Bus company bosses have apologised after a driver ordered a disabled female pensioner off his vehicle in the mistaken belief her free travel pass was invalid.

Christine Watson, 62, of Springdale Crescent, Thorpe Edge, who suffers from osteoarthritis, had to walk.

Mrs Watson, who has a disabled pass to allow her free bus travel, got on with her granddaughter, who paid a concessionary fare, near to her home in Old Park Road.

She was left alone on the 670 First service, however, when her granddaughter got off before Mrs Watson’s stop, which she travels to every day to visit her elderly mother.

Mrs Watson said when her granddaughter got off, the driver told her she was not “disabled enough” to warrant the free pass if she was able to travel alone, despite needing to use a crutch to walk.

Mrs Watson, who has had the pass for the last four years, said: “He said I shouldn’t be using that pass, I should have someone with me to use that pass and if not, I’m not disabled enough to do it.”

Mrs Watson said the two argued before she was asked to either pay a £2.40 fare and hand over her pass or get off the bus.

She said: “When I got off the bus I was really upset and I rang my son who works for the buses and I was crying and shook up.

“I have been using the pass for four years. It doesn’t say anything about not travelling on your own, I asked my son and he said you just use it as normal. I admit I did use abusive language.

“I know a lot of people on that bus and it’s not nice being shown up like that. The driver said I was committing fraud and he swore at me once.”

Mrs Watson said she got off the bus three stops early, and it took her about 35 minutes to walk to where she was going.

First has admitted its driver was “over zealous” in challenging Mrs Watson about the validity of her ticket and said all of its drivers would be spoken to so it would not happen again.

A spokesman said: “We would like to apologise to Mrs Watson for this unfortunate incident.”

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