POLICE TO RIDE NSW BUS ROUTES

[AussieMark]

Police to ride NSW bus routes

NSW police will tonight travel a western Sydney bus route after thugs hurled rocks at a bus, transport unions said today.

Terrified passengers hid on the floor of the bus which runs between Paramatta and Liverpool, fearing gunmen were opening fire on the vehicle, said a Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) spokesman.

Around six rocks were believed to have been thrown through the windscreen and side windows of the bus as it was travelling along Hoxton Road, Hoxton Park, at 9.15pm (AEDT) yesterday.

No-one was hurt in the attack but at an emergency meeting called this morning unions demanded Western Sydney Buses tighten security, or drivers would refuse to work the route.

As a result of today's talks at least two extra transit police will help protect the service, one of which will ride on board the bus.

A security patrol car which currently follows the bus through the Hoxton area will now trail it over a greater distance and bus officials are to speak with police about using police dogs to catch attackers.

NSW Bus and Tram division president Peter Jenkins said drivers had threatened to suspend the service from 4pm (AEDT) if a solution was not found.

"This will be a solution for the Hoxton area, but I just don't know how we are going to fix the problem of vandalism against buses across Sydney," he said.

[TexasStooge]

Nowadays in the Dallas area, we got transit police in some trains and buses after an incident a couple of weeks ago with a person hijacking the bus after being refused service, because gangsters were chasing after him. The hi-jacker who drove and crashed the bus was in critical condition.