Glasgow bus operator First this week was forced to divert evening services away from the Castlemilk area, following a spate of vandalism attacks on Tuesday and Wednesday nights resulting in driver injury and damage to buses.
During the course of two nights, nine bus windows were smashed and a driver was injured during incidents in the Castlemilk area. As a result, services were unable to serve the area on these nights and should repeated incidents occur, First will continue to divert evening services away until the problem is resolved. This will be reviewed daily, however due to police co-operation and additional officers being allocated to the area, management at First are hopeful that this won’t be necessary.
Alan Pert, Security Manager at First in Glasgow said: "We are disgusted by the foolish and anti-social behaviour of the youths causing these problems and would urge them to think seriously about the consequences of their actions. It is unfortunate that we were forced to divert services away from Castlemilk on Tuesday and Wednesday night, however the safety of our passengers and driving staff remains paramount. The situation will be reviewed on a daily basis and if the problem persists we will be left with no other option. That said, I am pleased to say that we now have the commitment of the Police and by working together I am confident that we can minimise disruption for the wider travelling public."
Councillor Coleman, Deputy Leader of Glasgow City Council said: "Glasgow City Council is very concerned that First may have to divert evening services away from Castlemilk should the problem persist. The Council will be having talks with their officers in Community Safety Partnership to see what assistance we can offer First to try and help. It is unacceptable that a large part of Glasgow is without public transport due to unaddressed criminal behaviour and we hope the Police will treat this issue with the urgency it deserves."
Chief Insp Michelle Martin at Strathclyde Police’s G Division said: "We are aware of incidents which have taken place in the area and are working with First to address these. Extra resources have been deployed in the area and we are investigating all reported incidents. We would urge members of the local community who have information regarding these incidents to come forward to the Police and contact Aikenhead Road Police office on 0141 532 4900, or alternatively contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111."
