Transports publics lausannois (TL) has given a child access to free, unlimited public transport after he was born on one of its buses. The child was delivered on bus Line 7, as the mother was on her way to the hospital.

Lausanne mother gives birth on local bus

Our story starts when Marina started to feel contractions at her home in Lausanne. The mother of two quickly called the hospital, but instead of rushing her to the maternity ward, they told her to wait for an hour and call back.

Despite being told to wait, Marina decided to “take the bus to get close to the clinic.” They then boarded a bus on Line 7, running through the heart of the capital of Vaud from Pully Val-Vert. “That probably shows that I wasn't quite right in the head anymore - otherwise we would have taken a taxi," she told 20 Minuten.

Little Benjamin born at Pully Rosiaz on bus Line 7

“I saw her arrive with a little belly, but honestly, I didn’t suspect anything,” noted Antonio, the driver of the TL bus. He only realised later that the pregnant lady’s belly was so small because Marina was already in the midst of giving birth. In fact, after only one stop and one contraction, little Benjamin came into the world.

"He cried straight away, his colour was good, and that reassured us all," said Michaël, the father of the child and a doctor. He praised the passengers and the driver, who helped them off the bus at Pully Rosiaz and called the emergency services to pick them up. "We had to wait for them to cut the cord, we didn't have our Swiss army knife," he joked.

Child given unlimited public transport across Lausanne

Speaking to 20 Minuten, a TL spokesperson said the birth is a first for Lausanne - the closest incident occurred in 2014, when a baby was born at the metro station of the university hospital. The last time a child was born on a Swiss bus was in 2010, when a little boy was born on a service in Biel / Bienne.

It seems that Benjamin's timing was fruitful too. The spokesperson confirmed that he will be given free public transport across the TL network until he turns 25.

Thumb image credit: Michael Derrer Fuchs / Shutterstock.com