JessicaShadowless
43610
1342
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Dog tax
It's Roxy!
ToSisPoS
Was that an allegory?
It sort of felt like an allegory.
twsx
*entire bus of people potentially being abducted* Lol sorry, can't help bcuz not sure where lol
*guy caught being black in public* SEND ALL AVAILABLE OFFICERS
What a pathetic dogshit country, jesus christ
OnlyWantToSayOneThing
My white ass would have just said "I'm a black muslim, and I have a sawn off short-barrel-rifle, Allahu Akbar! One second while I do a hit of fentanyl off my expired green card. Also I'm gay and trans and a democrat AND I have hunters laptop." They would have a black hawk and seal team 6 within 90 seconds.
mindstorm8191
The whole "half the riders don't want to call the cops in fear of agitating him" sounds like a real metaphor to our current state in the US.
Niagaran
Yuuuup.
"Don't. He'll declare martial law!"
Bitch, there are already secret police kidnapping and murdering. Not sure what other actions you're waiting for.
trumpypumpyinyourrumpy
Almost had a lord of the flies bus trip. Crazy. I thought it was a metaphor at first. Nope, just life it seems.
Sigge1981
Wow. What a ride!
shutupthisisreal
and just like the passengers, we had no idea how it's gonna end
PigsWeGetWhatPigsDeserve
I thought this was going to be a tRuMp analogy.
SamScailes
When I was reading this, I legitimately thought this was a parable about the current American government.
DecapodianSaysWoopWoopWoopWoop
At first I tought it is a parable about Trump driving into 1939 Germany.
SirButcher
Yeah, I was looking at the "this isn't about a bus driver" at the end...
ActualTttony
Same
Madalchemist2018
In front of an I.C.E. detention center:
HA! HA! *driver pulls off bus company windbreaker revealing a smaller ICE windbreaker beneath* it was me ICE all along. Get out and get processed.
*Agent at the gate thanks him then cuffs him for having an accent*
HeightEnvy
I thought similarly at first. Then I wondered if it was a joke retelling of the movie Speed. Man, the Internet has destroyed my ability to know what is reality and what is satire.
FermentTheRich3000
It still can be.
Anfalicious
It sounded like they had an insane bus driver, turns out they just had a French bus driver. Your union ain't gonna protect you there buddy
FortifiedWhine
Maybe this is a new ICE tactic: Instead of busting down doors and beating ppl in the streets, they are just gonna bus whole groups at random to detention centres?
FiftyShadesOfCauliflower
Honestly, with everything that's going on in the US it's surprising that not more people snap under the stress and pull stunts like this or go on a Falling Down journey.
MyCommentsUsuallyHaveTypos
Especially if they're an immigrant...
NonstopRampage
For the last 20 years, I was under the impression that folks like me wouldn't HAVE to be the ones to act, because motherfuckers like mcconnell would ruin the lives of innocent people, get their loved ones killed, leave them with nothing, and put them in a position where they were free to get their revenge. Where, those assholes wouldn't have a CHANCE to enact a lifetime of evil policies, without being stopped by someone with nothing left to lose, thanks solely to them.
CallThisAUsername
You mean like going insane and firing weapons at random people until they get shot down or kill themselves ? That has been happening time and again every year for the last 20...
SosigDelFuego
It really is like this every day. People have hair triggers and you just never know when someone will go. The level of coping skills that american society needs to survive have not been implemented over the last few decades, and it really shows up when you see people erupt over shopping carts and who's in line first at the gas station or grocery store. I currently live in a kinda polite smaller New England city and it's definitely creeping in. Oh and everyone is armed, so....
umpbumpfizz
That last bit, though. I am considering de-arming so I don’t become a part of the problem. On the other hand, the problem is going to get real fucking big real fucking soon, and it will involve pretty much all of us. So… yeah. Not a great situation.
peterom5772
Bus driver refuses to take passengers to Washington D.C. destination, BestBus customer says https://share.google/9KsP0lH95FWPrnWJh
ReallyOG
By the gods that was a ride! Glad you are all okay. When the film comes out can I borrow like $10?
dbox
It's an old style hijack, but with a bus instead of a plane
WeeemRCB
You'd think bus companies would have a remote stop feature to disable one of their vehicles if they thought it was stolen
TheFastpaws
Ya, I'm against these in regular cars but it makes sense for a company bus. Well until you need a bus to get away from the government these days...
dontrike
I really thought this was going to be a metaphor about Trump.
backrideup9
Yeah, that 2nd driver didn't work for the bus company and they all just got kidnapped.
cousteau
I tried to find this on the news but it seems that it just happened some hours ago 😳
IhopeUgetwhatUvoted4
I'd like to think that's because the news is vetting it's sources... but I am not a moron.
