Bus drivers could walk out in Brighton and Hove as part of a nationwide series of strikes in disputes over pay and conditions.
About 7,500 members of Unite are either striking or balloting to take industrial action in Brighton and Hove as well as Birkenhead, Bristol, Cardiff, Chorley, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Preston, Stoke and Swindon.
Strikes involving 2,000 London United workers in west London, 550 First workers in Bristol, 450 Cardiff Bus workers and 70 Go South West workers in Swindon have already been announced.
Further strikes involving thousands more bus workers are planned at other towns and cities in the coming weeks.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Bus employers everywhere need to get the message loud and clear: driver pay simply does not reflect the stresses and strains of the job.
“Fatigue, a lack of toilets, abuse and even assaults are a daily occurrence.
“Unite will fight tooth and nail for bus workers until wages and conditions improve across the sector.”
Unite has previously reported that bus drivers face abuse at work, with workers reporting that the number of incidents is increasing.
The union is also campaigning for improvements to rest breaks, toilet facilities and shift patterns to reduce fatigue.
Bus drivers are more likely to suffer mental and physical ill health than other professions because of the stressful nature of the job, according to the union.
Unite said that strikes in Cardiff and Newcastle involving 600 bus workers would go ahead if deals being balloted on were rejected.
Unite has been involved in 167 bus disputes since 2023 on behalf of more than 42,000 members.
Oh poor them! The majority of bus drivers in Brighton and Hove are rude, drive the buses with a force constantly slamming on their brakes sending passengers flying and generally miserable.
Au contraire Johnny. It’s you that sounds rude and miserable. I travel regularly on the busses and find the majority of drivers considerate, polite and professional. I often witness idiotic driving and dangerous delivery cyclists from the passenger perspective and it is surprising that there is not more accidents. Given pedestrians too impatient to await crossing safely, this is a testament to their good driving and awareness.
No need to be so rude and pompous I’m glad your experience with bus drivers is a good one and it’s all down to irresponsible cyclist and pedestrians and zero fault of the bus drivers. Goos to know that they will all go to heaven when they die.
The poster didn’t say it’s all down to cyclists/pedestrians nor did they claim zero fault of drivers.
There are many contributing factors where any incidents occur, learn to read and stop being rude.
Thank you for being so observant. You must be one of the passengers that offers us warmth when you hop on in. Its really nice to be recognised as a person by my passengers. Jonny is right about one thing. Buses can feel a little rough at times because in my own experience it takes a couple of years to be consistant and smooth. We have a revolving door of new drivers having just passed to fill in the gaps that have been left by the people that have given up. Iv never been emotionally tested as i have been driving buses. Im a better person for it but it becomes harder to not be cynical. Peace
Congratulations on winning Ignorant Comment of the Year award. You have absolutely no idea what it’s like driving a bus; bus drivers get less than half a train driver’s salary but still have to deal with abusive members of the public, inconsiderate and sometimes dangerous motorists, constant route diversions and roadworks, not to mention having minimum meal breaks of only 30 minutes after being on the road for 5 hours.
Next time, get your facts right before typing.
Oh poor you…..Perhaps you should have paid more attention at school and then perhaps you would have been a train driver rather than a bus driver. You come across as bitter comparing a bus driver to a train driver, you clearly never made the grade. In any case there will come a time where all bus drivers and train drivers will be a thing of the past with driverless buses and trains, you can have an all day meal break then!
Are you unwell?
Well Johnny boy, let me tell you that the vast majority of bus drivers go to work with a smile on their face. It is you, the customer that quickly wipes that smile off the drivers with rudeness, arrogance and sheer disrespect. Now off you toddle and go and find someone else to bring down to your level.
Not all some of them are really polite it’s the public that are rude to them also they have to put up with people looking at their phones and just crossing the road without looking I have sen it nearly every time I go to town
You get back what you give
Johnny,
Following your complaints, a lengthy investigation has taken place this involved reviewing CCTV, downloading vehicle/driver data and checking incident reports and our complaints log.
We have found no evidence that the majority of drivers are rude nor generally miserable. It is accepted that some drivers do have incidents both on and off the vehicles, these are few and far between.
We can confirm from data provided, that few buses are driven with force and none are shown to be constantly slamming on brakes.
We can also confirm, that passengers are not sent flying, rules and regulations state Passengers MUST remain seated until the bus stops.
We think, perhaps it is yourself who is rude, considering your comments in other posts.
