Man captured on video ‘surfing’ public bus in Sydney

An incredibly dangerous act that unfolded in broad daylight has been captured on camera, sparking a warning from police.

Chilling footage has captured the dangerous moment a man climbed onto the roof of a public bus before it pulled away from a stop.

The daredevil was filmed by an onlooker stepping onto one of Sydney’s 370 buses, seemingly from a neighbouring roof, in broad daylight over the weekend.

Footage of the unsafe act, uploaded to TikTok with Bon Jovi’s song, Wanted Dead or Alive, was quick to draw criticism from locals.

Many couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

“God, that’s so stupid,” one man wrote in a comment, while another simply said, “what a d***head”.

“It’s terrifying. What about the wires or bridges?” one worried local wrote.

“He’ll be fine. No brain, no pain,” someone else said.

One man claimed to see the moment the risk-taker performed his “dismount”.

“I did see him do a ‘dismount’. While I was boarding at the next stop up the road. [He] jumped from atop the bus to the ground. I wondered how far he had come,” he wrote.

This dangerous scene was captured in Sydney over the weekend. Picture: TikTok

Transport for NSW confirmed it was the kind of behaviour currently being targeted by police.

“This incident is further evidence of the need for joint operations with NSW Police to crack down on this type of dangerous behaviour on the public transport network,” Transport for NSW Secretary Josh Murray told news.com.au.

“It is far from harmless fun, or content for a social media reel – it puts the safety of not only the person themselves, but passengers and staff, at serious risk.

“Don’t let this be the last video your family sees of you.”

Offences like the one shown in the video can carry fines of between $400 and $5500.

Addressing media on Monday, NSW Police revealed some offenders were engaging in the highly dangerous practice purely to gain views on videos posted to social media.

Acts including ‘buffer riding’ and ‘roof riding’ on train and light rail vehicles were targeted in the three-month long Operation Rampart.

Police Transport and Public Safety Command South West Commander Superintendent Mark Wall sent a strong message to those still participating in unsafe practices on public transport.

“The message is simple; don’t put your life at risk trying to impress your friends, or with the goal of getting ‘views’ on social media,” Superintendent Wall said.

The daredevil was smug about the dangerous act he executed. Picture: TikTok

He said significant resources had been poured into the operation in an effort to stamp out the high risk and dangerous behaviour.

Officers were given additional funded shifts to help patrol railway lines and target those engaging in ‘buffer riding’.

Uniformed officers were seen catching rule breakers in the act at some stations from late November and will be patrolling through to mid-February.

“People who hold onto the light rail while on a bike or scooter are duelling with danger,” Mr Murray said.

“Despite their name, light rail vehicles weigh a minimum of 40 tonnes when empty, so are anything but light if they make contact with a person, bike, scooter or skateboard.”

The worst case scenario included serious injury or death from falling or being electrocuted, Mr Murray said.

Officers have also had to respond to various assaults on commuters and acts of vandalism in and around stations across Sydney.

— With NCA NewsWire

Originally published as Man captured on video ‘surfing’ public bus in Sydney