New Jersey bus driver beats passenger after spitting incident

A bus ride in New Jersey took a wild turn after the driver brutally beat a passenger… and now several videos of the incident are going viral.

In a video making the rounds on the Internet, the bus driver can be seen choking a man, threatening him with death and loudly reprimanding him for allegedly spitting on him during the journey.

The incident caused great fear among the passers-by on the bus. In a video, they can be heard shouting at the driver to stop his attack.

In another clip from the scene, the driver tells the other drivers to back up… before charging at his opponent. The driver barely had a chance to fight back… watch the video – he is desperately trying to protect himself, holding his hands around his head.

Director of Public Safety in Newark Fritz Fragé tells TMZ … that police responded to Broad and Lafayette Streets on Friday after receiving a call about a physical altercation.

We're told both the bus driver and the adult male passenger were arrested for the violent outburst… which was reportedly sparked by the passenger throwing his best words at the driver during a verbal exchange.

Both the bus driver and the passenger are currently facing charges of aggravated assault…the incident remains under investigation.