Drivers deserve support says assault case lawyer

Brian Tuinufuafe

A lawyer for an Auckland bus driver charged with assault has questioned whether drivers receive enough support to cope with "very stressful situations" in their work.

Brian Tuinufuafe, 40, appeared in the Auckland District Court yesterday to face two charges of assault stemming from an alleged road-rage incident last week.

It was alleged he tried to pull a woman from her car in Queen St on Tuesday and then knocked over a man who came to her assistance.

Tuinufuafe, from Glenfield, did not enter a plea and was remanded on bail for two weeks.

Defence lawyer Kahu Barron-Afeaki said outside the court that he had spoken to other bus drivers and believed they got little support in dealing with "very stressful situations day in, day out".

Drivers had spoken of tight schedules, traffic that was "getting out of control" and facing "stressful situations 15 to 20 times a day", said Mr Barron-Afeaki.

He said Tuinufuafe would not use that as an excuse "but it is a valid thing to bring up".

"He felt he wasn't getting much assistance."

Tuinufuafe was taken to hospital to be treated for kidney stones the day after the alleged road rage.

Mr Barron-Afeaki would not comment on the current employment status of his client, who had worked for Stagecoach for 2 years.

Auckland Tramways Union president Gary Froggatt said Tuinufuafe had reached a "satisfactory agreement" with his employer but it was confidential.

Mr Froggatt said drivers went through a comprehensive stress management course and received information on dealing with stressful situations.

"It is possible we could look at the new owners of [Stagecoach] to increase support [for drivers]. A case could be made for additional support, there's no question about that."