AT 5.15pm on November 16, I was assaulted by a passenger as he was getting off the single deck Citybus I was driving outside the Milehouse depot.

I was punched in the face and sustained a cut to my nose, bruising and a bloody nose. As he walked away I was able to call 999 and slowly followed the man as he walked from Milehouse towards the Britannia pub. When a police patrol car arrived, the officers were directed to a doorway where my assailant was hiding and an arrest was made. He was taken into custody at Charles Cross police station and was interviewed later that night.

I gave a statement and details of passengers who were willing to offer statements as witnesses. CCTV was taken from the cameras on the bus. The next day I had photographs taken of my injuries to be used when the case came to court. On November 17 I had a phone call from the police to tell me that it had been decided not to proceed with a prosecution, but to issue the man with a caution.

To say I am amazed is an understatement. I feel this sends out the wrong signals to people who choose to assault bus drivers, or anyone else. It tells them that if they say they are sorry and want to apologise for what they did, they will get away with it.

In my opinion, this was a clear case of assault and the man should have been prosecuted to deter him and others from a similar course of action. I feel very let down.

I would like to again apologise to the passengers travelling on that service 16 for any delay which was caused, and thank them for their kind words of support as they got off my bus and transferred to a second bus to continue their journeys. Thanks also to those who offered their details as witnesses.

BRIAN PEPPITT

Plymouth