Buses and drivers attacked during Halloween vandalism

At least two buses in Bristol and one in Wales were vandalised last night, with at least two incidents involving large objects being thrown directly at the driver. At present, no injuries have been reported.

Last night, a handful of services were cancelled following fears more attacks could take place, and today a number of buses have been taken out of action while thousands of pounds of repairs are carried out.

Rob Pymm, First Wales and West’s Commercial Director, said: “It is utterly disgraceful that our drivers and customers have faced this despicable behaviour from a minority of mindless vandals.

“The images we have seen of our buses from last night speak for themselves; who in their right mind would consider throwing a heavy object at a moving bus, let alone towards the driver, endangering them and everyone on board.

“Sadly, we had no option but to pull some routes last night, and today our passengers continue to be inconvenienced while the buses are off the road being repaired. All we can do is apologise and reassure the public that we will resume a normal service as soon as possible.”

In Bristol, both attacks took place on the company’s new service 70 cross-city route (Hengrove to the University of the West of England) near Melvin Square, and in Wales the service 111 (Llanelli to Swansea) was attacked in the Castle Street Loughor area near Swansea.

In another incident in Wales, the service 6 (Port Tennant to Swansea) route was disrupted when a member of the public dressed in a Halloween costume stood in front of a moving bus blocking the route.

Rob Pymm added: “We have reported the incidents to the police and we are reviewing our on-board CCTV, and we will do all we can with local communities and the police to help catch those responsible. We’re committed to protecting our drivers and customers, even if that means stopping services for safety reasons.”

Passengers are encouraged to check the First Bus app for the latest service updates.