Driver not sleeping: Neck pains cause him to bend more than normal, but he's fit to drive, says SBS

A bus captain who was captured on video appearing to be dozing off at the wheel was actually not falling asleep, says SBS Transit in response to a Stomp query.

Many Stompers had alerted Stomp to the video which was circulating on WhatsApp and Facebook, concerned that the driver, whom they thought was asleep, could endanger the lives of commuters. 

The video shows the bus captain repeatedly bending his head so low such that one might question whether he has a clear view of the road ahead. 

The 25-second video clip was first posted on Facebook on Monday (May 7). 

SBS Transit's senior vice-president of corporate communications Tammy Tan said in a statement to Stomp that the company has identified the bus captain in the video. 

Following an investigation, SBS concluded that the bus captain could not have been falling asleep, as he kept to his lane, slowed down when approaching bus stops, stopped safely behind other vehicles, and even conducted a right turn safely during the trip.

Ms Tan, however, added that the bus captain had neck pains which caused him to ‘bend more than normal’, but is medically fit to drive. 

Read the statement: "We have identified the Bus Captain (BC) in the video and conducted an investigation into the incident. 

"While the video seems to suggest that our BC was dozing off at the wheel, our findings based on the CCTV footage from the bus reveals that this was not the case. 

"Throughout the time he was on the road, the BC kept to his lane, slowed down when approaching bus stops and also stopped safely behind other buses or vehicles. He also conducted a right turn safely during the trip. 

"All these would not have been possible had he been dozing off at the wheel. 

"The BC in question does however have neck pains which causes him to bend more than normal but this did not affect his driving ability. 

"He has been medically certified fit to drive. We assure our commuters that dozing off while driving is not something we take lightly and will not hesitate to take action against any BC found doing so."