Bus companies banned from roads

The bus companies have been permanently taken off the road

Two Manchester bus firms banned from the roads over safety issues have been ordered to stop operating permanently.

UK North and GM Buses, which share the same owner, were initially banned on 22 December over serious concerns about the safety of their drivers.

Both firms had their licences revoked for financial reasons and UK North has gone into administration.

Investigations by the Traffic Commissioner into the safety of buses and driver training are ongoing.

The investigation followed an inquiry into the death of a man in a bus accident in November.

Sign writer Martin Pilling, of East Moor Road, Worsley, Salford, was in the basket of a cherry picker when it was hit by a UK North bus on Wilmslow Road in Rusholme on 1 November.

Martin Pilling died after he was struck by a bus in November

The 27-year-old fell in front of the double decker bus and died at the scene.

The UK North depot was examined three days later and concerns were raised over the safety of the vehicles and the amount of training the drivers had received.

This led to a public hearing in December where North West traffic commissioner Beverley Bell expressed concern over the safety of the firm's Polish drivers.

The hearing was told that 100 of the 130 drivers at UK North were Polish and that many had a poor understanding of English.

During the hearing Ms Bell, who works as an independent regulator for the passenger transport industry, claimed she was not convinced the drivers had been properly trained.

She made the ruling on Friday, after spending time weighing up the evidence.

The bus companies will be allowed to appeal her decision.