A TERRIFYING winter ambush on a bus in Wordsley could jeopardise the future of services in the area.

Yobs smashed the windscreen and door of a Hansons number 226 single decker by throwing large ice balls after stepping in front to slow it down.

Three passengers were on board during the incident in Bells Lane, which left driver Gary Withers shocked and Lye-based Hansons facing a repair bill of more than £1,000.

Gary, aged 54, said: “They bombarded me with snowballs from the side and I pulled to a stop, two of them ran in front of me and threw ice the size of a football at the screen, two more threw ice which broke the passenger doors.

“It was a nightmare, it all happened so quickly, it has got to be the worst thing that has happened to me in 20 years driving buses.

“As I went down the road I could not see them, there were around 12 of them and they came out of nowhere, it was terrifying.

“I got the bus and passengers away as quickly as I could.”

A similar attack on the same road, on the same day, raised concerns a gang is launching co-ordinated attacks on buses which could result in serious injuries to staff and passengers.

Fellow bus driver Patrick Baker, aged 50, added: “You’re a target, they put bricks in snowballs sometimes and contact each other using mobile phones.

“When you get up Cot Lane they are waiting with massive snowballs.”

Bus company boss, Margaret Hanson, said: “For a while busses were diverted to avoid the dangerous situation posed by these anti-social thugs.

“They are creating a no go area, it is jeopardising routes if we can’t guarantee the safety of people on buses.

“The buses were also diverted the following day as a similar situation developed, while we do not want to inconvenience passengers, our main concern is safety.”

Sergeant Julie Holmes, from Kingswinford police, said: “We would like to reassure people, we have increased patrols in the area and will deal in a robust manner with any anti-social behaviour that endangers anybody.”

Anyone with information about the attack, which took place at 6.05pm on Wednesday January 6, should contact police on 0845 113 5000.