Posted on the 16th July 2026 in PHTM News

PAISLEY BUS DRIVER WHO LEFT CABBIE CLINGING TO MOVING BUS DOORS IN ROAD RAGE CLASH AVOIDS PRISON

A bus driver who sped away while a 67-year-old taxi driver clung to the open doors of his vehicle in a fit of road rage has narrowly avoided a jail sentence.

Daniel Smith, 35, of Paisley, was ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work, placed under supervision for 24 months, fined £300, and banned from driving for 30 months at Glasgow Sheriff Court.

The confrontation began on November 13, 2022, in Glasgow's Hillington area, when Smith’s bus pulled out from the inside lane in front of George Meek’s taxi and hit the driver's side of the vehicle with a loud bang. Mr Meek, a cabbie of 34 years, had pulled alongside the bus to get Smith's details, but the interaction quickly deteriorated.

When the bus pulled into the next bus stop, Meek got on the bus to get the driver's registration details but Smith refused to share his insurance information. According to Mr Meek, Smith "punched or slapped my phone out of my hand" and demanded he get off.

When Mr Meek refused to leave without the details, Smith drove off with the cabbie desperately holding onto an entry bar. Recalling the terrifying moment, Mr Meek said: "I turned around and held on the bar on the bus and I fell off.

"My legs have not been the same, I can't sleep, I have nightmares and my arm was killing me. I felt at that point my life was over."

Mr Meek managed to crawl home to call the police and was later treated at a hospital for a broken elbow bone, broken toes, and cuts to his nose and hands.

Smith was found guilty of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, assault, and failing to appear at a previous court date.

Defence lawyer Mark Dunbar noted that Smith, who is now unemployed, has lost his job and has shown "a degree of remorse," accepting he is "the author of his own misfortune."

In sparing Smith a prison sentence, Sheriff Collette Gallagher acknowledged the gravity of the crime, telling him: “This was a serious matter and weighing up all of the factors, the custodial threshold has been met, however, an appropriate alternative is available.”


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