A London woman is accused of taking a stolen city bus for a joyride, causing $300,000 damage over the weekend.
The 45 minute ordeal began when a woman was able to get inside the secure London Transit garage at 450 Highbury Ave. North around 3:15 a.m. on Saturday. The woman damaged one bus while trying to back it out of the facility. She then hopped into a second bus and drove it through a side door out onto the street.
Police found the stolen bus heading through the downtown and began to follow it. The driver ran several red lights, hit a parked car on Adelaide Street and then struck a fence on Simcoe Street, police said. OPP were called after the bus left the city heading southbound on Highbury Avenue near Wilton Grove Road. Officers laid down a spike belt, but the bus continued on through Belmont. It then drove off the road and came to rest in a ditch around 4 a.m.
The driver of the bus was arrested without incident.
No one was hurt during the wild ride. Damage is estimated at $300,000.
A 45-year-old London woman is charged with ten offences including impaired operation of a vehicle, theft of a vehicle, break and enter, mischief over $5,000, dangerous operation of a vehicle, failure to stop after an accident, and operation while prohibited.
A London Transit spokesperson confirmed the woman was a former employee, but could not provide any other details about her employment history. The woman was scheduled to appear in London court on Monday.