Driver Li Jian is expected to be off work for two months to recover from a neck injury after Monday’s incident on his bus in Changsha. Photo: News163.com
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https://scmp.com/news/china/article/3005337/chinese-pet-owner-questioned-police-after-bus-driver-assaulted-argument People & Culture
Chinese pet owner questioned by police after bus driver is assaulted in argument over dog
- Travellers help driver after fists fly when passenger is told to take his dog and get off
- Bus company says it will support employee as he recovers from neck injury
A passenger carrying a dog leaves a bus in Changsha, Hunan province, as the driver puts his hands to his face after a row over the animal. Photo: News163.com
A man in central China who allowed his unleashed dog to run around a bus is suspected of assaulting the driver after he was told to get off.
Driver Li Jian was working on the 168 route in Hunan’s provincial capital, Changsha, on Monday when he noticed a dog on board. He stopped the bus, opened the doors and told the owner to take the dog and get off, the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald reported.
The owner ran towards Li, grabbed him by his neck and began hitting him in the face. Passengers came to Li’s assistance and he managed to call the police, the report said.
“I just wanted him to take the dog off the bus. Just this sentence, I didn’t say anything else,” Li was quoted as saying.
Li received treatment at Changsha Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital. He was diagnosed with a misaligned vertebrae, the Changsha Evening News reported.
In a photo taken by the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald at the hospital, Li was seen wearing a neck brace and had tubes in his nose to help him breathe. The injuries could take two months to heal, the Changsha Evening News said.
Li had driven route 168 for several years and was a responsible driver, Chen Hongbing from Longxiang Bus, which operates the service, told the newspaper. The company said it would support Li while he recuperated.
The dog owner is being investigated by the police, both papers reported.
Animals that affect the safety, health and comfort of others are banned from public buses in Changsha, with the only dogs permitted being guide dogs and police dogs, the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald reported.
Users of the Weibo social media site accused the dog owner of endangering public safety.
“He must be charged with endangering public security and punished severely,” a user from Sichuan province wrote.
Passenger assault on bus drivers has become a problem in China. In October, a scuffle between a passenger and driver led to a bus in Chongqing veering off course on a bridge and plunging into the Yangtze River, killing all 15 people on board.