COIMBATORE: In a viral video on social media, passengers were seen arguing with a bus driver on Friday after blocking a corporation bus at Five Corner, allegedly because he failed to stop at the designated bus stop. Officers of the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) Coimbatore region have launched an inquiry with the driver and conductor from the Sulur branch.
In the video, a female passenger said that passengers had boarded bus number S27, which operates from Ukkadam to Sulthanpet, from the Ukkadam bus stand on Friday. However, the bus did not stop at the Prakasam bus stop in Town Hall, located just a few metres from the Ukkadam bus stand. Even after passengers requested the driver to stop, he responded rudely, saying he could not halt at Prakasam and stopped the bus at the next stop near Five Corner. Consequently, several passengers were inconvenienced, she added.
A few passengers blocked the bus and argued with the driver and conductor for not stopping at the Prakasam bus stop, which led to a brief traffic disruption in the area. After the traffic police arrived and held talks with the passengers, the bus was cleared to depart after a delay of about 15 minutes.
A senior officer from the TNSTC Sulur branch denied the allegations and told TNIE that a passenger who boarded the bus at the Ukkadam bus stand had asked the conductor for a ticket to Gandhipuram.
"Conductor informed the passenger that the bus would not go to Gandhipuram, following which the passenger suddenly asked to stop the moving bus. The driver said he could not halt in the middle of the road and would stop only at the designated bus stop. The passenger then began arguing with the conductor and driver," he said.
He added that they have been conducting an inquiry with the driver and conductor.