The increase “appears to be a result of a combination of increased reporting by operators and a rise in thermal incidents”, the report found. The incidents affected 865 passengers, with a school bus holding 70 passengers the busiest to be stopped due to overheating or fire. There were no injuries reported in 2017 and fewer buses caught fire (21) than in 2016 when 37 burst into flames. The five buses that were destroyed by fire in 2017 were built between 1995 and 2004. Two buses suffered major damage, 20 sustained minor damage, 60 were “smoke damaged”, and three reported smoke but were not damaged.

Engine bay fire suppression systems (EBFS) were fitted to all NSW public transport buses by September 2017, but only 63 of the 90 buses that caught fire or overheated in 2017 had an EBFS system fitted. There were "significant disruptions" to the transport network as a result of some fires, investigators found, but in 43 per cent of cases the bus involved was not carrying passengers. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Bus drivers were the first to either see or smell smoke or flames in 73 per cent of the mishaps, while a passing motorist raised the alarm in five per cent of cases, pedestrians informed the driver three per cent of the time and passengers told the driver in two per cent of cases. Fire suppression systems were effective in several fires, including one that started in the engine bay of a gas-powered bus, with all passengers evacuated safely.