Third Time Lucky

We operate a college days-only service from a large village miles away from our traditional operating area, to a college within it. This large village is only served once by my company, with this solitary journey to coincide with college opening and closing times. Consequently, we come across people who have never travelled on our services before.

One such individual tried to board yesterday morning with music playing out loud from one of the pockets in his tracky bottoms. "Can you turn the music off, please?" I said as he asked for his fare.

He obliged and sat downstairs at the back with his possy. I left the village a couple of minutes later and, what a surprise, the music started. I shouted down the bus: "CAN YOU TURN THE MUSIC OFF PLEASE?" and there was immediate silence. Ten minutes later, he got brave again and it started up.

This time I did something he wasn't expecting and left the cab and wandered down the back of the bus. I used a tactic that has worked very successfully before: allege that he has a problem with you, to reinforce that you're the hard-done-to party.

"Do you have a problem with me?" I asked, as he fumbled with his phone to turn the music off.

"I said, do you have a problem with me?"

"Eh?"

"Well I've asked you twice to turn your music off and you've not got the hint, so now I'm telling you to your face to turn it off. What more can I do?"

He mumbled some inaudible bollocks and silence prevailed. To show I'm not a complete bastard, just a slight one, I added: "Plug some headphones in and there won't be a problem."

He needs educating in the ways of my bus company. Nip this anti-socialism in the bud. If you don't, those who get on the bus within our traditional operating area will soon assume music being played out loud is permitted. And then you've got yet another example of deterioration of society taking place.

Common Sense Solution: You have to show these dick heads how it is going to be. You also rely on your colleagues to do the same. Sadly, I know mine aren't as keen on this sort of thing as I am. It would be far easier to enforce if they were.