Images released of damage to 620 and 621 services

First West Yorkshire announced on Twitter at 1.08pm today that its 620 and 621 services would avoid the Bierley Estate and Bierley Lane after a bus was attacked by vandals.

This diversion was still in place as of 5.38pm on Friday.

A window on one of the buses was smashed by yobs and First Bradford has now released pictures of the damage.

Vandals damaged a Bradford bus this afternoon (Image: First Bradford)

They show a large side window which is completely broken, as well as an inside view of the vehicle.

The interior image shows shards of glass littered across the bus floor, where the window was smashed.

Smashed glass all over the floor of the bus (Image: First Bradford)

A spokesperson for First Bradford said: “The safety of our staff and customers is our highest priority and we are working closely with the police to investigate the incidents including the use of on board CCTV footage to help identify the individuals involved.

“Every time we have to divert buses or shorten a route it is disrupting the lives of local people in the communities we serve.  

“Acts of vandalism cause significant interference to timetable arrangements. We aim to source a replacement bus as quickly as possible in order to minimise disruption to our customers, but when vandalism occurs while the bus is in service, then it does inevitably and regrettably result in at least part of that scheduled journey being cancelled.

"Repairing a bus means it can be missing from service the following day too.”  

The Telegraph & Argus has contacted West Yorkshire Police for comment but is yet to receive a reply.

The vandals smashed a window on a bus (Image: First Bradford)

The incident is the latest in a string of vandalism attacks that have affected bus operations in Bradford.

In the summer, a spate of attacks took place on the Ravenscliffe estate, prompting an urgent meetings between officials.

In November, buses serving Holme Wood were targeted in a similar way, prompting First to divert services away from the estate for a period of time.

Police have made attempts to crack down on the issue, including operating so-called 'Trojan buses' in hotspot areas, with undercover police officers riding on these buses in a bid to catch offenders in the act.