Public bus catches fire on Highway 17 near San Jose

Richard Masoner, who was on another bus, snapped photos of a bus that had caught fire on Highway 17 on Monday morning. Richard Masoner, who was on another bus, snapped photos of a bus that had caught fire on Highway 17 on Monday morning. Photo: Richard Masoner / Courtesy Photo: Richard Masoner / Courtesy Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Public bus catches fire on Highway 17 near San Jose 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

A public transit bus carrying commuters Monday morning caught fire while driving north on Highway 17 in Campbell, officials said.

No one was injured in the fire on the Highway 17 Express bus, reported shortly after 7:30 a.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.

The driver spotted flames spouting from the right rear of the bus and immediately pulled over, with all passengers quickly evacuating, said Officer Ross Lee, a CHP spokesman. Another bus came to pick up the riders.

About a quarter of the bus burned, and the cabin filled with smoke, though no one was inside at that point, Lee said. The cause of the fire wasn’t immediately clear.

Two lanes of the highway were closed as crews put out the fire, backing up traffic through the area.

The northbound Highway 17 Express bus route carries passengers from Santa Cruz to San Jose.

Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov