A BUS company last night apologised after a pensioner was ordered off a bus for carrying a 5ft fluorescent tube.

John Watson-Cresswell, 71, said he was "gobsmacked" when the driver of the Arriva bus left him stranded in the rain.

The pensioner, from Loftus, east Cleveland, carried the fluorescent tube onto the bus without question from the driver but after two stops was ordered off.

Former Army veteran Mr Watson-Cresswell travelled on an Arriva North-East bus from his sister-in-law's house in Redcar to the town centre carrying the tube to get a replacement.

He said: "I was carrying the old tube to help me get the right new one and showed my bus pass to the driver, who let me on the bus without a word. But after a couple of stops, he suddenly stopped the bus and told me to get off. I was gobsmacked.

"It wasn't at a bus stop. It was raining heavily and I got soaked."

Mr Watson-Crewswell, an arthritis sufferer, said he spent some time walking towards the town centre to find the correct replacement.

Then ironically, he caught the same number bus - a 63 - back to his sister-in-law's home carrying the new tube, without comment from a different driver.

He added: "If the driver had told me I could not get on the bus in the first place, I could have made alternative arrangements - a taxi or whatever."

John Fozzard, marketing manager for Arriva North-East, said: "We don't have a specific policy in relation to carrying light bulbs.

"But our policy does state that items are allowed to be carried at the drivers' discretion.

"If the light bulb was of a size that the driver felt could not be stowed safely for the journey, he's quite right to not allow that item on the bus.

"However, in this case, the driver did allow the passenger to board, then appears to have changed his mind.

"He should have been courteous to the passenger and informed him of the policy at the start of the journey.

"Once the passenger was on board, unless any other aspects changed, he should have allowed him to continue his journey.

"I would like to apologise to Mr Cresswell. We will refresh our staff in relation to these matters."