Bus driver drove away from scene of accident (From Daily Echo)
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Driver aquitted of driving without due care and attention in New Forest
3:00pm Wednesday 22nd February 2012 in News By Arron Hendy
Bus driver Allan Warnes
A bus driver drove off from the scene of an accident that left a man and a 12-year-old boy injured, a court heard.
Allan Warnes was at the wheel of a Wilts & Dorset bus in the New Forest when his wing mirror smashed into that of a 7.5 tonne lorry.
Both mirrors swung back and smashed the driver’s windows of each vehicle.
Warnes, 62, was cleared of driving without due care and attention by Southampton magistrates but was convicted of failing to stop at the scene of an accident after the collision in Ramley Road, Pennington, on October 28.
Lorry driver Mark Crowther suffered a cut to his nose from a shard of glass following the collision, while driving alongside his boss Liam Jones and the 12-year-old boy, who received a cut behind his ear.
Mr Crowther told the court: “There was a collision and the next thing we knew there was glass flying through the cab of the lorry.
“The wing mirror was pulled off and had hit the driver’s window and that imploded into the vehicle.
“I was stunned and I got out and looked to see if the bus had stopped and there was no sign of it.”
Warnes, of South Street, Lymington, denied that his bus had crossed the central white lines and caused the collision.
A tachograph device recording the speed of the bus showed he did not exceed the 40mph limit. It also showed the bus stopped momentarily after the collision.
Warnes admitted to the court that he stopped for two and a half seconds and looked back before driving on and later stopped again for one second. He later contacted the police from the Lymington bus depot.
After acquitting Warnes of driving without due care and attention magistrate Helen Douglas said he should have stopped for longer.
“The driver of the lorry found a place to stop,” she said.
David Lyons, mitigating, said Warnes now earns £300 per week working for National Express and called on the court not to impose a financial penalty as he is in debt and having to borrow money from relatives.
Warnes was fined £450, ordered to pay £310 costs and a £15 victim surcharge and had five penalty points put on his driving licence, taking his total to eight.
A spokesman for Wilts & Dorset said they carried out a full internal investigation immediately after the incident but declined to comment further as Warnes no longer works for them.
Comments(19)
bigfella777
says...
4:25pm Wed 22 Feb 12
AlfredJones wrote:The law doesn't actually state that you must stop after an accident at all, you only need to report it to the Police within 24 hours of the accident, so technically he did nothing wrong.
Surely that isn't "mitigating"? Mitigating is "he was previously of good driving record".
It is no mitigation to say he has financial difficulties - that is begging isn't it?
He is a professional driver, he knows the law requires stopping, properly, at the scene of an accident - I am sure he will now remember that!
Glad he has a proper fine to deal with!
rh
says...
4:36pm Wed 22 Feb 12
rh
says...
4:37pm Wed 22 Feb 12
rh
says...
4:37pm Wed 22 Feb 12
rudolph_hucker
says...
6:20pm Wed 22 Feb 12
I imagine if you have have an interview for a job as a bus driver it makes a good impresson if you turn up late and are rude, because they nearly all are.
Peters567
says...
6:22pm Wed 22 Feb 12
It states that the mirrors swung back and broke windows of both vehicles. It's glass from the windows that caused the cuts, not the mirrors.
FWIW, you ARE obliged to stop at the scene of an accident, especially when injuries have occured.
Peters567
says...
6:30pm Wed 22 Feb 12
National Express claim their pay is "competitive" so I'd expect it to be at least this, maybe more.
In addition, they offer benefits such as free national travel, cheap hotels, high street discounts etc to all employees..
rh
says...
6:46pm Wed 22 Feb 12
dolomiteman
says...
7:36pm Wed 22 Feb 12
Peters567 wrote:Im suprissed anyone can live on £400 a year, he would be better off claimed benifits!
According to mysalary.co.uk, the average coach driver gets £400 per year.
National Express claim their pay is "competitive" so I'd expect it to be at least this, maybe more.
In addition, they offer benefits such as free national travel, cheap hotels, high street discounts etc to all employees..
dolomiteman
says...
7:43pm Wed 22 Feb 12
rh wrote:Side glass can break into shards and can cause cuts, but what is incorrect is the statment about wing mirrors, buses and trucks and infact most cars do not have wirng mirrors.
peters567 same goes for window glass in vehicles it breaks into granules not "shards" as reported. The granules from toughened glass are not sharp an CANNOT cause cuts. so mirror or or window it still cannot happen.
And i wonder if the police checked if the truck driver was insured to carry children as most comercial isurance policys do not allow this.
rudolph_hucker
says...
7:57pm Wed 22 Feb 12
dolomiteman
says...
8:32pm Wed 22 Feb 12
e remove your head from your butt. I done very well at school and I have PCV licence and now drive HGV's.
