Tourists heading to the picturesque coastal town of Hel in Poland will no longer be allowed to travel on the route 666 bus, after religious groups dismissed the reference to the number of the beast, seen by some as a “joke”. harmless”, was “satanic stupidity”.
The 35 km long Hel peninsula in the north of the country is considered one of the most beautiful and unspoilt parts of the Baltic coast. Its remote beaches and forest trails, ideal for enjoying and taking pictures, move away from the image of an abyss of eternal damnation evoked by its name; since in the minds of English speakers hell, written with two L’s, but pronounced the same, means “hell” in English.
Locals have always found the name humorous, and the reference to the number of the beast on the bus route was seen by many as a “harmless joke”. However, the transport company PKS Gdynia has decided to change the route number to 669 after receiving complaints from Christian groups and individuals for almost 10 years.
“The board of directors gave in to the weight of the letters and requests that were sent to us, perhaps not in large numbers, but cyclically for many years, with the request to change the number of the line,” spokesman Marcin Szwaczyk told the Reuters agency.
In 2018, the Catholic publication Fronda called the use of the number 666 “satanic stupidity”. The group stated in an article: “Hell is the denial 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 bus service, numbered 669, will start operating on June 24. However, spokesman Szwaczyk mentioned that Route 666 could return if passengers demand it. “If the response is big and strong enough to restore the 666 line, I think we will listen to our passengers and change this number,” he said.
The association between the number 666 and the word “hell” may not be apparent to some Poles, since the word in Polish is “pieklo”. However, several users on social networks in the country have condemned this change, which the bus company plans to implement on June 24. Some have pointed out that Route 666 was an internationally known landmark and that it was part of the tourist attraction. Others have expressed their disagreement with the decision, considering it an example of how not to do marketing.
The decision to change the number of the bus route to Hel in Poland, from 666 to 669, comes after years of objections from religious groups over the association with the “number of the beast.”
