A BUS company has condemned the "astonishingly stupid" actions of a person who was spotted 'surfing' on the back of a bus in Bournemouth.

A picture of the incident has been circulating on social media since Sunday (Jan 17) with one tweeter, Ryan, commenting: “Bournemouth is where the cool chavs don’t just sit at the back of the bus, they stand on the back of a bus”.

A Kinson resident, who did not wish to be named, said he took the picture in Poole Lane at its junction with Wimborne Road and Home Road. A person was clinging onto the back of a 5a bus operated by Yellow Buses.

The picture has already been 'liked' by more than 1,200 Facebook users and shared by almost 800 people so far.

Jenni Wilkinson, head of marketing for Yellow Buses, criticised the behaviour, adding "it is incredibly dangerous and could easily be fatal."
She continued: “It is also astonishingly stupid, not to mention illegal. When this came to our attention, we informed the police who are monitoring the situation.

“We would urge anyone who sees such anti-social and dangerous behaviour to call us and alert the police.
“It is not only putting the individual at great danger but other road users and pedestrians as well.” 

Bournemouth-based charity LV Streetwise, which runs an interactive safety centre in Elliott Road, said incidents such as this highlighted the importance of safety education.

Andrew Laws, centre manager for the charity, said: "Here at LV Streetwise, we work with young people every day to help them develop the skills needed to assess risk and mitigate danger. By educating youngsters, we aim to minimise actions such as these which could so easily lead to accidents and injuries." 

He added: "This is the first time that I've seen an image such as this and it’s certainly the first time I’ve heard of anything like this happening locally." 

A spokesperson for Dorset Police said the behaviour put both the individual and other road users at risk.

"It should be obvious that riding on the outside of a moving bus or other motor vehicle is an incredibly dangerous thing to do. Not only is there a clear risk to the individual if they were to fall off, but also to other road users as well," they said.