PASSENGERS have described their horror as a bus careered down a residential street and wiped out an entire wall after the driver got out and left the handbrake off.

The terrifying crash happened shortly before 6pm this evening on Mannington Lane in Westlea, Swindon.

Passengers screamed as they braced for the impact after being left powerless to stop the runaway vehicle.

Tracey Godwin, who was a passenger on the bus, operated by Thamesdown, said: “It was awful, you had no control and couldn’t do anything.

“It just started to career down the road. There was a woman screaming, it was horrible.

“The next thing, bang. A massive impact.”

The bus had become stuck on the kerb at a bus stop further up the road and the driver was unable to move.

With the assistance of another passing Thamesdown driver, he got out and they tried to dislodge it.

“Our driver got out of the cab and they were both trying to lift it off the kerb with the engine still running,” said Tracey.

“Luckily most people got off the bus when it got stuck, it was a pretty full bus.

“I was still on there with two other passengers and a baby.

“They got it off the kerb and that’s when it started freewheeling down the road.

“It was horrible because there was just nothing you could do about it.”

The bus mounted the pavement and smashed through a garden fence, metres of brick wall and flattened a lamp post to the ground – all just yards from the adjacent house.

Although nobody was injured, passengers described being shaken up by what had happened.

17-year-old Sam Savory was walking home when he came round the corner and saw the destruction.

He said: “My first thought was whether there were any casualties, I asked the driver what happened and he said he forgot to put the handbrake on.

“Two minutes later and we could have been right there.”

Nearby residents heard the sound of the impact as the bus crashed through the wall.

A woman who lives opposite, but did not wish to be named, said: “We were in the flat and we heard a huge crash. We saw the lamppost come down and we ran to the window.

“Then we saw the driver wasn’t even on the bus.”

Passengers were initially told to stay on the bus even after it had gone through the wall.

Tracey added: “The bus driver stood there and said we should stay on the bus so he could reverse it.

“There was no way I was staying on there, I didn’t even get any assistance and was left to climb over the rubble myself to get out.

“I just cannot get my head round it, it could have ended up so much worse.”

Two supervisors from Thamesdown Transport arrived shortly after the incident and took details from passengers and the driver.

Peter Oliver, Commercial Director for Thamesdown, said: “Driver and passenger safety is always a priority.  Fortunately no one was injured as a result of this incident.

“A full investigation has been launched to ascertain exactly what happened on Thursday evening and following Thamesdown policy, the driver involved is not on the road until the investigation is concluded.

“Although we are still in the early stages of the investigation, it appears the bus was stationary at a bus stop and the driver was rectifying a small mechanical fault to the wheelchair ramp when the bus rolled forward and collided with the garden wall. 

"We believe the handbrake was not on at this point, which is a matter of great concern to us.

“The bus was taken out of service immediately and was driven back to the depot where it is currently being repaired.”