A group of elderly walkers have complained to Auckland Transport after one of their bus drivers threatened to throw them off his bus if they didn't stop talking.
The group of eight walkers, who call themselves the Blue Top Walkers, are aged between 72 and 79 years of age.
They had just returned from a walk on Waiheke Island on Sunday and were on a Pavlovich Coachlines bus from the Auckland CBD to Henderson when they say the driver pulled the bus over and began verbally abusing them.
A spokesperson for the group of walkers recounted what the driver said after pulling over.
"You are all acting like animals and this sounds like a fish market. You must stop talking so I can concentrate," Ellen Holliday told the NZ Herald.
The group was bewildered and after a brief pause the driver continued on with the journey.
Unfortunately for the group this didn't last long though with the bus driver pulling over again soon after, this time turning the ignition off.
Ms Holliday said the driver then accused the group of being drunk and acting like idiots, not willing to continue the journey unless they agreed not to talk again.
Feeling sorry for the other passengers on the bus the group decided to get off and find another route home after a ten minute stand-off with the driver.
"Everyone is traumatised by the incident. We couldn't sleep," Ms Holliday told the NZ Herald.
A spokesperson for Auckland Transport, James Ireland, has called the treatment of the group "unacceptable" and says AT are looking into the incident.
1 NEWS has contacted bus company Pavlovich Coachlines for comment.
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