Delay 'frustration' as buses withdrawn after fire

"Frustrated" bus passengers say they're allowing an extra 90 minutes to complete their journeys amid delays and cancellations.

People in Crawley, West Sussex, told BBC Radio Sussex they had faced significant problems after a hydrogen bus fire led to Metrobus removing 42 buses from service.

Metrobus said a number of buses were withdrawn due to safety concerns and no date has been set for them to re-enter into service.

Rupert Cox, interim managing director at Metrobus, said: "We are doing everything we can to maintain services across the whole network, with service in part being provided by buses loaned from other bus operators across the UK, including fellow Go-Ahead companies."

Dorota Sipos said she left up to 90 minutes early to complete her journey on time, when her journey previously took 40 minutes.

"Obviously working in the week it does affect people quite a lot," she said.

"It's just ridiculous, a little bit, because you're paying for the service and not getting the service."

Steve Meehan said he was waiting for a third bus after the first two were cancelled.

He said the hydrogen buses being removed from the fleet cuts "quite a lot" of services.

"[Today] there is about five or six that are cut," he said.

"You've got to leave far more longer but with the tracker you can see whether they're coming or not.

"There should be one here now, but I don't think it's coming."

Cox added: "We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience and strongly recommend checking the Metrobus app or website for the latest service information.

"We thank our passengers for their understanding and patience as we work to restore a full service as quickly as possible."

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