‘Rip-off’ bus driver took holidaymakers for a ride

Two Australian tourists were charged an “outrageous” €19.80 for two bus tickets and then given the run around for three days when Arriva officials would not listen to their complaints. “We were basically robbed by that driver, it’s just ridiculous to treat people this way,” David Vella, 53, said. An Australian-Maltese holidaymaker, Mr Vella and his wife spent part of his holiday travelling back and forth to different Arriva offices trying to lodge a complaint after he was “grossly overcharged” for an express bus ride. The two tourists were recently travelling to the Malta Inter­national Airport along route X1 from Ċirkewwa with just a few hours to spare before they jetted off for a two-week tour of the Scottish highlands last month. “The driver must have thought he had us over a barrel because we were about to leave the country, but he didn’t know we were coming back to finish the second part of our holiday in Malta,” Mr Vella said. The standard fare for two foreign nationals carrying two suitcases is €2.20 each, including the suitcases. However, the Vellas were charged for nine €2.20 tickets, all of which were printed out on one long string of tickets at the insistence of the...