Passengers fear fare rises and cutbacks
said two weeks ago this would have been my life I would never have thought it.”
James, of Houghton-le-Spring, said that he is not bothered about Ryan’s past and wants to help him build his future.
“We quite often stop to talk to people and got speaking to Ryan,” the 40-year-old said.
“I asked why he didn’t have a job and he said it was because he didn’t have a fixed address.
“I said I have a job at my factory, if I offered you it would you take it and he said ‘1,000%,’ so I told him he could started on Monday. I just wanted to give him an opportunity.”
But James was “gutted” when Ryan didn’t turn up on Monday, but later found out he’d gone to an emergency housing appointment, and he started on Tuesday.
James said: “This is down to Ryan now and he is being treated like every employee here.”
After offering him the job, James shared a post on Facebook and woke up the next day to find his goodwill gesture had been shared by thousands of people.
He said: “It has been overwhelming to be honest. I didn’t share it expecting anything but woke up the next day and it had gone crazy.
“For me it is about Ryan – we just wanted to give him the chance.
“If we can make a little change everyday, it won’t happen overnight, to change his life.” The incredible support Ryan received didn’t stop there, with generous strangers donating cash to help him get his own place.
During his shift James asked Ryan, who has spent years sofa-surfing, what he was going to do with his wages. James said: “He was going to save money each week for a bond so he could get his own place.
“To stay in a hostel is £16 per night, which is around £1,600 – that is a lot of money.
“So we thought ‘what can we do?’ and set up a crowdfunding page to raise £500 for a deposit so that he could get a place.” The target has already been smashed, with nearly £2,000 raised.
Ryan said: “This is up to me now. I just have to put 100% in and graft hard.”
To donate to the crowdfunding page visit bit.ly/2L3ls6R BUS passengers in Tyne and Wear are facing the prospect of rising fares and reduced services.
Transport bosses have said the changes may be necessary to combat a fall in the number of travellers using the service.
The admission came at a meeting of South Tyneside Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Coordinating and Call-in Committee.
Mike Scott, head of bus services at Nexus, told the panel: “Use of buses is dropping slowly and that has consequences for the network.
“That might mean higher fares, fewer buses, less investment.
“That’s something we want to address and we’ve looked at various options.”
The number of bus journeys in the North East has fallen every year since 2008/09, according to figures from the Department for Transport. Fares are set by companies operating routes such as Stagecoach North East and Go North East, while Nexus manages infrastructure, such as bus stops.