JessicaShadowless
KrondorMocker
......BUT DID HE STAY ABOVE 50M/PH!???
zebulorg
https://www.ffxnow.com/2026/01/20/errant-bus-driver-takes-passengers-for-unwanted-ride-to-vienna-metro-station/
cousteau
MasterChristopher
If it was just hours ago, what holiday could they be referring to? MLK? :|
sugarsharkshack
So weird that you would mention the literal holiday that was yesterday, but say it in a way that implied MLK Day isn't a holiday?
swofromtherock
Almost like some group/person has been intentionally downplaying and disregarding it's importance.
DoofusMagnus
Yes? There's a date/time stamp. MLK Day is relevant because they'd be worried about services being closed, potentially making it more difficult to get where they need to be.
zigbigidorlu
I honestly thought someone was tweeting as a passenger from Speed. Was disappointed when there was no bridge jump.
KittenVonCatsworth
"Wild, the front of the bus lifted as we neared the gap and none of us can explain why"
chackstar
Pop quiz hit shot!
KellyCrazyCatLadyinTraining
Same!
cousteau
I also thought that was where this post was going.
steelundecided
Everyone to that side of the bus! Big turn coming!
BananaForScaIe
YET
nefroye
Yeah - seems legit but would like to see some source on this. This seems like an outright kidnapping, and definitely newsworthy. Cannot believe the police didn't arrest the guy. Internet search doesn't turn up anything - I'm skeptical this is real until seeing otherwise.
tibby
I've just come upon this post now, and have searched it on the interwebs myself to see -- here is an article published (at the time I'm posting this) 5 hours ago! https://kdvr.com/news/nationalworld-news/bus-driver-refuses-to-take-passengers-to-dc-destination-customer-says/
CerisCinderwolf
In the present day/age of "Not my job" where cops refuse to enter a building within their jurisdiction to arrest a bad guy, it's 100% believable they would refuse on grounds of "oh well, not our area lol" too.
SavageDrums
Even if it is their area, they are lazy and only want to deal with low hanging fruit.
macdjord
Due not, this happened hours ago. The fact that he hasn't been arrested yet doesn't mean he won't be. If they'd managed to intercept and stop the bus, then he'd have been arrested on the spot.
nefroye
Internet search shows zero mention of this incident though. It happened yesterday afternoon (14 hours ago now). Normally this kind of thing makes the rounds within a couple of hours.
hogninja
The cops aren’t going to do anything because to them no crime was committed. An employee drive them to the wrong place and quit his job. Everyone is safe.
swofromtherock
That's like 30 clear cases of kidnapping dude. Dozens of felonies were obviously committed. The company 100% knows who he is, or at least the alias they had.
CALAMOSCOPYJANE
I love it when Imgur is faster than the news.
wadatahmydamie
More accurate overall too these days
yqpqfrdp625772
I first heard about Covid on Imgur in early December 2019. Almost a month before I saw anything abt it on the news.
swofromtherock
Fuck I had Covid in dec 19' no one knew what it was, but my whole workplace had Covid cough.
NoInnerResources
Yes! I can’t remember the person listing updates about it- they were more accurate than the news for sometime about Covid’s reach. It was very helpful.
CALAMOSCOPYJANE
Me too! And then I remember looking at another Imger post in March 2020 of people in China getting ready in full protective gear to treat a patient, and I was looking at that post while walking through a train station through a crowd of people getting off a train that came directly from the airport. Pretty sure that was the exact moment that I caught Covid - while reading an Imgur post about Covid. 🙃 I was smoking a ton of weed at the time, think that’s the reason why I survived.
