Bus driver in Malaysia seen using phone, allegedly steering with elbows while driving passengers to Singapore

A bus driver in Malaysia has raised road safety concerns after he was seen using his mobile phone while driving and allegedly steering the vehicle with his elbows.

In a video posted on Facebook on Wednesday (June 10), he is seen handling and typing on his phone while the bus is in motion.

Images shared online showed that the bus is a blue and yellow Causeway Link-branded bus. 

"Be careful of this type of bus driver. (They) are endangering passengers' lives," said the poster. 

According to the witness, the incident allegedly occurred while the bus was travelling from the Sultan Abu Bakar CIQ at the Second Link towards Singapore's Tuas Checkpoint.

@asiaone The Causeway Link driver was seen using his elbows to steer the bus. His eyes were also mostly on his phone, not the road. #MalaysiaNews #Malaysia #Bus #Road #Safety ♬ original sound - AsiaOne

Company confirms incident

Responding to queries from AsiaOne, Causeway Link confirmed that it is aware of the incident and that it has since initiated an internal investigation.

"We take this matter very seriously, as the safety of our passengers and the public is our highest priority. Our policy strictly prohibits the use of mobile phones or any form of distracted behaviour while driving."

Causeway Link added that it maintains a zero-tolerance approach to any actions that compromise safety and noted that appropriate disciplinary action will be taken. 

"In parallel, we are reinforcing our safety standards across all operations, including issuing reminders to all drivers on adherence to safety rules and conducting additional briefings as necessary," it said. 

In the comments section, several netizens condemned the driver's behaviour, while others called for action to be taken.

"This driver should be terminated immediately. This is a (public) safety issue," said one user.

Another commented that the driver was probably getting bored during the long trip, but still urged caution, saying: "Be careful when driving. Remember that your bus is carrying many passengers."

[[nid:733628]]

xingying.koh@asiaone.com