You only live once, an Instagram hashtag once said.
So did these two Kowloon Motor Bus (KMB) employees, who stole a double decker bus for an after-hours joyride in the early hours of Friday and sent police on a chase that ended in a university town around sunrise.
Prior to being discovered, the bus racked up impressive mileage, journeying through Sheung Shui, Yuen Long, Tuen Mun and Tai Wai, where it was eventually caught. The vehicle logged a whopping 80km, according to Apple Daily.
A bus driver who arrived at a bus terminal in Shui Chuen O, a residential area in Sha Tin, at around 4am noticed that his bus was missing. Suspecting that the vehicle had been stolen, the driver filed a police report.
Using GPS information, authorities were able to trace the whereabouts of the bus to the entrance of a housing estate in Tai Wai.
Police officers found the bus there, but when the driver in it realized the vehicle had been discovered, he drove off heading for a highway in the direction of Chinese University.
The chase ended at the university’s Chung Chi College, which is about 8km from where the bus was discovered.
The aggressive braking of the bus outside the college left a 30-meter long tyre mark on the ground, after which two men alighted the bus and ran. Police managed to catch and subdue the pair as they dashed towards the university.
Both men are understood to be employed as inspectors at KMB. Police confirmed that the two, surnamed Ng and Wong, are 19 and 20 years old respectively.
According to Apple Daily, the pair are believed to be “bus enthusiasts” who, due to their lack of driving experience, were not able to qualify as bus drivers but might have wanted a taste of being behind the wheel.
The two men have been arrested on charges including stealing a public transportation vehicle, dangerous driving and driving without third-party insurance, police confirmed with Coconuts.
Tai Wai, reports said, was thought to be their last stop before making it back to the bus terminal by daybreak. (So close!)
At least this cheeky ride around town ended without incident. Two years ago, a 17-year-old who watched driving tutorials on YouTube stole a bus from a terminus in Wong Tai Sin and drove it around 10km.
The online videos he perused apparently did not prepare him for Hong Kong’s narrow streets and tricky turns. He proceeded to ram the bus into a roundabout when attempting to navigate it, and immediately fled the scene.
