Transport Safety Victoria’s acting director of bus safety Lisa Faldon said the bus, which was run by an operator who had twice been prosecuted before, was ordered not to leave.

The order would have left about 30 passengers left stranded.

“The driver, who was really the innocent person in all of this, was told he was not allowed to leave but after much discussion with the responsible person back in Melbourne he chose to do so anyway. So we will be taking further action,” Ms Faldon said.

The operator, who has had his accreditation suspended in the past, will face prosecution in coming weeks, she said.

“It is not impossible that in these circumstances operators can do the right thing and organise someone else to get their passengers home because that is their responsibility,” Ms Faldon said.

She said two buses were grounded at the Dunkeld Races on Saturday and both operators made alternate provision for their passengers. The bus blitz was a joint operation between TSV and Victoria police that included inspections at Dunkeld, the Twelve Apostles and on Hamilton school buses.

A number of buses at the Twelve Apostles and Dunkeld were issued with infringement notices for defective vehicles and fatigue-related offences such as not completing their diaries appropriately. “We also had a number of drivers that were inappropriately accredited for the work that they were doing,” Ms Faldon said.

She said there was a significant increase in number of buses at Dunkeld with 274 ferrying passengers to the races, 40 more than last year.

“On the whole, the buses we inspected were largely compliant,” she said.

All 22 school buses inspected on Friday were given the thumbs up.

Meanwhile, a driver caught doing 125km/h in a 100km/h zone on Blackwood Road while on his way to the Dunkeld races about 9am on Saturday will lose his licence for three months.

Another driver, who blew 0.088 about 6pm on Saturday while on his way home from the races, had his vehicle impounded.

A Hamilton man, 22, who blew 0.176 about 1.45am on Saturday, has had his licence suspended and car impounded.

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