Behaviour of bus enthusiasts at bus events recently.

[GusB]

Disgraceful behaviour. The driver in the first video surely had the right to keep the doors closed and drive off, or to stop the bus with the hooligans throwing missiles and throw them off . I've never seen railway enthusiast's behaving like this on heritage lines.On the mainline in years past just overenthusiastic banter may have occurred. The antics of these so called bus ' enthusiast's ' is verging on criminal behaviour.

While I agree that the driver of that bus had every right to keep the doors closed, driving off when there was such a large crowd of people so close to the vehicle isn't such a good idea and there's potential for injury to be caused.

If this sort of nonsense continues, all that's going to happen is that the owners of these buses will deem it too risky to attend such events and won't turn up in future.

 

[Andyh82]

I agree, more the South East/London area in general

I’ve read stories elsewhere of bad behaviour at the North East rally at the MetroCentre in Gateshead

Due to this and also management changes, I believe Go North East don’t attend anymore, whereas previously they would send loads of buses.

 

[Jimmi]

I’ve read stories elsewhere of bad behaviour at the North East rally at the MetroCentre in Gateshead

Due to this and also management changes, I believe Go North East don’t attend anymore, whereas previously they would send loads of buses.

The GNE fall out came after the 2024 event where a video of their buses "drag racing" circulated widely online, not helped by the poster wanting all the views to their TikTok account and it appearing on various non enthusiast Facebook pages.

There was further issues at that event this year, on one of the shuttles with a JH Coaches ALX400, a few enthusiasts were shouting at the top of their voices including bad language with children on-board (it made it look more like a match day special) which made various people on-board feel uncomfortable, some even to the point of tears to which the driver felt a degree of guilt and had to apologise to a crying passenger for the behaviour exhibited on-board. Similar issues have occurred in previous years when Stagecoach have provided their open top Tridents on a service for 'The Late Shows' event in Newcastle/Gateshead, sure enough no complaints heard this year when Sunderland's Yutong's were used instead.

Enthusiasts based in the London area seem to be the worst for behaviour at least from what I've seen online, on various occasions in the last few years when on the last day of operation of a route or the first day of operation, we essentially play the waiting game for videos to be posted and it's quite alarming and embarrassing, on occasions police have had to be called out when they've been doing stupid stuff like dropping one another's trousers in public.

The Low-ish Floor Running Day is a good event, it's just a pity the actions of a select few bring it down with various people I know who have attended in the past saying they won't go again based off previous years but worst of all, vehicle owners who are now unwilling to allow enthusiasts on-board their pride and joy or even attend these events as they don't want to go through the hassle or risk their buses being damaged, there's also the risk of upsetting the areas where these events take place, on Sunday I noticed an incident in Lingfield where a bin was toppled over outside Coral bookies, someone who worked there came out of the shop to confront them and they just pointed fingers at each other and scuttled off, no accountability whatsoever.

I feel these issues are not entirely confined to the bus hobby, I feel it is somewhat a generational thing as it always seems to be the younger 'TikTok' generation which seems to actually reward this level of behaviour with clicks and views and people feel powerless to do much as they'll just get plastered online and risk losing employment and whatever else if they tried to assert themselves / lay down the law in any way, as such, they can get away with murder at times, my local Tesco is the same, the little gets can get away with it there as security are pretty much powerless to really do anything especially when it comes to under 18s, they're barely even allowed to do anything in regards to shoplifting.

 

[jp4712]

Wow, just wow. I have never witnessed behaviour like this at any event I’ve attended, but then my purview is the midlands and north west. The worst I’ve ever had using my bus for free rides is a few dropped sweet papers. On the whole passengers at places like the Museum of Transport in Manchester, Ribble events, Wythall etc queue politely, ride politely and generally say ‘thank you’ politely as they alight.

I’ve toyed with the idea of taking my bus to an event in the south east just for a change, but if - as several posters have suggested - these ‘hooligan enthusiasts’ seem to be a mainly London phenomenon, then there‘s one Bristol RE they’re unlikely to see. Shame, but I’m not going to subject my bus to that.

 

[Eyersey468]

The standard of behaviour does seem to have got worse over the last few years, there seem to be so many selfish, self entitled people about now and it saddens me

 

[danorak]

Events with older vehicles are less likely to attract these problems. The low floor event focuses on the more modern vehicles they would have gone to school on with their free Oystercard.