DerpMeister
I saw the video of US strikes on Caracas and helicopters over the city posted on Reddit, 8 minutes after it happened IRL. People were arguing that it must be AI because there was nothing about it in the news. It took about 20 more minutes for the news to catch up. I think France 24 was the first international news outlet that posted about it, and even then it was no video, no pictures just "something Le Fûckÿ going on".
Soufange
Remember when that freighter full of maneur exploded in that port and we saw several angles of footage on here less than, like, 20 minutes after it happened? Then it was like, 2-3 years to the DAY of that explosion some dude managed to catch the exact moment the condemned buildings still standing after the incident collapsed on themselves? I'm trying to remember if it was before or after the first time that harbor ship got stuck in Panama.
cousteau
*Fouquîe
zechor
https://www.ffxnow.com/2026/01/20/errant-bus-driver-takes-passengers-for-unwanted-ride-to-vienna-metro-station/
best verifiable source we've got so far
JessicaShadowless
THE SOURCE USED IN THE ARTICLE YOU PROVIDED IS THIS THREAD!!!!
zechor
Ridiculous, right?
They did add a tiny bit at the end with some comments by police and Best Bus at least.
JessicaShadowless
And I added a cute little dog.
PizzaCat64
If you're on the highway, wouldn't you call the state police?
mohavewolfpup
It should “roll over” to them. Job I was at had some homeless guy collapse in the street so I called 911 to report it, but my area code was out of state so it routed me to the highway patrol, they had to then route me to the city police
bamblebimble
You'd think calling 911 would be good enough. Why should the people in an emergency have to find and call a different number
PizzaCat64
It's early, I phrased my question poorly. I mean, "Wouldn't this be a matter for the state police?" Why wouldn't the 911 guys contact the state police?
Midgarmerc
I wonder if anyone accidentally fell in love with the driver
JessicaShadowless
Lol
Nbiakro
https://youtu.be/9MYxAlA5wuk?si=XQHI85uCnIQSBCdg
IAmFaucetFailure
Musicology duck’s tweets are now protected. AKA user made their account private.
Isikyus
X tweets, or bluesky tweets (skeets)?
JessicaShadowless
Blue sky. X has Grok making child porn out in the open so only the most depraved of losers and Nazis are on it.
AllSeeingAvalin
Not they aren't. I just looked them up on bluesky, it just says you need an account to read it. Its otherwise fully visible.
Cats2cats
Sounds like a class action lawsuit.
QueTeValga
It might be the new thing bus companies do. I had a similar experience with Grey Hound/Plex
Cats2cats
It might be that the company said one thing to the replacement driver that didn’t match the current route. Either way, I’d be going to the police & reporting it as attempted kidnapping, demanding a case number.
varonicaED
Funny, here in Australia you call the general police number and it connects you to the nearest police station, you don't need to know which one it is, it just goes there, huh funny thing that.
HypoMix
Social security is the reverse, you get connected to any available call centre.
L1ttl3J1m
In Australia, you get connected but it automatically hangs up on you after putting you on hold for 12 hours, so you never actually get to talk to anybody.
UneventfulLover
But this apparently happened in some 3rd world backwater shithole country where most money is spent on technology to suppress the public. But I am not going to lie, we had this issue in Norway 15 or 20 years ago as well, calling 113 etc from a mobile phone could land your call anywhere so some caution was necessary. Today, there are apps that transmit the exact location and tells the network to ignore quality and distance requirements in favour of not dropping the call.
DerFoxeh
Yeah the thing that makes me skeptical is that both 911 connects you to the nearest dispatch authority, and operators can also transfer you to other districts as you cross department lines. So either someone wasn't doing their job, or someone deliberately called the "this is not actually an emergency" phone line.
MissChickle
911 does that, so I'm confused about what the issue was here.
marsilies
It sounds like it connected them to a local police station, but the cops didn't want to dispatch a car and follow the bus, potentially starting a police chase, and instead wanted to intercept where the bus was stopping, but nobody knew where the bus was stopping. So they called when there were in one county, but ended up stopping in another county. They probably could've called 911 again when the bus stopped, but the driver maybe drove off before the cops could get there.
