‘No-show bus lost me my job’

AVALLEY man claims he has lost his job after his bus failed to show for two days running.

Gareth Johnstone, from Bacup, said he had just acquired a new job as a warehouse worker in Rochdale.

The 464 bus, run by Rosso bus, travels from Accrington to Rawtenstall, then Bacup and Rochdale.

The service leaves the Bacup, St James Gardens bus stop four times an hour. The journey to Rochdale should take approximately just over one hour.

Warehouse worker Gareth, 39, says he set out for his 10am shift at 9am, which he felt should not have been an issue due to his set travel time being outside of rush hours.

Having been unemployed “for a while”, Gareth said he was looking forward to starting his new job in Castleton, saying: “It seemed like a really good place to work.”

Gareth said it’s a “running joke” for waiting passengers to wonder “if the bus will turn up”.

But after two days of delays - Gareth lost his job.

To apologise for the inconvenience, Rosso Bus reportedly compensated Gareth with a free day of travel, costing £5.40.

Rosso Bus told Gareth on Twitter: “Unfortunately due to track and trace we have been experiencing a few problems, this has sometimes resulted in a cancelled journey.

“We are however, trying to maintain our regular schedules where possible.

“We’d love to offer you a free day’s travel on us as an apology. Sorry again for any inconvenience caused.”

Gareth said: “I mean, £5.40 compensation, that’s ridiculous. It’s insulting. It’s more than an inconvenience, I’m furious. An hour late? Five, ten minutes, sure. An hour?”

He added: “I’ve got bills to pay, illnesses too. I’m completely on my own.”

After no buses arrived when Gareth set off for his first day at work, he says he shared a taxi with a fellow passenger costing him £17.

On the second day, he arrived 45 minutes late and consequently lost his job

Gareth said: “Can a Valley survive with a bus service that is that unreliable? There’s not a lot of employment in Bacup.”

“If you don’t drive, you’re very limited. You can’t do a 6am shift because buses don’t run until around then.”

Alex Hornby, Chief Executive Officer from Transdev which runs Rosso Bus, said: “Bus journeys can be delayed due to a variety of reasons, some of which are out of our control, such as traffic delays or accidents involving other vehicles along the routes we share with all road users.

“We were contacted directly by Mr Johnstone via social media following a delay to his bus journey, and fully apologised to him for that delay.

“It’s our usual approach to offer a replacement day’s travel to customers who contact us following a delayed journey, as recompense for the cost of that journey, and not as compensation for any indirect outcomes.

“We advertise this on our timetables and on our buses as ‘happy travels, or your next ride is on us’, and customers generally find this a fair promise. We are the only public transport operator in the north of England to provide this kind of pledge to our customers.

“While we naturally sympathise with Mr Johnstone’s predicament at work, this is ultimately a matter between him and his employer.”