Crying toddler kicked off Victoria bus

Jenny Manzer and her 20-month-old daughter Briar, were kicked off a bus because Briar was being fussy

An Oak Bay mother says she's not happy with B.C. Transit's response to a recent incident where she and her 20-month-old daughter were forced off a bus by the driver because the child was making too much noise.

Jenny Manzer says she wants to ensure no other parent faces a similar situation. "Their response really has been inadequate," said Manzer, who says she received a form letter and four free bus tickets. "I find that really insulting. I don't think they have taken it seriously enough."

But transit spokeswoman Joanna Morton said the incident is being taken seriously -- Manzer has received an apology and the driver is being monitored.

Manzer and her daughter, Briar Leach, were travelling from the University of Victoria to downtown Sept. 11 when Briar started to fuss. "She was just saying 'no, no, no, no.' It was loud and annoying, but she stayed in her seat and I was doing everything I could to calm her down," Manzer said.

But the bus driver pulled up at the busy Lansdowne-Foul Bay intersection and demanded that Manzer leave the bus because the noise was affecting his driving. Manzer said she had no stroller and three bags and would have to carry Briar a considerable distance to get home.

"I appealed to stay because it was not a safe situation to get off the bus with her, and he said he didn't care and I would have to learn to control her."

Despite support for Manzer from other passengers, the bus driver would not relent, and Manzer was left struggling with bags and Briar on the street.

Manzer, a journalist, called the experience "dangerous, upsetting and humiliating."

She and partner David Leach, a professor at the University of Victoria, do not own a car and usually transport Briar and her brother AJ by bike and bus. Now, because of this experience, they're now wondering whether they should buy a vehicle.

Manzer, who e-mailed B.C. Transit immediately after the incident, said the majority of B.C. Transit drivers are "fantastic." "That's why this experience left me so stunned."

Morton said as soon as the complaint was received, B.C. Transit called Manzer and interviewed the bus driver. "We apologized and explained this was not the norm and we offered a few passes as a gesture for the frustration," she said, adding the driver will continue to be monitored.

Morton did not have numbers available showing how many people a year are asked to leave buses in Greater Victoria. Manzer said she believes it is rare.

"I've ridden buses with inebriated people, riders with loud headphones, people swearing or making racial slurs, carrying jugs of liquor and even stripping down to their panties and changing clothes. None of these customers was asked to leave the bus," she said.