Bus Drivers Plan Protest, Warn Of Friday Chaos

Bus passengers across the city have been warned to expect a chaotic Friday morning by a group of bus driver unions, who are organising a work-to-rule protest on that day.

The Federation of Bus Industry Trade Unions said up to 4,000 staff will join the action on that morning to protest against long working hours and unfavourable pay calculations.

They said as part of the protest, drivers will only let passengers get on or off when buses are parked properly at stops, and no oversized items will be allowed on board.

The drivers are not happy about new guidelines brought in following a deadly crash in Tai Po in February. They say they still face shifts of up to 14 hours if firms say there are special circumstances.

The drivers also said the pay they get for their rest breaks is too low.

The federation's Tsang Chiu-man told RTHK's Timmy Sung that the new guidelines do nothing to address members getting too tired to be behind the wheel.

New World First Bus urged its bus drivers to drop the planned industrial action to avoid inconveniencing passengers and promised to address some of their concerns.

It said it’s aiming to limit its bus drivers' working hours to within 13.5 hours by the start of next year and to 13 hours by 2020. It also says it will deploy extra staff to coordinate parking at major bus stops.

Last updated: 2018-05-21 HKT 21:58