Bus plummets into Yangtze River after passenger assaults driver
In some states, like New York, it’s a felony to assault bus drivers, and the reasoning behind the stiff penalty is pretty simple: Not only are transit workers often targets of violence, but such attacks clearly put all other passengers at risk. There should be a big deterrent for assaulting people who operate 15-ton vehicles.
Let’s take a look at the worst that can happenโฆ
Around 10 am on October 28 in Chongqing, a bus on a bridge over the Yangtze River cut across oncoming traffic and plunged into the river, clipping another car in the process. At least 13 passengers have been confirmed dead, while two are unaccounted for.
It was a dispute between a passenger and the driver that led to the crash, People’s Daily reports. Here’s the surveillance footage from inside the bus:
A woman surnamed Liu ๅ, 48, was reportedly upset because she missed her stop, and argued with the driver,ย a man surnamed Ranย ๅ, 42, for five minutes. Amid berating him, Liu can be seen slapping Ran’s arm, leading him to swipe back. An instant later, the bus veers left while passengers can be heard screaming in the back.
Investigators ruled out that Ran might have been driving under the influence, but nonetheless concluded that both passenger and driver were at fault. The People’s Daily article linked above even cited a specific clause in China’s criminal law, No. 115, to argue that both driver and passenger were responsible for endangering public safety.
I don’t know. Seems to me like it’d be easier to tell the public to not mess with bus drivers.
The fact is, assault of transit workers in China is sadly common, and well documented. Sometimes people take their safety into their own hands, like this guy in Changsha:
https://twitter.com/lifent/status/1058200888408305665
Don’t assault bus drivers. Should be common sense, but people still do it. It’s almost like there should be a law against it or something.
