Banned: School coaches firm carried children on 'dangerous' buses
A coach firm transporting schoolchildren in Cannock on defective vehicles, one described as 'exceptionally dangerous', has been banned from the road.
Five out of six vehicles operated by school transport firm PKS Travel, based in Bridgtown, had defects, Government inspectors found.
Owner Anthony Cooper had his operator's licence revoked while driver Stephen Shirley has been disqualified from professional driving following an inquiry held in Birmingham.
Staffordshire County Council ended its contract with the firm, finding an alternative firm a day later to avoid disruption.
During the inquiry, Traffic Commissioner Nick Jones heard how government inspectors found five out of six PKS Travel vehicles had sufficient defects for prohibitions to be imposed.
In one instance, the Traffic Commissioner concluded the vehicle was in an exceptionally dangerous condition and should never have been allowed on the road.
The vehicle was found with an insecure suspension unit, seriously affecting vehicle stability or control, amongst other defects.
A traffic examiner from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) also reported the business had failed to comply with drivers' hours rules.
In a written decision issued after the hearing, Mr Jones said: "A feature of particular concern was the fact it was clear vehicles were transporting children without being maintained.
"I am horrified at the idea of children being transported to schools in vehicles that had not been maintained as required by traffic commissioners and enforced by the DVSA. Anthony Cooper allowed a state of affairs to continue with vehicles not being maintained and in some cases, in a dangerous condition."
Mr Jones also took action against one of the firm's employees, Stephen Shirley, who was reported for driving a vehicle while medically unfit. He was banned from driving professionally for a year.
Staffordshire County Council's transport leader Mark Winnington said: "We carry out a rolling programme of checks on all contracted school transport. We ended our contract immediately and had an alternative company in place within 24 hours."