I had a passing interest in attending as it's a convenient location but I could see it was likely to attract anti-social behaviour. The inevitable consequence if nothing changes is that the event either won't happen anymore or will be massively scaled down because the owners won't risk their vehicles.

 

[Leyland Bus]

Wow, just wow. I have never witnessed behaviour like this at any event I’ve attended, but then my purview is the midlands and north west. The worst I’ve ever had using my bus for free rides is a few dropped sweet papers. On the whole passengers at places like the Museum of Transport in Manchester, Ribble events, Wythall etc queue politely, ride politely and generally say ‘thank you’ politely as they alight.

I’ve toyed with the idea of taking my bus to an event in the south east just for a change, but if - as several posters have suggested - these ‘hooligan enthusiasts’ seem to be a mainly London phenomenon, then there‘s one Bristol RE they’re unlikely to see. Shame, but I’m not going to subject my bus to that.

Certainly not after all the work you've put into it...

Me and a couple of friends/members took a Leyland Olympian to Kirkby rally this year and were repeated swore at by an older gentleman because we weren't doing trips out on it. This was despite us politely explaining that we weren't allowed to due to a change to the organisers rules that we weren't aware of beforehand...

 

[Busman792]

I've thought quite a bit about the incidents that took place at this event and the standard of behaviour that has begun to emerge in the recent past. These are purely my thoughts but worth noting here perhaps as 'food for thought' for everyone. As others have said I think there is a generational element at play. People attend events with vehicles that mean or symbolise something to them. Older enthusiasts among us are drawn to Bristol's, Leyland's etc because that's what they grew up around and what imprinted on them when young. Low floor events attract maybe more young people because the likes of Dart SLFs, Solo's etc is what imprinted on them. In general I think standards of behaviour have declined among younger generations so combining these two things does mean certain are going, sadly, to be prone to poorer behaviour than others.

I've also long thought that of the 'big three' spotting hobbies, these being planes, trains and buses, the latter I'd argue is easier to get into and one that people might be exposed to more often. To see aircraft or trains you have to go to particular places, places that may be out of your way to some extent. Stand on most main roads in even a semi-urban area and the chances are a bus will come along sooner or later. So it's an easier hobby for young people to be exposed to and get into and, combined with their generally lower disposable income, likely a cheaper one to keep up. As a lot of bus events take place in or around what is publicly accessible spaces there is a higher chance that hooligans out to cause general mischief will find their way there sooner or again. Returning to price, as many of these events are accessible, cheap or even free then parents wanting to send troublesome kids away from the house for a couple of hours may direct towards these events.

I've also seen the Autism point raised here too. I think this is also somewhat a factor. The number of people diagnosed or self diagnosing with Autism or similar is increasing. Unfortunately for some this is becoming a bit of an excuse to throw off normal societal standards of decency and good behaviour. Parenting is no doubt a factor here. Maybe younger parents are just not interested in enforcing good behaviour and certain societal expectations. I'm sure to an Autistic mind then 'spotting' hobbies are quite appealing. The rise of social media and the advent of inbuilt phone camera allow these people greater access into the enthusiast world than previous generations may have been able to enjoy. This last point is perhaps an entirely different story.

Hopefully my ramblings do make some sense to some of you!

 

[Mwanesh]

Spoke to one of the organisers the other day.They may change a few things .Will be updated in due course

 

[trainJam]

Some videos here that are widely circulating on social media showing people acting like animals

(Alt description: Timestamp 1:19:00 - a closer YouTube video highlighting the chaos)

Forcing doors open... Like some sort of raid.

 

[GusB]

(Alt description: Timestamp 1:19:00 - a closer YouTube video highlighting the chaos)

Forcing doors open... Like some sort of raid.

I'm glad you've posted a video that's longer than 10 seconds; it's impossible to judge anything from a 10-second clip.

I'm in two minds about this. On one hand I see people who are simply enthusiastic, and the sea of cameras being held aloft shows this. I was quite taken aback by the sheer number of people who were waiting at the stop to board that bus. If only a token fare could be collected from each person who actually boarded; it might actually make it financially worthwhile for the owners of the vehicles who are participating in the event but the issue of collecting money is a contentious one.

