The wheels on the bus...

Terrified passengers had a right bus strop when their oblivious driver motored on - after the wheels had fallen off his coach.

Driver Shi Shao, 48, told police in Shaoyang, Hunan province, southern China, that he thought he'd hit a pothole and was returning to his depot to have the suspension checked.

But his horrified passengers begged him to stop when they saw the bus's rear axle behind them in the road and could feel the floor of the vehicle turning red hot as it scraped along the road.

"The potholes around here are bad but nothing could be that bad," said one passenger.

Police - who say the stranded bus caused a three-hour tailback in rush hour traffic - explained: "The driver may now face charges of endangering public safety."