1 in 12 bus drivers is on drugs in NSW according to Police inspections

Have you ever used the bus?. The answer is easy, “Yes, of course”. Now, have you ever done it in New South Wales? in Sydney, for example?. If the answer is “Yes”, then these news could be really shocking for you.

Inspections carried out by Police on more than 200 buses uncovered 91 defects, two of which were major, including oil and fuel leaks and faulty equipment. The inspections, which included school buses, came after serious bus accidents in NSW recently. So according to inspections, you'd be very lucky to dodge a driver on drugs over the course of a week if you catch a bus to and from work in NSW.

That is the damning reality after Highway Patrol Commander Stuart Smith revealed that about one in 12 drivers are testing positive in drug tests in NSW. Even two bus drivers have tested positive for drugs during a NSW Police crackdown on Sydney buses.

Mr Smith's comments came as traffic police and Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) officers carried out a blitz on three bus depots in Sydney, Newcastle and the Illawarra on Friday.

Operation Hanly 3 – run by the Joint Heavy Vehicle Taskforce involving NSW Police and Roads and Maritime Service – inspected buses at depots in Port Botany, Hamilton and Unanderra this Friday 11th of July, following on from Operation Hanly 1 and 2 – where in total 298 buses were inspected, resulting in 46 defects issued, seven of which were major defects.

Peter Wells, RMS's director of safety and compliance, said the majority of defects were minor. "Minor defects are essentially the canary in the mine" he told reporters.

"That gives us signs ... of early warnings for action that needs to be taken" Wells pointed.

Two bus drivers initially tested positive for driving under the influence of drugs on Friday but their samples have been sent for further analysis after a negative secondary test.

By Santi Ivar

Sources:

http://www.heraldsun.com.au

http://www.police.nsw.gov.au