JesaraB
And the bus was crossing jurisdictions, hell left state lines it is Federal kidnapping
squirrelgirl86
Not expecting you to know the answer to this, but this genuinely leaves me curious how the whole "across state lines" part of these sorts of federal laws work when it comes to DC...
FeRDNYC
AIUI, when you enter DC you have crossed the state line of whatever state you were previously in, so that counts. Doesn't matter that you're no longer in any State per se. DC does have its own police force (established by Abraham Lincoln); I don't know for sure but assume they're technically part of the Federal government. So I guess it makes sense that whatever state/local PoPo they connected with didn't want to get involved in a (possibly) DC-bound bus trip.
marsilies
I don't think 911 ever connects you to the FBI.
RedshirtRonSwanson
Anybody got some actual source on this?
cousteau
Someone posted this a while ago: https://www.ffxnow.com/2026/01/20/errant-bus-driver-takes-passengers-for-unwanted-ride-to-vienna-metro-station/
idiotsonfire
Imgur is faster than the news on this one, check back in a day or so.
JessicaShadowless
Me dawg. I am the source.
EggFooYung
Fuck that was actually you!? Are you okay? Have you got to DC?
JessicaShadowless
No I'm simply the one who posted it here but musicology duck is like a real person that I know
EggFooYung
Thank goodness. I hope your friend is okay then.
NickNoltesDrinkingShack
I don't understand how nobody tried more effective measures. Fuck that shit, that is a hostile entity committing kidnap.
LariCheltsy
Yeah sounds like a "Let's Roll" scenario
Rogerwilco1974
Every fucking internet story has someone in the comments saying oh they should have just done this like it's so easy to say from behind the keyboard. There's someone behaving erratically in control of a vehicle that's travelling 70 miles an hour and you're suggesting people do what fucking overpower him, potentially killing everybody on the bus? Yeah good one.
mrthewhitee
Fucking with someone in control of a several ton machine you are traveling should always be a last resort.
No one was in a life threatening situation and as far as any of them could figure the worst case scenario was that they'd stop hours away from where they wanted to stop.
That isn't worth risking killing everyone on board by trying to be a hero.
unluckyandbored
"Doing something" on a bus going that fast is more likely than not to result in certain death for everyone onboard.
BishlamekGurpgork
Such as? Genuinely curious - until he stops the bus, what's the effective measure?
MadamPuddifoot
This might be the dumbest take in the thread.
aloharamada
It's a doozy. The driver wasn't listening to anyone being sensible, including the person on the phone representing his employer. Inaction isn't great, but physically engaging him while he's erratically driving a bus 20 miles over the speed limit and acting utterly mental doesn't seem like the best idea, either. Ultimately ending up in the wrong location, suing the company for damages and and seeing the driver's ass thrown in jail seems preferable to risking the lives of every person on board.
aloharamada
Inaction isn't always the best way to handle dangerous situations, but I do understand why nobody took the physical route in this particular situation, since even if someone stepped up and tried to subdue the driver, they wouldn't only risk their own life, but the lives of dozens of other people. It's just a really difficult situation to be in, no doubt.
shitheadtookmyname
Yeah it's not like they were in mountainous territory with no guardrails. Not flying toward NYC. _i got family to get home to" doesn't sound suicidal.
ThrowAwayAcct0000
Very apt metaphor for the US right now
unannouncedguest
Like what? trying to remove him while driving? Incapacitate him? Seems like that could only endanger people and/ or agitate him more and escalate the situation.. Also he seems like a well built dude... Not everyone is Bruce Lee like you. Trying to be a tough guy hero can seriously endanger everyone.
cousteau
Like what though? Knocking him unconscious while he's driving? Whole situation seemed quite delicate
JakeWren
What more effective measures are there that wouldn't risk a crash?
RecurringNightmare
some busses do have emergency brakes the passengers could pull to stop the bus, dunno how common those are in the US tho...
NonstopRampage
I'd like to say an elbow to the side of the head and a foot on the brakes, but even if I were there, I'd probably just be thinking it the entire time, unsure whether or not to do something drastic.
We can't really blame people for not stepping in, when shit gets crazy for apparently no reason.
