Bus Driver Safety A Matter For Employers: Govt

The personal safety of Hong Kong's bus drivers was under the spotlight on Tuesday, with a government official telling an independent review committee that it's up to bus companies to ensure their drivers aren't in danger.

Transport Commissioner Mable Chan told the committee, which was set up following a deadly Tai Po bus crash in February, that the government had notified bus firms of KMB's plan to install a protective shield between drivers and passengers, as well as surveillance cameras. But she said the companies were free to decide for themselves whether to follow suit.

It has been claimed that passengers had verbally abused a KMB driver shortly before his bus toppled over at a bend on Tai Po Road, killing 19 people and injuring dozens more.

Chan told the three-member panel led by High Court judge Michael Lunn that there are no by-laws governing the behaviour of passengers on buses, and companies have never requested such legal protection.

But she said this does not suggest that the government takes a hand-off approach to the safety of bus drivers and officials take a keen interest in the matter.

She said the government is planning to draw up guidelines for bus companies on their training for drivers on how to handle stressful situations, such as aggressive passengers.

The committee held two days of hearings this week. It said it would now invite other parties to give evidence, and would hold more hearings in the future.