A new driverless vehicle was damaged days before it was due to be launched at the Inverness University of the Highlands and Islands campus.
The Auto Shuttle electric vehicle bus was damaged overnight on Friday into Saturday morning.
It is believed that damage was caused to the shuttle bus driving system and the fencing surrounding the state-of-the-art vehicle.
The new system had been expected to run a test this week, on Tuesday.
Glasgow University is the lead project manager of the Auto Shuttle bus scheme, working closely with HiTrans.
The Auto-Shuttle is a ten-seat passenger vehicle with the ability to operate as a fully automated bus, and can also be used as a manual-driven conventional electric vehicle shuttle.
A Police spokesperson confirmed that officers have launched an investigation into damage to the vehicle.
The spokesperson said: “We have received a report and inquiries are at an early stage.”
A spokeswoman for HiTrans said: “HiTrans is very disappointed that this vandalism has occurred.
“This has been reported to the police and we hope to see this incident investigated and the person responsible held to account for their crime.
“Engineers from Aurrigo have assessed the damage and hope to be able to repair the vehicle to allow the trial to commence on Tuesday.’
We have asked the UHI and HiTrans to comment.
Our reporters are working to bring you the latest updates on this developing story.
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