Stagecoach suspends evening services to area of Northampton after rocks thrown at buses twice in two days in 'deliberate' attacks
Evening bus services to an area of Northampton have been suspended temporarily, after rocks were thrown at two vehicles during “deliberate” attacks.
Stagecoach Midlands announced on Thursday October 30 that any services after 4.30pm in the Southfields area of Northampton will be will not run until the company feels it is safe to restore them. This will affect Route 5, which runs from the town centre to Southfields.
The move comes after two incidents in two days whereby rocks and kerbstones were thrown at the driver’s side of buses. The company says CCTV footage indicates the attacks were “deliberate and targeted”, so the suspension decision has been made to protect the safety of drivers and passengers.
The incidents happened on Monday October 27 and Tuesday October 28 in Barley Hill Road.
A spokesman for the bus company said: “Stagecoach Midlands can confirm that following incidents this week where two of our vehicles in Southfields have been vandalised, with rocks and kerbstones being thrown at the driver’s side of the vehicles. CCTV footage shows that these attacks were deliberate and targeted, posing a serious risk to the safety of our drivers and passengers.
“Both incidents have been reported to the police, and we are working closely with them as part of their ongoing investigation to identify the individual responsible.
“Given the nature of these incidents and the risks to our staff and customers, Stagecoach has taken the difficult decision to temporarily suspend all services to the Southfields area after 4.30pm. We will work the Police and other partners to restore services when we consider it safe to do so.
“We appreciate that this may cause inconvenience to some passengers, and we apologise for the disruption. However, the safety of our colleagues and customers must always come first.
“Stagecoach will continue to monitor the situation closely. Any further incidents of this nature will regrettably result in the suspension of services again until we can be confident it is safe to operate.”
Northamptonshire Police confirmed it has been notified of the incidents and has asked witnesses or anyone with information is asked to call the force on 101, quoting incident number: 25000633670.