AndThenThereWereSquirrels
That's also just an incredibly dangerous maneuver at 75mph. I'm in good shape but I'm not John Wick and I don't have plot armor. Would only attempt if he seemed actively suicidal and there was nothing to lose.
shitheadtookmyname
Yeah plus you aren't buckled in anymore. These buses aren't yellow dogs. They have seat belts. And it's a bus driving through flat terrain on divided highways. If he hits a car he'll cut through the car like hot knife through butter.
boevis
Bystander syndrome
BrockEffingSamson
Garbage pop psychology theory, based on bad reporting, constantly undermined by real life examples...such as this one where multiple people took reasonable actions.
NickNoltesDrinkingShack
I hate crowds. Crowd thinking, all of it. I never feel comfortable because of things read where people sat around watching. I try to be a quiet person who keeps to himself, but I get loud real quick when shit is fucky. I just never understood how people wouldn't snap out of it, just for self preservation purposes.
NonstopRampage
We're so used to safety and security, that the thought "surely someone will do something" overrides everything. It's that simple. Downsides of sheltered lives on massive scales.
spittytrinkles
A Person can be reasoned with. A Crowd is unpredictable.
shitheadtookmyname
Like... Stab the guy while they're going 75mph?
Someshithead241
It's emblematic of current issues. People sitting around arguing, trying to talk and talk, all while the madman keeps on going.
Never trying any other method.
Kehy
So on a bus going 75mph on the highway with dozens of passengers, incapacitate the driver, got it
Someshithead241
And then we come to the *other* issue. Some dispshit comes in when others point out how useless their tactics are and acts like its either their method, or the most extreme tactic on the opposite end of the spectrum with no in-between.
Why? Because its easier for them to attack that and say if that wont work, then since theirs is the only other option it must be the one that will eventually work, if you just wait.
Kehy
Ok, so what exactly is your plan, since verbal engagement was clearly not working in this situation
Someshithead241
You do understand there is a large margin of physical confrontation between "just talk to him" and "incapacitate him", right?
Even if its so much as kicking his foot off of the accelerator and forcing the brake on with some assistance. No one is expecting him to be choked out on the highway, especially since they werent always on the high way.
And no one is expecting you to do anything
Goldensands
The real takeaway is that you're gonna get events like this when your capitalist hell-hole treat people like wage slaves.
ExecutiveProducerWolfDyck
This could only be more on the nose as a metaphor if a portion of the passengers belligerently supported the driver.
mikeatike
I actually thought this was the case. I was surprised to see actual pictures of a bus at the end.
NickNoltesDrinkingShack
I thought, while reading was that it was, in fact, a metaphor. Got to the end...
Zeterai
There is a horse loose in the hospital.
Omnimorph2112
Lol. So true
TheMeatIncident
Sounds like an unhinged guy that just wanted to make it home to his family for the holidays. Could reason with him from that position.
OlaphOfTheNorth
This was posted 1/19 and the holiday OP mentioned is MLK Jr day, which I don't imagine is a popular occasion for family gatherings among french or quebecois persons living in virginia
shitheadtookmyname
It's a day off for kids. Any father worth anything at all would've wanted to get home to his kids on their day off
NickNoltesDrinkingShack
If that was the case. Do you not remember not so long ago, bus loads of people moved around like chess pieces, due to the orange gunt?
sometimesarobot
Then he shoulda taken the day off rather than drive a bus to DC
TheMeatIncident
That he should've, but who knows what an unhinged person will do during the holidays
shitheadtookmyname
What does this have to do with the passengers failing to shoot him in the head or whatever cowboy tough guy stuff ppl her think should've been done
sometimesarobot
Was anyone promoting shooting the guy in the head? Guy shoulda just sped the whole way to DC instead of skipping it
iConfirmAnythingAndEverything
He was likely denied time off request. The businesses cant give everyone it off when it comes to providing services and can be quite heartless to the front line staff.