And why are you posting under three different user names?
opera phantom
says...
9:21pm Wed 22 Feb 12
Peters567 wrote:£400 pounds per year?
According to mysalary.co.uk, the average coach driver gets £400 per year.
National Express claim their pay is "competitive" so I'd expect it to be at least this, maybe more.
In addition, they offer benefits such as free national travel, cheap hotels, high street discounts etc to all employees..
Are you sure that you haven't
left two zeros off?
IanRRR
says...
12:05am Thu 23 Feb 12
rudolph_hucker wrote:Oh dear, how badly out of touch you are! I wonder when you last actually travelled on a bus? The vast majority of drivers are accident free, and are not allowed to throw children off of buses as they are classed as vulnerable. Buses are fitted with devices which monitor driving standards, and any driver who consistently drives badly loses their job. Buses are not allowed to run early, consequently they will often be late, mainly due to idiot car drivers parking so badly that buses cant get through, and such routine things as rush hour traffic. I have long experience of travelling on buses nearly every day, and find the vast majority of drivers absolutely superb at their job, in very difficult circumstances. They are nearly all very polite and courteous to their passengers. As usual though, the odd exception will grab the headlines, rather than the thousands who do their job in a thorough and professional manner, who seldom get the thanks and rewards that they thoroughly deserve for getting millions of people to their destinations safely, every day.
Bus drivers these days - all they seem to do is crash into low bridges and bus stops, throw children off if they are 5p short of the fare, and drive so badly pensioners like me are thrown up and down the ailse. I imagine if you have have an interview for a job as a bus driver it makes a good impresson if you turn up late and are rude, because they nearly all are.
IanRRR
says...
12:05am Thu 23 Feb 12
rudolph_hucker wrote:Oh dear, how badly out of touch you are! I wonder when you last actually travelled on a bus? The vast majority of drivers are accident free, and are not allowed to throw children off of buses as they are classed as vulnerable. Buses are fitted with devices which monitor driving standards, and any driver who consistently drives badly loses their job. Buses are not allowed to run early, consequently they will often be late, mainly due to idiot car drivers parking so badly that buses cant get through, and such routine things as rush hour traffic. I have long experience of travelling on buses nearly every day, and find the vast majority of drivers absolutely superb at their job, in very difficult circumstances. They are nearly all very polite and courteous to their passengers. As usual though, the odd exception will grab the headlines, rather than the thousands who do their job in a thorough and professional manner, who seldom get the thanks and rewards that they thoroughly deserve for getting millions of people to their destinations safely, every day.
Bus drivers these days - all they seem to do is crash into low bridges and bus stops, throw children off if they are 5p short of the fare, and drive so badly pensioners like me are thrown up and down the ailse. I imagine if you have have an interview for a job as a bus driver it makes a good impresson if you turn up late and are rude, because they nearly all are.
IanRRR
says...
12:17am Thu 23 Feb 12
dolomiteman wrote:Please dont feed him (I did once!). I suspect he is just a wind up merchant who likes to see his words in print. I know of former Managing Directors now drive buses for a living! They did very well at school, but for various reasons now choose to do a decent days work for a decent days pay....
rudolph_hucker,pleas e remove your head from your butt. I done very well at school and I have PCV licence and now drive HGV's. And why are you posting under three different user names?
05bar76
says...
11:00am Thu 23 Feb 12
bigfella777 wrote:Section 170 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 makes it an offence to fail to stop after an accident and failing to give your name and address to other parties involved. It is not a defence to report the accident- this only applies where you have stopped but been unable to exchange details.
AlfredJones wrote: Surely that isn't "mitigating"? Mitigating is "he was previously of good driving record". It is no mitigation to say he has financial difficulties - that is begging isn't it? He is a professional driver, he knows the law requires stopping, properly, at the scene of an accident - I am sure he will now remember that! Glad he has a proper fine to deal with!The law doesn't actually state that you must stop after an accident at all, you only need to report it to the Police within 24 hours of the accident, so technically he did nothing wrong.
Northamboy
says...
4:06pm Thu 23 Feb 12
rudolph_hucker wrote:Your multiple alias have been reported. Oh and by the way your posts are both rude and ignorant.
Bus drivers these days - all they seem to do is crash into low bridges and bus stops, throw children off if they are 5p short of the fare, and drive so badly pensioners like me are thrown up and down the ailse.
I imagine if you have have an interview for a job as a bus driver it makes a good impresson if you turn up late and are rude, because they nearly all are.
AlfredJones says...
3:14pm Wed 22 Feb 12
It is no mitigation to say he has financial difficulties - that is begging isn't it?
He is a professional driver, he knows the law requires stopping, properly, at the scene of an accident - I am sure he will now remember that!
Glad he has a proper fine to deal with!