being made to leave an overnight service to Scotland following protests to the driver from other passengers about his strong body/urine odour. There is no allegation of antisocial behaviour, just the smell caused.

The (elderly) man was trying to get to Birmingham, the first stop. It is not clear whether he had purchased a ticket but I suspect he had sneaked on to the coach. The person tweeting is very critical of the complaining passengers and disagrees with the driver's decision to "de-coach" him somewhere north of London, presumably a Motorway services area, at about 1am. The brief "hope he was okay" reply on Megabus Twitter has caused further criticism.

There were clearly conflicting views as another passenger gave him money for food and a shower. The driver must have been in a difficult position faced with some passengers wanting him removed and others like the person complaining on twitter believing that was uncalled for. Personally I think he should have been allowed to stay on board to Birmingham even without a ticket.

What are other forum members' views ?

https://twitter.com/cmpunksnotdead/status/1051126287698407424

Conor McLeod said:
Humans can be the least compassionate creatures in existence. On a @megabusuk from London to Glasgow last night and a homeless, non-English man was on the bus going to Birmingham.

He did smell and had maybe peed himself, but instead of anyone offering support people on the bus were calling him names and telling him to **** off and sit elsewhere. He had the full back row to himself, there's a downstairs and an upstairs, he could have been sat away from everyone and the smell could have been masked, it wasn't unbearable and I was one of the closest to him yet passengers asked for him to be kicked off the bus which the driver did for hygiene reasons, fair enough a guy gave him £13 to get a shower and a coffee but who knows why that man had to be in Birmingham and now he's dropped off at 1 in the morning with nowhere to sleep except outside in the rain because people couldn't make half the journey holding their noses or moving down to the front of the coach.

Brain dead humans without a compassionate bone in their body. He was a older man, who knows what mental state he was in or if he was even homeless. He could have just been someone's grandparent who's had an accident, it's disgusting the way people treat other people sometimes.
Imagine someone treated someone in your family with that kind of disregard and disrespect. Asked the driver why can't the downstairs folk move upstairs and leave him downstairs as it was only a further 2 hour journey, you've already taken him an hour away from London Victoria without any complaints but he had to get off. Maybe it's policy, but ...

RailUK Forums

transportphoto · 17 Oct 2018

It’s going to be hard to hold an opinion given we don’t know so much - the exact chain of events is missing, and we’ll never know the Driver’s rationale for the decisions s/he made at the time.

AJW12 · 17 Oct 2018

Would agree with the above. But since you asked, assuming that it was true he had no ticket and was making the journey unpleasant for dangerous passengers, I can see why they'd do it. It would have set a dangerous precedent that anyone can just jump on their services without a ticket....

yorkie · 17 Oct 2018

Can you edit your post to include a link and quote please?

I don't see why someone should be conveyed if they have sneaked on with no intention to pay and are in a state that is inconveniencing other passengers; on the railway that would likely lead to prosecution.

Edit: I have edited the opening post to include a link and quote, in compliance with forum rules.

There doesn't appear to be a suggestion that no ticket was held. Conor McLeod says that no-one complained, though he does say people swore and called him names, which doesn't sound acceptable to me. That said, Conor McLeod also on record swearing and calling people names too...

goblinuser · 17 Oct 2018

No one wants someone who stinks the bus out, especially on a long overnight coach trip.
And if they haven't even bought a ticket... Well I don't know how they expect to remain on the coach.

overthewater · 17 Oct 2018

How do we know he was homeless??

gingerheid · 17 Oct 2018

I certainly wouldn't want to travel on an overnight coach with someone that stank, and who "maybe" (not being able to tell says a lot in itself...) peed himself - kudos to Megabus for doing the right thing.

Bletchleyite · 17 Oct 2018

gingerheid said:
I certainly wouldn't want to travel on an overnight coach with someone that stank, and who "maybe" (not being able to tell says a lot in itself...) peed himself - kudos to Megabus for doing the right thing.

I would similarly expect that an adult who had urinated on himself (whatever the background) would be removed from the coach for reasons of hygiene. Obviously were it a serious medical condition e.g. epileptic fit that was the cause I'd expect an ambulance to be arranged to meet the coach, but otherwise it's not an acceptable condition in which to travel. Coaches don't allow hot food, and TBH I'd rather share a coach with 50 people eating Burger Stink or Kentucky Fried Rat (neither of which is actually allowed) than people stinking of a public lavatory.

