A bus company has halted some of its Lanarkshire services after repeated "mindless vandalism" to its vehicles.
McGill's has announced its 165 evening service will no longer stop in the Springhall area of Rutherglen after yobs smashed bus windows by throwing bricks and stones at buses on three different occasions, Lanarkshire Live reports.
Amid safety concerns for drivers and passengers, transport bosses decided the service will no longer run through Cruachan Road, near Springhall Community Centre.
The service, operated on behalf of SPT, will now be diverted through the Cathkin bypass / East Kilbride Road, between Cullins Road and Western Road.
READ MORE: Scotrail to end temporary Omicron timetable but won't go back to pre-pandemic service levels
However, this means some residents could be completely cut off from the service.
A concerned local told Lanarkshire Live: "It's getting really bad in Springhall at the moment.
"It's not a surprise this has happened. The 65 daytime service is still running, but I've heard there's been a couple of incidents happening there too.
"It's people who have to use public transport and don't have any other options that'll suffer the most."
Rutherglen South councillor Robert Brown hopes the service will be restored soon.
He said: "These incidents are deplorable.
"It is simply not acceptable that bus drivers and passengers alike should be put in fear like this by the stupid actions of a small number of reckless individuals.
"Local residents in Springhall - particularly older people - will suffer too by the withdrawal of the 165 bus service from Cruachan Road.
"I am grateful to the police and council authorities for their support in tackling this. With public support, we can end this problem quickly and allow the bus service to be restored."
READ MORE: Section of busy road near Glasgow to close overnight for two weeks for 'investigation' works
Rutherglen MSP Clare Haughey called the repeated vandalism of buses "utterly reckless" and raised fears for the area's most vulnerable residents.
She added: "The selfish vandals have shown no thought for the safety of drivers and passengers.
"They have no regard for the many people in Springhall reliant on the 165 service who are now affected by the understandable decision halt the service.
"Councillor Carol Nugent and I have written to the local police to see what actions they are taking to tackle such behaviour, and they have our full support in doing so."
SPT said it takes the safety of all bus passengers and drivers "very seriously" and that "mindless vandalism" to buses will not be tolerated.
An SPT spokesperson said: "As we have previously, where there is dangerous behaviour we will suspend services for the safety of all of those travelling.
"It is always unfortunate when we are forced to do this, as we know it has a major impact on some of our most vulnerable and disadvantaged communities.
"We are working closely with local councillors and with Police Scotland to identify those responsible for this totally unacceptable behaviour."
A Police Scotland spokesperson confirmed officers were "aware of anti-social behaviour" affecting the bus service in recent weeks.
She told Lanarkshire Live: "We are working with the operators to address the issues and identify anyone committing an offence.
"Such behaviour is irresponsible and we would encourage anyone involved to consider the possible consequences of their actions.
"Anyone with information about the incidents should call police at Rutherglen via telephone number 101."
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel