A woman who unleashed racist rants on an Asian student aboard a Sydney bus has been charged with using offensive language. Although no formal complaint was lodged either by the alleged victim or his family, police have identified and charged the 55-year-old woman after footage of the “disturbing” incident caused outrage online.

Earlier this month, a video posted on YouTube has generated overwhelming negative reactions from viewers. The over 3 1/2-minute footage shows a woman verbally abusing a male student on a bus at Burwood.

The unnamed female passenger was furious because the student and his friend stood by the aisle as they needed to protect the boxes with fragile content that they placed on the seats. She hurled racist expletives at them, claiming that they were blocking her view.

The woman seemed to target the student more than his friend since the student kept reasoning with her while his friend remained quiet.

“Sit the f*** down. Get a passport, bro. I was born here. I know what I’m doing,” she shouted.

She also told the kid to stick his finger up his mother’s privates when he appeared to have had enough of her abuse and shown her a finger.

Even when the driver stopped the bus and asked the students to sit down in an attempt to diffuse the situation, the woman still continued her tirade.

Little did she know, however, that she was being filmed by another passenger in the bus. The passenger told news.com.au that the racist rant lasted about 12 minutes, and that the majority of passengers on board were Asian school children. He said that he posted the video on YouTube to shame the woman and highlight the racism on public transport.

“I would say they were affected by what happened. The kid reacted like a kid, the best way he could to this person,” the passenger said, referring to the alleged victim.

Then on Wednesday, the NSW Police Force has issued a statement, saying that they have charged the woman with using offensive language in connection with the said incident.

They have identified and located the woman following an appeal for public assistance. She is now expected to appear at Burwood Local Court on August 6.

“This type of racial abuse, especially where young children are involved, is completely deplorable and will not be tolerated. With the communities support, we will put a stop to these unacceptable acts,” said Assisant Commissioner Max Mitchell, commander of the Police Transport Command.

The news that the woman was cited was lauded by online commenters.

One Facebook user named Eve Belle wrote, “She’s disgusting I hope she will wake up!!! She’s got no respect to anyone and absolutely to herself the way she talk (sic) to those kids. Racism is not accepted here.”

“Great job, NSW Police. So happy you found her. Sadly, all the punishment in the world is not going to change the way this ignorant person thinks but maybe she will learn to keep it to herself,” a Pauline Thomson wrote.

There were also comments from people who questioned why other people on the bus did not intervene or why didn’t the driver ask the woman to exit the bus.

Other Facebook users also questioned why she was charged with just offensive language when she could have been charged with more.

“As an Australian I am saddened. As a mother I am sickened and furious! Why is she only being charged with offensive language? This isn’t racial undertones, this is clearly discrimination & racial vilification (against minors). She should be the first person to be ‘successfully’ prosecuted under the Anti-Discrimination provision to curb this type of abhorrent behaviour,” Cyndi Sebastian Elysia Nhan wrote.

This isn’t the first and only time racial incidents in public transport have been reported.

In February, ABC News reporter Jeremy Fernandez was kicked off a bus in Sydney after a woman called him a black c*** and a paedophile in front of his two-year-old daughter. A French woman also endured racial abuse aboard a Melbourne bus in 2012, the footage of which was uploaded on YouTube.