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Suddenly they were alone: 42 retirees were on their way home after spending five days in the Swiss and French Alps. The bus driver ran from a parking lot along the highway. The passengers were on their own, without food.
The surprise arose when we left Lake Geneva on Thursday morning, writes ‘Bild’. Only one driver was available for the approximately 1,000 kilometer journey.
The boss insisted on moving on
The driver could not complete the journey alone. According to the law, he can drive the bus for a maximum of nine hours a day. Along the way he only stopped at rest stops without restaurants or shops.
The last stop was at 6 p.m.: the driver took a break at the Gerlinger Höhe parking lot on the A81 near Stuttgart. The trip was half way, so it would have taken a while to reach the destination in Saxony-Anhalt.
Another driver should have taken over the parking lot on the highway, a traveler tells ‘Bild’. However, he wasn’t there.
Paramedics bring granola bars
According to a passenger, the driver called a friend to take over the wheel. However, the boss of the bus company intervened. He doesn’t want ‘a stranger driving his bus’. The boss demanded that the driver continue the journey.
But this didn’t happen. The driver got into his friend’s car at 7 p.m. “Then the driver just took off,” says a pensioner.
The group of retirees had to wait several hours. They then called the police around 10 p.m. Rescue workers then went out and brought the travelers bananas, drinks and granola bars.
For the pensioners who were left alone, it didn’t continue until after midnight. Taxis came to take them to Stuttgart train station, from where they took the train home. So far, neither the tour operator nor the bus company have responded to media queries. (bab)
Source: Blick
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
