Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

September 25, 2008

A Honolulu bus driver has been relieved of his duties for playing a handheld video game while operating the bus. The incident came to light after a concerned passenger shot cell phone video of the man, who can be seen playing what appears to be a light-colored Nintendo DS or PSP.

The driver was placed on unpaid leave while the bus company investigates. The KGMB-9 news report features an interview with Denita Waltz, the passenger who took the video:

The whole experience was terrifying. He was continuously playing his video game on the bus. Continuously. At times he was driving, playing with it. At times he was sitting there playing with it. He was a hazard. He was playing his video game. He was speeding on the highway. He had his legs and feet up on the dashboard.

It was a very petrifying moment. And when the bus did stop I kept on telling my son, 'Hurry! Get off the bus. Just get off the bus..

GP: It's a good bet that he wasn't playing Bus Driver.

Posted in

Comments

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by Zevorick on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 12:03.

Firing him isn't enough... the passengers should be allowed to drag him from the car and mercilously beat him out of the gene pool permanently. I'm usually a very compassionate person, but I'm also a Texan and I understand there comes a time when you just have to beat the ever living tar out of someone!

Edit: I just reread the article and I have one thing else to say. How as this guy NOT fired? Only suspended? Wow...

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by lumi on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 10:52.

"He was speeding on the highway. He had his legs and feet up on the dashboard."

How exactly is he driving without touching the pedals?

"GP: It's a good bet that he wasn't playing Bus Driver."

Maybe Desert Bus? =)

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by Hitodama on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 08:15.

Look, Ma! No hands!

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by Dante on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 08:01.

last year when i was visiting my grandmother, buss driver had coffee cup in one hand and Doughnut in another hand. Whats wrong with buss drivers these days?

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by Benjamin_Snow on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 07:36.

Why did they suspended him? He should had gotten fired for putting people lives at risk like that.

Moron.

"We may be human, but we're still animals" -Steve Vai (World's greatest guitarist!)

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by Krono on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 07:50.

Proper due process investigation so that he can't sue them is my guess.

-Gray17

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by DavCube on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 07:33.

This is just... i can't even begin to say how freaking STUPID people like this are. Texting on the train, and playing a freaking DS while DRIVING A BUS? And from the article, he's been driving for a pretty long time? The guy deserves to get the shaft.

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by BearDogg-X on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 06:32.

Couldn't this guy have at least saved the game before driving? Guess he didn't know that the DS has a sleep mode when you close it up while playing a DS game(if it was a DS), or didn't care.

Back in Black from a forced hiatus by Hurricane Gustav.

Geaux Saints, Geaux Tigers, Geaux Hornets. Solidarity for the Saints = No retreat, no surrender. Even through the darkest days, this fire burns always.

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by sortableturnip on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 09:38.

Same with PSP, just do a quick hit on the power biutton slider and sleep mode. If you hold it for a few seconds, it shuts it down.

Sortableturnip's Law: As an online discussion of video game violence grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Jack Thompson approaches 1

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by Gabriel Celesta on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 06:22.

Oh god. First, that train engineer who might have been texting on the job, and now this...

Re: Bus Driver Suspended for Playing Handheld While Driving

Submitted by King of Fiji on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 06:16.

*bangs head against desk*

And I have to be driving with these idiots? Really I get my licenses when everyone goes bat shit mentally disabled with driving while doing other stuff thats stuipd to be doing while driving?

Poll

Shout box

Cecil475: @PHX Corp - The dude's a moron who wouldn't know crap if it came up and kicked him.05/19/2013 - 6:36am

PHX Corp: http://kotaku.com/ea-sports-developer-calls-wii-u-crap-and-nintendo-wa-508481261 EA Sports Canada Moron calls Wii U 'Crap' and Nintendo 'Walking Dead'05/18/2013 - 11:42am

E. Zachary Knight: If the videos are of sufficient quality that people subscribe and watch regularly, then those let's players are providing a service that people want. That is the heart of capitalism. That is not something that should be shamed.05/17/2013 - 8:06am

E. Zachary Knight: I have no idea who either of those people are. However, I still don't see why making a business out of creating let's play videos is somehow evil or wrong.05/17/2013 - 8:04am

MaskedPixelante: It sure is if you're just doing it for the money. See Tobuscus and/or Pewdiepie for what happens when people get into it just for the money.05/17/2013 - 7:30am

E. Zachary Knight: Why is it wrong to make money doing LPs? Why should that be something that should be shamed?05/17/2013 - 6:20am

MaskedPixelante: https://twitter.com/PsychedelicSA/status/335183893214924801 Now here's an interesting, glass half full thought about the Nintendo LP thing. It outs the people who are just doing LPs to make money.05/17/2013 - 5:56am

E. Zachary Knight: I responded in writing to all this "let's play" stuff Nintendo Started. No need for my permission, I won't give it. It's not mine to give. http://divineknightgaming.com/?p=29205/16/2013 - 2:21pm

E. Zachary Knight: Lars Doucet of Levelup Labs has a Reddit going on game companies that allow monetization of Let's Play videos. http://www.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/1egayn/lets_build_a_list_of_game_studios_that_allow/05/16/2013 - 1:04pm

Sleaker: @Imautobot - yah I wouldn't use an emulator as a good first run test of how stable the console is, haha.05/16/2013 - 11:47am

E. Zachary Knight: The 50th person to jump off a bridge is just as dumb if not dumber than the 1st.05/16/2013 - 10:03am

MaskedPixelante: Yeah, let's all jump on Nintendo for doing this, even though they're hardly the first company to do this...05/16/2013 - 9:47am

E. Zachary Knight: Wow Nintendo, this is wrong. http://kotaku.com/nintendo-forcing-ads-on-some-youtube-lets-play-video-50709238305/16/2013 - 8:44am

Imautobot: @Sleaker, further gameplay has revealed that the controller button do stick under the faceplate. Also, The NES emulator (Emuya)keeps crashing on me, though I think a bad ROM is causing it.05/16/2013 - 7:10am

Papa Midnight: AE: I wonder if any other publishers will follow suit.05/15/2013 - 8:12pm

Andrew Eisen: EA is ditching Online Pass. http://venturebeat.com/2013/05/15/ea-kills-its-controversial-online-pass-program/05/15/2013 - 7:20pm

Avalongod: @Zach and quicnkold...I've read the bill and the intent of it is to fear-monger. It's not a balanced message. I don't recall the ESRB being mentioned at all. It's more "keeps your kids away from these movies/games or they'll become violent"05/15/2013 - 4:35pm

E. Zachary Knight: quiknkold, The big problem with that legislation is the amount of misinformation out there. Who is going to ensure that the information in the pamphlet is accurate?05/15/2013 - 3:25pm

quiknkold: REBeardogg : I'm on the fence about this. on one side, I want parents to be aware of the ESRB, and even Movie Ratings. On the other hand, I feel this will be used for nothing but Propaganda. The ESRB does a good job.05/15/2013 - 3:07pm

IanC: Frostbite is coming out on iOS devices. Yet the Wii U cant handle it? *coughbullshitcough*05/15/2013 - 2:31pm

All shouts

<< Return To Top

Forgot your password?
Username :
Password :