After Transport for London announced a new Bus Safety Standard to be applied to new buses, Caroline Pidgeon stressed the need for faster action by TfL and bus operators to ensure all buses are safe for all Londoners.
“We welcome TfL’s announcement of a new Bus Safety Standard in a bid to make Londoners’ journeys on buses safer. However, these measures simply do not go far enough.
“These proposals TfL have put forward are not only a year late but they only apply to new buses. This means the vast majority of London’s bus fleet will still be on the road and will not be up to the Bus Safety Standard.
“TfL’s own data shows there is a 13% increase in the number of pedestrians being hit by a bus and an 11% increase on those being injured while aboard a bus. All this is on the backdrop of falling numbers of passengers using buses, so these statistics are alarming. There is clearly a pressing need for action right now beyond technological enhancement in the future.
“TfL should set safety targets for bus operators. We suggest the best way to do this is to integrate safety targets in the contract performance target structure as soon as possible.
“Nothing is more important than keeping Londoners safe in this great city of ours especially when we are using public transport. But TfL must prevent this from being a lottery. All passengers at all times should be assured their bus is safe enough to get on - not just the ones who are lucky enough to get on a new one”.