A two year-old boy sparked a cross-border alert after deciding to take a bus trip on his own from Montgomery to Shrewsbury.

The incident happened on Monday morning and only became apparent when passengers left the bus at Shrewsbury with the little boy still on board.

A group of people got on the bus at Montgomery and the child, wearing only pyjamas and a nappy, got on at the same time.

Dyfed-Powys Police confirmed that two people had been arrested in relation to the incident and have launched a joint investigation with Powys County Council children’s services team.

“Dyfed-Powys Police can confirm that on Monday, a two-and-a-half-year-old child from the Montgomery area got onto a service bus together with other passengers,” said Inspector Jonathan Tatton.

“It was only when the bus reached its destination in Shrewsbury that it became apparent to the driver that the child was unaccompanied.

“The driver immediately contacted Shrewsbury Police which resulted in Dyfed-Powys Police making inquiries to locate the parents.

“Following the report two people have been arrested and remain on police bail pending further inquires which are being conducted jointly by Dyfed-Powys Police Public Protection Unit and Powys County Council children’s services team.

“While the circumstances are highly unusual, fortunately the child didn’t come to any harm and a thorough investigation is now under way to establish how this occurred,” he added.

A spokesman for West Mercia Police said: “The little boy was initially looked after by officers and staff at our town centre office in Shrewsbury.”

Nick Culliford, operations manager of Tanat Valley Motors, which operates the bus service, said it had been an “amazing incident”.

“It appears the child got on the bus at the Chirbury Road stop as a group of people were boarding. The driver was not aware of the child’s presence until the Shrewsbury stop,” he said.

“As the last person left the coach he pointed out that the child was being left behind only to discover that the little boy was unaccompanied,” he added.

“The driver did everything in the proper manner, taking the child to the Shrewsbury town centre police station. Nobody on board thought the child was on his own. It seems everyone thought he was with someone else.”

By Andrew Morris