Route to Hel on bus 666 has been banned over Satanism fears
The end is nigh for a popular 666 bus route to Hel.
The bus route in Poland being taken off the road as its caused outrage amongst Christian conservatives, who are adamant that it signifies the Devil and could be considered Satanic.
Guess we can't say we're going on the highway to Hell anymore?
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Though, obviously, the city of Hel and the word 'hell' are not spelled in the same way, they do phonetically sound awfully similar in English.
The complaints caused local bus operator, PKS Gdynia, to announce that bus 666 will no longer be running.
Kind of.
Instead, they have flipped the last number to avoid causing further upset, meaning that the bus route will now be known as 669.
They said: "We are turning the last 6 upside down!"
The firm's designer, Marcin Szwaczyk, later told Trojmiasto.pl news website that the new number was 'less controversial'.
The change will be effective from June 24.
From next week, those looking for a one way ticket to Hel, or a ride to Hel and back (sorry, couldn't help it) will now have to keep their eyes peeled for the new number.
Thankfully, it's not too easy to forget.
Despite how its name sounds in English, Hel is actually surrounded by water.
It's a popular seaside resort in northern Poland, located on the tip of the Hel Peninsula. And, to be honest, it looks like a pretty nice place to live.
Trojmiasto.pl said the line changed its number to 666 in 2006 as a local joke, before attracting people from far and wide.
Apparently, some people even got on the bus just so they could say they had taken the 666 to Hel, according to Polish media.
Catholic publication, Fronda, has has been calling for the bus to be renamed for years, arguing that route 666 had Satanic overtones.
In the Bible, 666 is identified as the 'number of the beast' and is associated with Satan, the Anti-Christ, or just evil in general.
They also said that 'to present the reality of eternal damnation as amusing in any way is just plain stupidity'.
And Hel isn't the only place with that name either.
A Michigan town, also called Hell, offers people the chance to become 'Mayor of Hell' for the day and, in 2022, they welcomed the latest addition to their roster, Jinx the Cat.
Jinx has a huge social media following, with more than 700,000 followers on TikTok and 402,000 on Instagram, and her owner Mia wanted to do something special for her pet - by making her mayor.
She was made mayor on 24 April, but was later impeached at midnight.
Topics: Travel, World News
Harley Young