A YOUNG mum claims she waited four hours in the cold for a low-level bus after she was told by drivers they couldn't take her baby son's pram.

Claire Mundy was taking her six-week-old son Daniel to the Southern General Hospital for a check-up.

But a string of drivers on the 89 service from Rutherglen left the mum standing at the bus stop because they said they couldn't take her pram.

Claire said: "Each bus that came wasn't a low-level so the drivers wouldn't let me take Daniel's buggy on. They kept just saying to wait for the next one.

"I'm on income support and I have to really watch my money so I couldn't afford a taxi. I kept hoping that a suitable bus would come along. It was freezing cold and I started to feel a bit desperate as the time wore on."

Claire, from the Gorbals, waited in the rain for four hours with her baby son before being forced to take a black cab to the hospital - costing her £12.

The journey back proved no easier and in the end the new mum took another cab to her parents' house nearby, pushing the price of her journey up to almost £20.

Today, after being contacted by the Evening Times, bus bosses offered to give the mum back her taxi fare and launched an investigation into why no low-floor buses came along for four hours.

The 19-year-old says when she phoned First Glasgow to ask what its policy was for helping mums and dads with young children she was told to "save up" for taxis.

Claire added: "I wasn't looking for compensation when I called the bus firm, I just wanted an apology and an explanation.

"They told me that if I want to travel with the pram then I should save up to pay for taxis. I was so angry and appalled."

A First spokesman said: "Around two-thirds of our fleet are low-level accessible buses but of course that leaves a third that are not. It seems in this case the young woman has been unfortunate."

First Glasgow managing director Mark Savelli added: "I am sorry to hear that Claire was inconvenienced in this way.

"We'll also carry out a full investigation. We carry a lot of prams and buggies every day and normal policy on low-floor buses is to accommodate two normal size buggies or one buggy and one wheelchair.

"Obviously it is not possible to get a pram on a bus that is not a low-floor model and there are still some of these in service."

The Evening Times highlighted the problems pram and wheelchair users face getting on to buses during our Get Glasgow Moving campaign last year.