The difficulty it presents, though, is where to remove him - a motorway service station is not a suitable place to leave a pedestrian. If someone is removed from a long distance train it will typically be at a major station with staff (or BTP if relevant) on hand.

Journeyman · 17 Oct 2018

While I'd like to think I'm a decent human being, I think it was right to eject someone from the bus who was clearly - whether intentionally or not - causing distress to other passengers. It could have been handled better, but ultimately the driver is responsible to his employers and for the safety of his passengers, and I don't see what else he could have done.

richw · 17 Oct 2018

Perfectly reasonable to eject a passenger who is creating an unpleasant atmosphere for everyone else.
There is possibly a duty of care regarding where you eject someone. Not in a lay-by in the middle of nowhere for example.

Mwanesh · 17 Oct 2018

I also think it should just have been worded as a man not homeless non English man.Drivers are in a difficult job with social media these days.

Ginge_dave · 17 Oct 2018

I think it’s incredibly sad that so many think that to reject someone is right. However unconfortable it is for others, just stop and consider how uncomfortable it is for him! Kick him while he’s down....
...or show some compassion!

overthewater · 17 Oct 2018

So what do you want to happen? Phone the police? Lock him in the loos?

Ginge_dave · 17 Oct 2018

Speak to him. Treat him as a human, not a inconvenience. Well done to the person who gave him help to shower and eat. Maybe if more people selflessly gave than scorned and judged, then he’d be in a better place. I’d hope someone was there to help me rather than eject me

James101 · 17 Oct 2018

I wonder if the original poster, so keen to seem compassionate on Twitter, stayed behind at the services to ensure the wellbeing and safe onward journey of the man? :rolleyes:

Astradyne · 18 Oct 2018

And to think we had a user say that he would rather soil himself than disembark from a stuck train in another thread .... Yep this would be a person of similar disposition! Nice people!

robbeech · 21 Oct 2018

Mwanesh said:
I also think it should just have been worded as a man not homeless non English man.Drivers are in a difficult job with social media these days.

Or, dare I say, a person ?

Baxenden Bank · 21 Oct 2018

Wasn't there, can't comment on the individual, his circumstances, the other passengers or the driver.
But:

The Public Service Vehicles (Conduct of Drivers, Inspectors, Conductors and Passengers) Regulations 1990
The conduct of passengers
6.—(1) No passenger on a vehicle shall–
<snip>

(k)remain on the vehicle, when directed to leave by the driver, inspector or conductor on the following grounds–

(i)that his remaining would result in the number of passengers exceeding the maximum seating capacity or the maximum standing capacity marked on the vehicle in accordance with the Public Service Vehicles (Carrying Capacity) Regulations 1984(1);
(ii)that he has been causing a nuisance; or
(iii)that his condition is such as would be likely to cause offence to a reasonable passenger or that the condition of his clothing is such that his remaining would be reasonably expected to soil the fittings of the vehicle or the clothing of other passengers;

link:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1990/1020/regulation/6/made

I have made the mistake of sitting in a seat recently vacated by someone with a hygiene / bodily fluids problem (for whatever reason).

I would not wish others to have to suffer the same fate. Spend the rest of your day stinking of long-term non-washed sweat or stale p**s.

Would you want to?

philthetube · 22 Oct 2018

Ginge_dave said:
I think it’s incredibly sad that so many think that to reject someone is right. However unconfortable it is for others, just stop and consider how uncomfortable it is for him! Kick him while he’s down....
...or show some compassion!

And tomorrow night he thinks, "that was a nice place to sleep, I will return tomorrow" In the meantime other passengers thinlk,"not doing that again, can't put up with that smell". Very soon no megabus and many of the less financially well off members of the community can't afford to travel.

He decided to get on the bus, whether or not he had a ticet is important, if he had one then I feel that Megabus, moraly, though not legally had obligations to get him to where he was going, though they could have pointed out that he would not be allowed to travel again. If no ticket then not their problem, social services or police to sort.

richw · 22 Oct 2018

I had a “soap dodger” sit in the so called suicide seat on my E400 on Saturday. He then had the cheek to ask me to shut my cab window which I’d opened to ventilate my cab to reduce the odour... I couldn’t hold my breath for 2 hours!!! He was politely told my window would be remaining open as it’s my space and suggested he may like to move to a seat further back.

On a similar subject albeit non transport, a stinky person was in front of me in a coffee shop queue last week. As the man turned around to walk away the coffee shop worker febreezed his back! I tried to hold my giggle whilst stinky man was still in front of me!

"Homeless" person removed from Megabus in the middle of the night

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