Two Rome bus drivers fired on first day for drug use.

Rome public transport company ATAC has fired a total of 17 bus drivers from January 2018 up to today for failing drug tests while on duty, according to daily newspaper Il Messaggero.

Two of those fired tested positive for drugs on their first day of work - according to Il Messaggero - one of whom had just been "pardoned" by the company after he forgot to disclose that he had a criminal record.

Each year inspectors from the municipal transport company carry out random anti-doping tests on 3,000 drivers while on duty, Il Messaggero reports.

The 17 ATAC employees were reportedly fired after traces of drugs ranging from cannabis to cocaine were detected in their systems.