BUS shelters in Deane continue to be vandalised leaving increasing numbers of residents angry about crime in the area.

As reported this week in the BEN, police and transport bosses are growing increasingly concerned about the problem of vandalism and are urging the public to help stop the problem which annually costs thousands in repair bills.

In Bolton alone, 20 bus shelters were attacked leaving dangerous glass splinters strewn across pavements over the recent Bank Holiday weekend.

In a bid to crack down on the vandals, the public are being urged to contact the police when they see anyone attacking a shelter.

But residents in Deane - where the bus shelter problem is notorious - say they constantly give police information about vandals.

They now hope the latest public appeal will help to stop the problem.

Mr Barrie Gee, who lives in Willows Lane, said: "At long last it would be great to see something done about it. This area is a crime haven and I am worried to death to let my three children play out - which is wrong considering there is a lovely big park nearby where they can't go without adults.

"I have lived around here for around 18 months and I have lost count of the amount of times I've phoned the police and the number of times the bus shelters have been wrecked."

Mr Gee now hopes the publicity about the problem will help the police keep the vandals under control.

He added: "It would be lovely to see a bus shelter last a few weeks."

Bus shelters are maintained and repaired by the private company JC Deceaux, who were awarded the contract by the Greater Manchester Transport Executive.

The regional operations manager Eric Spink said the problem is very hard to tackle, but they have teamed up with Greater Manchester Police and Bolton Council in a bid to drive vandals away.

He said: "We are going into schools to raise awareness of vandalism, but success is difficult to quantify."

A police spokesman said: "We would urge the public not to ignore this problem, but to contact the police if they see people vandalising bus shelters."

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