A WOMAN brutally assaulted a bus driver and attempted to wrest control of the vehicle’s steering wheel in an alarming incident in Henan province, China, last week.
According to Says, the episode was triggered when the bus driver advised the woman – who had flagged the bus down by the roadside – to wait at a designated bus stop in future.
Outraged at being told off, the woman began yelling at the driver, before resorting to physical violence.
The passenger, identified by her surname “Chen,” was caught by the bus’s closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera assaulting the driver on Wednesday, July 4.
The South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that Chen first threw a water bottle at the man, before kicking and hitting him.
She then attempted to grab the steering wheel as he was driving.
The driver was forced to slam on the brakes.
The woman continued to stand at the edge of the driver's seat, kicking and stamping on the driver, as he called the police on his mobile phone.
No one on the bus attempted to intervene.
Chen was later detained for endangering public safety, while the bus driver was sent to hospital for a check-up
The CCTV footage has since gone viral on Weibo, and drawn a huge backlash from Chinese netizens.
"Should prevent these people from taking the bus forever," one Weibo user commented.
Another said: "(She should) get strong punishment! It’s irresponsible for other people’s safety as well as hers.”
According to the SCMP, several netizens suggested that drivers should get protective gear, or that a door should be installed next to the driver’s seat to prevent passengers from grabbing the steering wheel.