Swansea bus driver's actions leave passengers 'emotional'

Passengers have praised the kind-hearted actions of a bus driver who went above and beyond to make sure an elderly lady on his service was safe. The pensioner was on First Cymru's 36 service travelling towards the Morriston area of Swansea at 4.30pm on Tuesday, April 23.

The time had come for her to get off at her stop in Treboeth, opposite the pharmacy, and, observed to be struggling with her mobility, bus driver Michael decided to go the extra mile to make sure she was ok. He pulled the ramp down, before walking her arm in arm to the traffic light crossing at her own pace, before he escorted her across the road and to a car which was waiting for her.

When he returned back to the driver's seat to continue the journey, he received a round of applause and cheers from the rest of the passengers on the service, who had "become emotional" after witnessing his kind act. For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter.

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Natasha Thomas was one of the passengers on board. She said: "I witnessed the most beautiful thing on the 16.30pm 36 bus home.

"An elderly lady struggling on her stick - someone's mam, someone's nan. Not only did the driver, Michael, put the ramp down, but he walked her arm in arm up the road to the lights at her pace, and then across to where the car was waiting and escorted her into the front passenger seat.

"These days you never see these things like this as often anymore. We were all emotional as customers on the bus. Michael had a big clap and a cheer when he came back to continue the journey. I'm sending a written compliment to First Cymru regarding this wonderful man. We all shouted respect, compliments and clapped as he rightly deserved."

First Cymru’s operations manager for Swansea, Marie Cronin, said: “This is just such a heart-warming story, and shows the true unsung heroes we have among our drivers. Michael has been with us just over a year and is a lovely guy, so it’s brilliant to see him getting the recognition among the public for his good deed.

"Every day our drivers carry thousands of passengers and so many of these stories go unnoticed. Drivers are the backbone of our company delivering services right on the frontline, and while there are often challenges there are also wonderful moments like this. Well done Michael.” Try WalesOnline Premium for FREE by clicking here for no ads, fun puzzles and brilliant new features.