Bus group wants 'gentler' female drivers

SYDNEY, May 16 (UPI) -- Female drivers are being sought by a bus operator in the Australian city of Sydney for their "gentler" driving abilities, transport officials say.

Veolia Transport Managing Drector Morris Caputi said his company received an exception waiver from the government that allows the bus operator to exclusively recruit female drivers and their unique skills, the Sydney Daily Telegraph said in its Saturday edition.

"We find women are gentler on the buses, on the machinery, than men and they relate to passengers better," Caputi said. "We would certainly like to get more women driving."

Currently the Australian bus company employs 20 female bus drivers compared with 380 male drivers but Caputi told the newspaper that discrepancy was due to the assumption women couldn't handle the large vehicles.

"We want to show them that buses are not that hard to drive or maneuver," he said of his company's new female-oriented advertising efforts. "They have power steering."

Copyright 2008 by United Press International