National Express West Midlands has welcomed the jailing of a man who assaulted two bus drivers – and warns that any offensive or criminal behaviour towards its staff will not be tolerated.
A 50-year-old man spat at National Express West Midlands bus drivers in two separate incidents. In May he was sentenced to six months in prison after DNA and CCTV evidence captured by the bus company helped police to identify and track down the offender.
David Bradford, Managing Director of National Express West Midlands, said: “Spitting is disgusting and is distressing for our drivers and customers. It is also a criminal offence. Nobody should be subjected to this shocking behaviour.
“Working closely in partnership with the Safer Travel policing team, the spit kits used by our drivers give us irrefutable DNA evidence to help the police track down offenders and secure convictions at court. We also have CCTV all over our buses to give police crystal clear images.
“National Express West Midlands welcomes this recent sentencing and we are grateful to the Safer Travel policing team for their quick work in this case. This sends a clear message that we will not tolerate any offensive behaviour towards any of our staff.”
The West Midlands Victims’ Commissioner, Nicky Brennan, said: “I welcome this jail sentence as it goes to show that behaviour like this towards bus drivers will not be tolerated. Just two years ago, at the height of the pandemic, we stood on our doorsteps applauding our frontline heroes.
“They do not deserve to be subject to such awful behaviour and in my role as Victims Commissioner I will do all that I can to support them.”
All 3,500 bus drivers at National Express West Midlands carry a DNA spit kit to help police track anyone who spits at them or their customers.
The spit kits – which feature swabs, gloves and sealed bags – allow staff to take saliva samples and protect them from contamination before sending them to police for forensic analysis.
The DNA evidence, combined with bus CCTV footage, means that by working together, National Express West Midlands and the Safer Travel policing team have a very high chance of identifying attackers. All 1,600 National Express West Midlands buses have up to 12 cameras fitted.
