Golden Tours bus crashes into souvenir stand on Spring Gardens off Trafalgar Square

An open-top Golden Tours sightseeing bus crashed into a stand selling tour tickets and souvenirs on Spring Gardens, just off Trafalgar Square, at around 12.30pm on Thursday 22 October.

The Metropolitan Police described it as a damage-only collision. The London Ambulance Service said it did not attend because no injuries were reported.

The bus was reportedly turning left at the junction by The Admiralty pub, on the corner of Spring Gardens, when it hit the stall.

Fire crews at the scene

London Fire Brigade said it was called at 12.32pm. Two fire engines and a Fire Rescue Unit from Euston, Paddington and Chelsea fire stations went to the scene. The brigade said firefighters were dealing with a road traffic collision on Spring Gardens in Charing Cross, in which one tourist bus had collided with street furniture.

Footage shared with UB1UB2 shows the front of the double-decker pressed against the remains of the stall. Its red and white "buy tickets here" signs are bent across the pavement, and clothing, soft toys, London-branded bags and other stock lie scattered over the cobbles. Police tape was put up around the scene, with firefighters and onlookers nearby.

A witness who works nearby reportedly said the bus knocked over a lamppost before hitting the stall and pushing it into a parked Land Rover. Police have not confirmed exactly what happened in the moments before the crash.

Cordon and traffic disruption

The area was cordoned off for nearly five hours while the bus was removed. Spring Gardens stayed closed for repairs to damaged street furniture, and traffic restrictions were reportedly in place on routes into Trafalgar Square. This caused congestion around one of central London's busiest junctions into the evening.

Spring Gardens is a short street running from the south-west corner of Trafalgar Square towards Admiralty Arch and The Mall. It is close to Charing Cross station and is used heavily by visitors, tour buses and the street stalls that sell sightseeing tickets and souvenirs.

Operator investigating

Golden Tours, which runs hop-on, hop-off sightseeing buses around central London, said it was investigating.

A Golden Tours spokesperson said: "We are aware of the incident involving one of our buses near Trafalgar Square and are currently investigating the circumstances surrounding what happened."

The company added that the wellbeing and safety of its passengers, staff and members of the public were always its highest priority. It said incidents of this nature were extremely rare and that it would be able to give more information once it had established the full facts.

The Metropolitan Police has not announced any arrests in connection with the collision. Anyone with information can contact the police on 101, or 999 in an emergency.