Bus passenger warned over smell

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UPPSALA, Sweden, Feb. 20 (UPI) -- Transportation officials in a Swedish city said they told a man he would no longer be able to ride city buses unless he improved his personal hygiene.

Bus drivers in Uppsala said they signed a petition addressed to officials at public transit operator UL after the man's foul stench caused other passengers to often ask to be let off before their stops to escape the odor. The drivers were sometimes forced to replace seat cushions due to a lingering smell, The Local.se reported Wednesday.

"Think of the worst odor you can imagine and then add 10 percent," bus driver Goran Frick told the Upsala Nya Tidningen newspaper. "The stench is awful and has gotten worse."

UL spokesman Sture Jonsson said officials received the petition and agreed something "had to be done."

Jonsson said officials visited the man's home and explained he would not be allowed to continue riding the bus unless he improved his hygiene.

Officials believe the man understood the message and the situation will be resolved, the spokesman said.

"That our hope, anyway," he said.