Motorists were today counting the cost after a stolen bus careered through the streets, leaving a mile-long trail of destruction.

The single-decker bus struck at least eight parked cars in Hove, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.

Police constables Rob Balwin and Marvin Lucas watched in disbelief as the bus smashed into a colleague's patrol car in Wilbury Villas.

Two BMWs and a Volvo were also hit after the Brighton and Hove Bus and Coach Company vehicle was stolen from the bus depot in Conway Street, Hove, on Saturday night.

The bus was driven along Newtown Road, Wilbury Avenue, Wilbury Villas, Old Shoreham Road, Burton Villas, Wilbury Crescent and Bigwood Avenue, where it came to a stop after hitting a tree.

PCs Baldwin and Lucas gave chase and arrested a suspect after smashing the door of the bus with their truncheons as the driver tried to reverse.

The drama started at 9.25pm when a depot supervisor spotted a man climbing into the cab of the No 2 bus, which was about to be cleaned. Workers at the garage were alerted but were unable to stop the bus, which was displaying a "Not in Service" sign.

In Wilbury Villas, a cul-de-sac, the bus drove over the pavement at the end, demolishing a bollard and railings, before turning east into the Old Shoreham Road.

In Burton Villas, it ripped off a Volvo estate's rear bumper, smashed into the front of a parked BMW and then another parked car.

Law student Nicholas Mann, 19, of Wilbury Crescent, said: "The bus was being pursued by a police car with a helicopter overhead. It turned right into Bigwood Avenue, where it crashed into a tree."

Fellow student Daniel Haddad, 18, of Bigwood Avenue, said: "We heard a crash and my aunt shouted, 'A bus has crashed into a tree'. Then we saw police arrest a man inside the bus and hold him on the ground. He was shouting a lot."

His aunt, Patricia Heath, 48, said: "We were watching Bruce Willis' Die Hard but the events outside were far more exciting."

Roger French, managing director of Brighton and Hove Buses, said: "Our supervisors alerted the police within seconds of the bus being taken."

Police believe more vehicles may have been damaged and are asking for witnesses to call 0845 6070999.

A 30-year-old Brighton man has been charged with aggravated vehicle taking. He was bailed to appear before Brighton and Hove magistrates.