A bus company has decided to permanently scrap one of its services after it was attacked by yobs.

Arriva temporarily stopped the 190 route from Dering Way, Gravesend, after a window was smashed last month.

Speaking at the time, the general manager for the Gillingham depot said it was broken while passengers were onboard.

They added: “We are thankful nobody was harmed during this but unfortunately now must act on this matter as this is not an isolated incident.

“Safety must be paramount to our staff and customers. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause but passenger and staff safety is something we take extremely seriously.”

The company said it would review the situation at the end of the school summer holidays and announced today (September 6) the service will be scrapped.

In a tweet, Arriva said: “Following a number of attacks on our buses, we have reached the decision that our current temporary suspension of service for Dering Way will become permanent.

“It is unfortunate that we have had to make this decision but the safety of our passengers and drivers must take priority.”

The route has a chequered history.

In 2016, more than 100 bus drivers signed a letter saying they refused to drive along Dering Way after they were pelted by catapults and shot at with air rifles.

As a result, the service was suspended for four months but returned in February 2017 after the operator, police and councillors worked together to tackle the issue.

Then in June 2019, the 190 bypassed Dering Way after 4pm after it was plagued by vandals throwing things at buses.

At the time, Arriva’s area managing director for Kent and Surrey, Oliver Monahan, said: “Obviously, we would like to still be able to serve the area but where there is insufficient demand to cover the full costs of operating the route, including the cost of repairing the spate of criminal damage our fleet has endured in recent months, we need to protect the rest of the network by ensuring that we tailor our services to the demand for them.”