A bus company in Poland has agreed to change the number of the route going to the town of Hel, after years of complaints from religious groups who said it matched the number used in the Bible for Satan.

For years bus number 666 has been taking passengers to a pretty Polish seaside resort, popular with holidaymakers. The Hel peninsula in northern Poland is 22 miles long and is one of the Baltic coast's most beautiful and unspoilt parts.  Hel in Poland is known for its quiet beaches and forest trails, unlike its namesake, but Christians said the bus route number was 'Satanic' and stupid.

The Polish word for hell is 'piekło' and the bus number was seen by locals as a harmless joke. However, transport operator PKS Gdynia says it's decided to change it after being bombarded with complaints for almost 10 years. 

Spokesperson Marcin Szwaczyk said: "The management board buckled under the weight of letters and requests that were sent to us, maybe not in large numbers, but cyclically for many years with a request to change the line number."

Catholic publication Fronda wrote an article about the issue in 2018, saying: "Hell is the negation of humanity. It is eternal death and suffering. You can only laugh at this reality if you simply don't understand what it is."

The new 669 bus service is due to begin running on 24 June.