UPDATE: Deputies Investigating Suspicious Package at Light Rail Station Near Great Mall

4:50 p.m. This article was updated. 

A Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority bus was evacuated this afternoon after a suspicious package was found at a transit hub next to the Great Mall in Milpitas.

Bus and light rail service is continuing, but a portion of the Great Mall/Main Light Rail Station at Great Mall Parkway and Main Street in Milpitas has been shut down, VTA spokeswoman Jennie Loft said.

The Santa Clara County sheriff's bomb team is investigating the suspicious package, which was reported at about 3 p.m., sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Jose Cardoza said.

The package was on top of a bench at the station, Cardoza said. People on a bus in the immediate area were ordered to get off, he said.

Light-rail trains operate on elevated tracks at the station, and light-rail service has not been interrupted.

The light rail station also serves as a stop for 10 bus lines, according to the VTA's website. Buses have been rerouted to the street at Great Mall Parkway, Loft said.

According to NBC Bay Area, bus riders are being redirected to a temporary stop near the Mall. Transit employees will guide riders to the stop.

--Bay City News Service and Rachel Stern