I have to admit that I am wary about the introduction of the Arriva bus service. I spent some time living in the UK, and I can tell you that wherever you are in the world, no system is perfect and companies always promise more than they can deliver.

However, anything has to be better than the current service which is on offer. The drivers are rude, the buses are shoddy and not accessible to people with disabilities. Moreover, the standard of driving leaves a lot to be desired. But what I simply cannot understand is why someone saw it fit to smash an automated ticketing machine earlier this week. From newspaper reports, it seems that the machine was not even turned on and contained no money. What was the point? At least give the system a chance to work. This is simply a case of vandalism for vandalism’s sake. How can we ever move forward?

■ John Allen

St Julian’s