The Premier this afternoon described industrial action by bus drivers as “insensitive” and “un-Bermudian”.

This morning buses ground to a halt after drivers took action over safety concerns following Hurricane Igor.

The Ministry of Tourism and Transport said that as a result of industrial action all bus services have been suspended. It is expected they will resume tomorrow morning.

"Discussions are currently in progress. The Ministry apologies for any inconvenience this may cause," said a spokesperson.

A call received by The Royal Gazette suggested drivers were concerned about road conditions following the hurricane. It is understood one bus crashed and there were several near misses.

This afternoon a statement from the Premier said: "The Ministry of Tourism and Transport has taken an aggressive leadership role in getting Bermuda up and moving again in the aftermath of Hurricane Igor.

“In an effort to provide the public with service, while protecting the safety of the operators, a management decision was taken yesterday to stagger the resumption of bus service this morning on routes that were identified as safe.

“Works and Engineering and Belco agreed last night to address areas of concern contained in a route inspection report submitted by Department of Public Transportation representatives. It was determined that partial service would commence at 6 a.m. with full service available by noon today.

“This approach served to get our people moving again while protecting the safety of our operators. Despite this rational and reasoned approach, operators decided to down tools and cease providing service to the community.

“In light of the anxiety that Bermudians have experienced over the past three days with Hurricane Igor, this work stoppage over a disagreement with regard to the start time for the resumption of service, is amazingly insensitive.

“Just as most Bermudians are in the thick of recovery this insensitive gesture is very un-Bermudian, lacks compassion and defies rational explanation."

* See the full story in tomorrow's Royal Gazette.