Sat-nav mistake leaves coachload of schoolchildren 80 miles in wrong direction

Sat-nav mistake leaves coachload of schoolchildren 80 miles in wrong direction
Published: 2013 April 18 22:32:36 (4679 Views)
A bungling driver typed one wrong letter into his sat nav – and took a coachload of children almost 80 miles in the wrong direction.

Exhausted after a gruelling overnight journey from Paris lasting 13 hours, confused youngsters from TYWYN, on the west coast of Wales overlooking Cardigan Bay, UK, woke up and phoned parents to say they were at similarly-pronounced TOWYN, near Rhyl, on the north coast.

Teachers had alerted the coach driver to his error.

The 37 school children, aged 11 to 14, had spent three nights in Paris after crossing the English Channel by ferry.

The headmistress of Ysgol Uwchradd Tywyn, Helen Lewis, said: "The driver, when he was told 'Tywyn', had made the incorrect assumption it was 'Towyn'.

"It is something that happens a lot here, although it is the first time we had a group of pupils end up in the wrong place.

"We have had deliveries wrongly sent to Towyn.

"The children were tired because it was a long journey anyway so the extra couple of hours wouldn't have made a difference. They'd had a brilliant time."

Some parents were angry at what happened but also feared the driver may be disciplined.

Gwynedd councillor Louise Hughes, a school governor whose daughter was on the trip, said: "I wouldn't want anyone to lose their job over this, that would be an over-reaction. The main thing is they all got back safely.

"Delivery drivers make the same mistake and people ring saying 'we can't find you, we're in Towyn' – it happens all the time."

At one time Tywyn used to be also called Towyn.

It's thought the mistake had occurred after the coach had changed drivers at Shrewsbury.

A spokesman for coach company Llew Jones International said: "We have spoken to the driver of the coach and he was clearly instructed to go to Tywyn in Meirionnydd.

- Mirror
Tags: sat-nav,
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