Teawrecks66
To this day I will still pack up the occasional hitchhiker if they're not going too far off from where I am. My friends and family get worried sometimes and I have to remind them. If I'm driving a car and you pull a gun on me, who's really in control of that situation? The guy with the gun or the guy with the ability to accelerate us to 85 mph into a brick wall?
sugarsharkshack
I say this with love. Cracked out mentally ill people don't care about that stuff. They will just hurt you. They exist in a different reality that others and don't take that stuff into consideration. I also think you'd feel real different with an actual gun pointed at you by someone with nothing to lose. But I think you like that tingle of excitement and fucking with your family so you're not going to stop ✨
2graves
Jess dude he's being nice
CrumpetsWithHoneyAreCrumpetsWithBeeVomit
It's not a fucking movie starring Keanu Reeves! What are you going to do on a moving bus? Your actions could get people killed. Is that worth you being late for something?
DarksteelPenguin
Being actively kidnapped is not "being late".
ThatGuyInTheMountains
That's true. But you don't know his actions wouldn't get you killed. It worked out ok but I'd be worried for sure. Hard to not take action if you're fearful for your life.
shitheadtookmyname
Seems like literally everyone on that bus found it easy not to take action
LordHosk
What more effective measures should the passengers of the bus have taken while driving 75 miles per hour down the freeway?
Im just curious what you think would be more effective than trying to convince him he was wrong, trying to convince him to stop the bus, and getting his superiors to try to convince him he was wrong and to stop the bus?
[deleted]
[deleted]
LordHosk
I think you have watched too many movies and don't know enough about physics.
You attack the driver, he jerks the wheel, the bus rolls over, and over and over and over. You slam on the breaks, the bus slides off the road, and rolls over and over and over.
There is a reason why busses require an advanced licenses to drive.
RecurringNightmare
well, some busses actually have emergency brakes the passengers could pull...dunno how common those are tho...
sugarsharkshack
Obviously it's to do something physical, like hit him with an oversized wooden mallet or lasso him like the lone ranger. Maybe drop an anvil on him?
LordHosk
I hadn't thought of droping an anvil on him. I stopped carrying my anvil around in 2005, but I guess most people keep carrying them.
sugarsharkshack
It's 2026, anvils are back! Just like low-rise flared jeans. Or totally oversized puffy clothes.
Corrodias
There's the risk of crashing... Of course, you can try to choke him out if he ever stops the bus, but if they were on a highway by the time they realized something was amiss, they may have had to wait quite a while for that chance. And by then, he was seemingly ready to let them leave.
johnblood616
Turn the ignition off
Lutki
You do not want to turn the ignition off in a moving vehicle. Most modern vehicles have steering lockouts that prevent turning the wheel without the key being in the run position as an anti theft measure, also power steering, abs, and traction control can be disabled as well. If you are in a runaway vehicle put it in neutral then use the brakes; otherwise you will burn through your brakes without actually coming to a stop and then you are sol.
NonstopRampage
Honestly, it reminds me of this incident from the last time I used a city bus- where some crazy homeless picked the seat right next to me, in an otherwise empty vehicle, sat down and started muttering to himself. I had earbuds in, and wondered if he was speaking to me. He freaked out and spat in my face, I blacked out for a second, and came to with the bus shaking and him on the floor, writhing around holding his throat, choking.
These kind of things start and end faster than you'd think.
ATravellinOwl
One time I was on a bus in Washington State and a guy got in and started pointing to me and yelling at the driver that I had flipped him off last time he was on the bus. He was PISSED and wouldn't shut up about it (it was my first time on that particular bus 🙄)
Colopty
After he let them leave they really should've kept him from driving off though, knowing he was dangerous to have on the road.
Corrodias
Maybe. Preventing someone from driving away is tricky, legally speaking. A citizen's arrest is a very risky step to take. Without doing that, you can't physically restrain them; that's imprisonment. You can try to take the keys -- theft -- or you can physically surround the bus and hope he doesn't decide to run you over.
yamsonyamsonyams
The police could have come if they thought it was dangerous
Colopty
Oh, I had read the thread earlier and didn't notice OP cut it off halfway. Additional context on police response:
yamsonyamsonyams
Yes, I can indeed read (that’s how we’re communicating)
the police didn’t care enough to figure it out. If they really wanted to intervene, they would have sent someone one way or the other. They did not.
ThrowAwayAcct0000
Police don't help people. They protect money and property.
SavageDrums
They only protect property if it belongs to the monied people.