Three men have been arrested after a bomb scare saw Scotland’s largest bus station and a university evacuated.
Police descended on Glasgow’s Buchanan Bus Station on Wednesday after the discovery of a ‘suspicious item’.
Amid intense emergency service activity, a high-tech remote controlled robot was seen being driven at the city centre station after a bomb disposal squad was sent to the scene.
Three men were arrested in connection with the incident, and were set to be questioned by detectives.
It is understood it was not being treated as a terror related incident and that the men were arrested in connection with the recovery of offensive weapons.
Police Scotland said officers were called to the bus station at around 1.10pm ‘following a report of a potential suspicious item’.
A spokesman, who urged the public to ‘avoid the area’ because of the police operation, added: ‘EOD (Explosive Ordinance Disposal) has been notified and inquires remain ongoing.’
Streets around the busy terminus were cordoned off and passengers told to leave immediately. Bus services in and out were suspended.
A bomb disposal robot was deployed at Buchanan Bus Station in Glasgow
Amid the shutdown, students at the nearby Glasgow Caledonian University were ordered out of classes and told to leave as a safety precaution.
Footage shared online showed hundreds of students streaming out of campus buildings, which is around 200 feet away, amid the scare.
In an email they were told: ‘Due to an ongoing incident in Buchanan Street Bus Station, which is contained, we’ve been requested to evacuate campus immediately as a precaution. Please take your belongings with you.
‘There is no access to Cowcaddens Road. Staff and students must leave via North Hanover Street, Dobbies Loan, or Milton Street.
‘We will provide further updates at the earliest opportunity.’
Amid the closures in the area Junction 16 on the M8 was shut, and passengers were told to board bus services at other places in the city.
Buchanan Bus Station is the main terminus for Glasgow and is Scotland’s largest.
More than 40,000 passengers pass through the station every day, and there are 1,700 journeys which depart daily.
Police cordoned off Buchanan Bus Station in Glasgow after a suspicious item was found
Buchanan Bus Station was awash with emergency services following the discovery of a suspicious package
A spokesman for SPT, who operates the station, said it was ‘closed to passengers while police deal with an emergency incident’.
He added: ‘There is no access to the station for passengers and no buses are entering or leaving the station.’
A Police Scotland spokesman said: ‘Three men have been arrested in connection with the incident at Buchanan Bus Station in Glasgow, which was reported around 1.10pm today, Thursday, November 20.
‘EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) are at the scene and enquiries remain ongoing.
‘Killermont Street remains closed to traffic and pedestrians with diversions in place. The public is advised to avoid the area.’
