Traffic Commissioner fines Dundee bus company and cancels services

Traffic Commissioner fines Dundee bus company and cancels services
30 December 2009 14:26
Office of the Traffic Commissioner (Scotland)

A Dundee bus company has been fined £12,650 – the maximum penalty - and had several of their services cancelled by the Traffic Commissioner for Scotland.

The Traffic Commissioner, Ms Joan Aitken, also directed that the company be prevented for registering any new local services serving places outwith the area of Angus and Dundee City Council with immediate effect. Services ordered to cease must end by 31st January 2010, with the fine payable to Scottish Ministers by the same date.

James and Catherine Cosgrove, Trading as Fishers Tours, appeared before the Traffic Commissioner at Public Inquiry on October 14 following receipt of an adverse report from Bus Compliance Officers. The commissioner heard that of 42 services monitored; 31 were either early, late, or failed to operate.

The full text of the Traffic Commissioner’s decision is below. Details of her consideration of the evidence and her decision can be found from paragraph 32 .
( Cut for the rest of the transcript )

What we did on the last four days of 2009

On Tuesday 28^th, we went out to Stevenage, initially to return my defective mobile phone to the o2 store, for repair. “Not paying attention” award perhaps, as despite having my name and address printed on the original receipt, she my name on the repair computer as Miss God! From there, back via lunch at Toby Carvery, before returning home.

On Wednesday 29^th, we had a quiet day in. See what we’re doing, going out day about where possible? 

On Wednesday 30^th, we both went to London. It was my first (listening) shift with my personal trainer at LLGS. We both travelled into Kings Cross by train, where I went to work (First Volvo VNL2323 on the 476), and C went off to the Apple Store, in the west end. I seem to be doing well, and have taken calls already. After work, we travelled from Islington by East London Scania 15121 on the 205 to Paddington (further First Great Western timetables - see review of the book here). The person behind the counter had never sold more than one in a shot, so had to go and find some more! They had to go through the till one at a time, as they are numbered etc. Anyway, after that, we were going to stop at Hyde Park’s Winter Wonderland, but C decided against it (it was raining off and on, and she was getting tired), so we continued onto Victoria on London Central bendibus MAL42 on the 436. From there, I posted a few things, including the forms back to the OU, before we had an early dinner at Pizza Express - club vouchers FTW! As seems to happen quite often, we arrived when it was almost empty, but it went to people queuing up at the door to get in, as we left! From there, back to Victoria, then Kings Cross by equally bendi MA51 on the 73, then back home. When we got home, a package of three T-shirts from Little Ms Tees had arrived – an army green Cooler Than Shane, a black My Ex-Girlfriends etc., and a light blue Chapstick Lesbian. If you don’t get the latter, it comes from a certain song!

This brings me up to today – Thursday 31^st December 2009, Hogmanay, New Year’s Eve, or simply the last day of year. Happy New Year for 2010, and enjoy whatever you get up to tonight, wherever you are.