On the other hand, there was a fair bit of rowdy behaviour. While forcing the doors open isn't on and I don't condone that, I think that "behaving like animals" isn't really an accurate description. I'd describe such behaviour as "boisterous", but I suppose it all depends on your own definition. You're always going to get some who act like twits (polite description) and who don't consider anyone else; this applies to all age groups.

I don't know what the solution is, although a solitary bloke in a hi-vis trying to keep order isn't really effective!

 

[Russel]

I've also seen the Autism point raised here too. I think this is also somewhat a factor. The number of people diagnosed or self diagnosing with Autism or similar is increasing. Unfortunately for some this is becoming a bit of an excuse to throw off normal societal standards of decency and good behaviour.

I fully agree with your last sentence, here.

For context, I'm the parent of a fully diagnosed, Autistic child, this has also lead to me meeting plenty of other diagnosed Autistic children and adults, I've not met one yet that would think behaving in the way we see in the videos in this thread is acceptable.

Self diagnosed cases on the other hand seems to be a very common excuse for poor behaviour.

 

[DunsBus]

Several years ago now, the behaviour of several so-called enthusiasts on an Arriva Yorkshire depot tour led to the cancellation of all future ones. They had wanderd off into the depot's pit area and, when challenged by a member of staff, were abusive.

Not only did genuine enthusiasts lose out on back of this, so too did the charity which the tours were run on behalf of.

 

[Falcon1200]

When the Prime Minister is lauded for saying there is no such thing as society, who can be surprised when people take her at her word?

Surely few, if any, of the miscreants were even born when that statement was made, several decades ago?!!

 

[Martin1988]

A bit off topic I know but when traveling to/from an event as part of an organised trip what is the best etiquette/behaviour in terms of seating? Have unintentionally caused trouble on a few trips I've been on by wanting to swap seats on the return journey. Either because I didn't get my preferred choice of seat on the way or because I've struggled with the people I've been originally sat by.

On a recent trip I wasn't able to get my preferred choice of seat right at the back on the way to the event but made sure I was first on to claim that seat on the way home. The passengers who had sat there on the way were clearly a bit unimpressed and an outspoken passenger then claimed "I warned him not to sit there but he wouldn't listen".

Something else I've also noticed on this sort of trip is at times my fellow passengers will either not be keen to make conversation at all or I will be sat by someone who will talk at me the entire time. Have also had instsnces of others disturbing me when I've been sat listening to music and forcing me to look at a passing bus or coach. I know it is always well meaning but my thought would be that if someone is sat with headphones on they maybe don't want to be disturbed.

If you are on a trip with a group of enthusiasts you don't know is it better to try and make conversation or better to just sit quietly and mind your own business would you say?

 

[Calthrop]

Something else I've also noticed on this sort of trip is at times my fellow passengers will either not be keen to make conversation at all or I will be sat by someone who will talk at me the entire time. Have also had instsnces of others disturbing me when I've been sat listening to music and forcing me to look at a passing bus or coach. I know it is always well meaning but my thought would be that if someone is sat with headphones on they maybe don't want to be disturbed.

If you are on a trip with a group of enthusiasts you don't know is it better to try and make conversation or better to just sit quietly and mind your own business would you say?

Topic-drifting, I suppose -- a tendency of mine -- but this can be a difficult one on this, very general, scene. I being a not hugely chatty / sociable soul: I greatly dislike, when I'm absorbed in something of my own (even if it's just reading a totally vacuous book) being "button-holed" by someone who seeks to converse with me -- or it may well be, as above, "talk at me" about their own stuff -- and doesn't pick up; or sets at naught; attempted hints by me, re my preferring not to engage.

There are folk who honestly consider that being the "aggressor" in this way, is entirely rightful and acceptable: and that anyone who would prefer to do their own "solo" thing, not welcoming the other bod's approaches; is a most poorly- socialised wretch and churl. Mind goes to a book, broadly about the author's experiences of British "everyday" steam in its last three decades, which I read a while ago -- very interesting stuff when the author sticks to subject as described; but said author does come across as very much a member of the "I love me -- who do you love?" club. In the book, he at times gets a bit hot under the collar in telling of incidents when in course of late-20th-century travels, he has encountered railway enthusiasts a good deal younger than himself: who were engrossed in their own concentrated "railwaying"; which he considered that they should "put on hold", in order to engage in conversation with him about the hobby -- he excoriates them as ill-bred oiks, for having been reluctant to do so. In my view, the up-himself elderly gent was the rude one here.