Patrols on Clarks Buses after driver reports Beenleigh High students for smoking marijuana

Transport officers are patrolling some bus routes this week after a school bus had to be stopped following reports from a bus driver that students were smoking pot on her bus.

Clarks Logan Bus Company had to stop a school bus after reports of students smoking marijuana. Pictures: Contributed

A school bus was stopped and the driver had to be replaced after a group of school students were suspected of lighting and smoking marijuana while on-board.

Clarks Logan City Bus Service called police and halted one of its bus services on Monday afternoon after a driver reported smelling marijuana.

Under Workplace Health and Safety guidelines, the bus company was forced to replace the driver on the school bus from Beenleigh after she was exposed to the smoke.

Police arrived at the scene just after 3.25pm and spoke to a group of Beenleigh State High School students.

Clarks Logan City Bus Service manager of finance and performance Kaylee Clark said the incident happened within five minutes of leaving the school in the school bus run.

A Logan school bus was halted after reports of students smoking marijuana. Picture: Contributed

“No child was kicked off the bus – but the bus did have to stop because we can’t have anyone exposed to an illegal substance driving one of our buses — it was very disruptive,” Ms Clark said.

“Our drivers all have zero alcohol and zero drugs so they can’t work if they have been exposed in any way.

“We rang police to ensure that the driver was supported.

“We sent a replacement driver and the bus continued on. We have no record of any child being asked to get off the bus – they got off and made that decision themselves.

“A few voluntarily departed the vehicle but no students were asked to leave.

“QPS met the bus the student allegedly smoking pot had gotten off.”

The bus company in conjunction with TransLink, has now put transport officers on board some of the school bus runs to ensure that travellers and drivers are safe.

The officers are also checking that students are travelling with approved gocards and state government-issued bus passes.

Beenleigh State High School was called for comment as was the Department of Education and police.

Parents, who did not want to be named, said it took an hour-and-a-half for a replacement bus service and said some students had been left.

Clarks Bus commuter Hope Bodle-Clark said she witnessed schoolchildren abusing drivers regularly and said students often got on without paying.

“I think we forget the fact that these bus drivers deal with it every single day, it’s not a once or twice occurrence,” she said.

“It’s extremely common in Logan and the abuse bus drivers deal with for simply asking questions is disgusting.”

A Logan school bus was halted after reports of students smoking marijuana.

In Queensland, bus passes are free for low-income earners if a high school child lives more than 4.8km away from the school or if a primary school student lives more than 3.2km from school.

The bus company is at the centre of a union pay dispute which will include a fifth round of action on Friday, October 20.

Around 80 bus drivers working for Clarks will be the first to start an indefinite ban on collecting fares from passengers.

The partial industrial action is an escalation to an ongoing campaign to win investment in bus driver wages as driver shortages continue to put pressure on the network.

From 4am on Friday, the drivers will refuse to collect fares from passengers using their buses and have committed to continue the action until a resolution is achieved.

An additional 500 drivers across the southeast are expected to join the indefinite action over the next two weeks.

TWU Queensland director of organising Jared Abbott said driver wages needed to increase now to end a growing driver shortage.

“Queensland is expected to undergo significant population growth over the next 10 years and we need to be able to keep up with that demand,” he said.

“Investing in public transport not only increases productivity by ensuring people can get to training and jobs, it reduces traffic in general benefiting all road users.”