National Express coach service comes to the rescue of stranded Eurostar passengers

National Express provide extra coach services after Eurostar passengers are left stranded

National Express have come to the rescue of stranded Eurostar passengers by laying on extra coaches for its London to Paris Eurolines coach service. The bad weather has played havoc with the Eurostar travel provider with the service resuming only this morning after a 3 day suspension.

The transport operator, National Express which provides both rail and bus travel, said it had been overwhelmed by demand for its seven and a half hour coach service between London and Paris. The 5 extra buses added each day during the travel disruption have provided 250 extra seats on the troubled route.

Eurostar services re-started today with the first train pulling out of London’s St Pancras station at 8 am with some 750 passengers onboard. The operator estimates they’ll be able to transport 26,000 people today, however there is reported to be a backlog of 75,000 travellers waiting to use the service. Those hoping to travel with Eurostar have been told to just turn up as there is no timetable as trains are leaving every hour.

With the disruption looking set to continue in the run up Christmas as more people seek to travel between London and Paris and as the backlog of passengers are cleared, the demand for National Express’ coach service looks set to continue.

Movies to be screened on school buses to combat anti-social behaviour

Film showings on school buses aims to tackle anti-social behaviour

Movies are will be screened on buses in the North Wales area in a bid to combat noise on school vehicles, and to tackle problems such as bullying and anti social behaviour.

The pilot scheme is being trialled on a number of secondary school buses in North Wales areas including Denbighshire, Flintshire, Anglesey, and Gwynedd.

Bosses from GHA Coaches who operate a school bus run in Llangollen, say they have received very encouraging results so far. They’ve been screening blockbuster movies, music concerts and nature programmes onboard their school coaches. They say the drivers are now able to concentrate on the road without being distracted by rowdy behaviour from the youngsters.

The idea is that if the pupils are kept entertained on their journey home, they are less likely to commit vandalism onboard the vehicles, distract the bus driver, and indulge in other anti-social activities.

The scheme has been introduced by Zoom Project which is supported by the Welsh Assembly Government. Zoom focuses on improving the safety standards on school vehicles. The system is already in place throughout a number of school in the US, and the results have so far, been very positive.

The experiment will continue for the next 12 months, where after the results will be analysed to decided whether the scheme has had an impact on improving the behaviour of school pupils whilst travelling on buses.

Mother swaps hearse for double-decker London bus for final journey

London bus similar to this used instead of a hearse by mother from West Midlands

A hearse was swapped for double-decker London bus by one mother from Sutton Coldfield as she instructed her loved ones that she didn’t want a conventional funeral. 45-year-old Julie Waters who had suffered from breast cancer, told friends and relatives prior to her death that a traditional black hearse was not for her, and instead requested a red bus for her final journey.

The coffin, decorated with photos, floral tributes and mementos from Julie’s life was carried on the bus and was transported to the church along with friends and relatives. The double-decker was adorned with a simple white ribbon and wreath, with two funeral directors in top hats leading the vehicle.

Julie’s loved ones say it was typical of her fun-loving personality to want to do something different, even for such a sombre occasion such as her own funeral. Julie’s civil partner Ms Pratt said, “She was always at the centre of everything and was so much fun we thought it would be much more appropriate for her to travel with everyone like this.”

The whole funeral was organised by her loved ones who paid attention to even the smallest detail. Special bus tickets were made for the journey, and a temporary bus stop was arranged outside of the church.

Minibus stolen 35 years ago is finally found

Stolen minibus turns up 35 years on

A Volkswagen minibus stolen in 1974 has finally been recovered 35 years on in perfect condition. The 1965 vintage minibus was discovered by LA customs officials as they ran a routine inspection of a shipping container bound for the Netherlands.

Customs officers use the National Crime Bureau to run checks on vehicles leaving the country to ensure they are not stolen, however most unsolved vehicle thefts are removed from the system after 5 years. After entering the Volkswagen minibus’ details into the database, officials were baffled to find that the vehicle had been reported as having been stolen from an upholstery shop in Washington on July 12^th 1974.

An Arizona company were found to be the current owners of the vehicle and were in the process of transporting the minibus over to a purchaser in the Netherlands. The minibus is said to have an estimated value of $25,000.

The Arizona company who had restored the vehicle are not under suspicion of any wrongdoing as it is believed that the van had changed hands on many occasions in the past 35 years. Police are currently trying to track down the rightful owner of the minibus, and also hope to uncover the original thief with the use of the vehicle’s registration documents.

Minibus firm owner fined over eBay scam

Minibus company owner fined £5,000 for shill bidding on eBay

A minibus hire company owner from County Durham has been hit with a hefty fine after a court ruling which found he had committed internet fraud through the online auction website eBay.

Paul Barett has been ordered to pay £5,000 in costs and fines and carry out 250 hours of unpaid work after admitting 11 breaches of fair trading regulations.

The 39-year-old had artificially increased the prices of items he was selling through eBay by bidding on them himself. Trading Standards officers discovered Mr Barett had two log-ins. one of which was used to sell items, the other to place bids thus pushing up the item’s price.

The practice is known as “shill bidding” and this is the first time a case of this nature has been brought in the UK. In 2008 new regulations were introduced to help stamp out internet fraud.

Mr Barett’s illegal behaviour was finally uncovered after a complaint was received after he sold a minibus through the auction site with a fake low mileage.

The minibus operator was told by the judge during the court ruling that the only reason he had escaped a custodial sentence was because he didn’t have any previous convictions for dishonesty.