They should let everyone who get on the buss sit down before moving the bus because they might fall over and hurt themselves
Most do, most will even give up their break minutes to let people take their seats after every stop. They will also stand at the door as your pulling in to a stop and hop off with no coutesy being shown. I mean i get it, courtesy is dead. But still, we try
All part of the financial doom spiral being brought about by the government.
Fiscal drag, more specifically. Although currently, from various data sources, drivers reach drivers reach £35k–36k with progression. The average full-time salary in Brighton ranges approximately between £35k and £38k, depending on the data source.
Us unlucky residents on the 5B route wouldn’t notice if the drivers refused to work on that non-existent service anyway
The 5B is fine. It’s generally reliable and frequent. I seldom wait more than 2 minutes for one to show up (I use the app to tell me when the next one’s coming).
Be a shame as lots of people have appointments and the elderly is there only way of going out and communicating with people I.live in Brighton and find the buses I go.on the drivers are great and they have toilets they can use i will find it hard as partically disabled my partner lives the other side of Brighton Station we wont be able to..see each other so hope it dosnt happen here
I wholeheartedly support the desire to improve conditions. It’s well-founded in research that this occupation is marred with high-stress and related healthcare conditions. What I am unsure about is whether a pay bump really helps resolve this, when the main issue is more to do with inequality and the rising costs of living comparatively?
How do you give a pay rise without giving a pay rise? By making everything else less expensive.
My experience with Brighton bus drivers is mostly very positive. On Saturday afternoon in London Road I and my crutch were limping towards a 22 bus. But the last passenger boarded, the doors closed and I gave up hope of catching it. But the driver saw me and, rather than pull away to catch the lights, opened the doors again. Thanks again!
Thays cool. Really it depends on if he spots you before he’s indicated to pull away, as that’s the point where he’s committed to departure.
In my 2 1/2 years as a councillor I can honestly say that I have never received a complaint about a bus driver. I do feel sorry for the drivers having to negotiate some of our roads & cycle lanes that are not particularly used at times. Also the issues about toilets, though the 27 finishing at Withdean Stadium means that there is access to toilets at The Sportsman Pub.
You’ve got to remember that a lot of bus companies dislike staff entering licensed premises in uniform for pretty obvious reasons.
Most do, most will even give up their break minutes to let people take their seats after every stop. They will also stand at the door as your pulling in to a stop and hop off with no coutesy being shown. I mean i get it, courtesy is dead. But still, we try
If you are stood next to the door it makes sense to be off first otherwise you make it harder for everyone else to get off quickly becaise you are blocking half the door!
And that applies to everyone!
And that driver may need to make a quick exit so they can start driving another service.
I actually think All Buses Services are really good for the City to be honest.
Your not really waiting long for a Bus anywhere in the city let’s be honest
The Drivers need more toilet breaks, Lunch to be eaten at Depot-there used to be a time you had a Canteen in them-are rhey still there for Staff to use.
I’d happily pay more for my bus journeys so that the drivers can have better conditions.
I seem to recall that B&H Buses reported profits of several million. To me, this suggests that the company could, in fact, afford a wage increase. I think buses are one of those services that I would want to keep fares low, because they are a necessity for many people, especially those in difficult geographical areas, and those with mobility issues who rely on public transport.
Profit does not equal dividends to shareholders. I don’t know what B&H/Go-Ahead keep as retained profit for investment,or what it returns to shareholders.
Either way, it shows the company has headroom. The choice is whether that money goes on shareholder returns, future projects, or improving staff pay and conditions. My point is simply that keeping fares affordable and treating drivers fairly should be a higher priority than maximising margins.
I feel for bus drivers at times
They have to deal with idiotic drivers and cyclists some of whom seem to deliberatly want to delay buses and their passengers.
Some passengers are just downright awful as well being rude to drivers and passengers.
Some feel it’s an imposition to be asked to move down the bus to let more people on or to move from the buggy / wheel chair space.
There are the ones who block the doors making it harder for other people to get to the card reader and get off yet will complain if someones bag touches them!
And then there are those who despite being stood at a bus stop don’t have their cards, passes and phones ready and then complain about buses always being late.
I wonder why a picture from North Yorkshire has been used.
Probably something to do with woke, left-wing nutjobs something something…
Bit early to be on the sauce, isn’t it
My husband and I use buses most days and are thankful for our bus passes . The bus Drivers on the buses we use are thoughtful, helpful and always polite . The routes that we use include the 46 and quite frankly they deserve a medal !
It’s a route with more impossible corners than any other route we have ever used .
All drivers do an amazing job and deserve to be treated with respect by all passengers.
We would be lost without our buses and the wonderful men and women who drive them so a very huge thank you to you all .