Ruislip & Eastcote & Northwood Gazette
Concern bus service cuts pose a risk to disabled passengers
PROPOSED cuts to bus services in London will put disabled and vulnerable passengers at risk, a leading transport charity has warned.
It comes as a bus service review dictated by the government as part a Transport for London (TfL) funding bailout is expected to see services slashed imminently.
Although TfL has received £5 billion in emergency pandemic funding from the government to keep it going, it still has a £1.9 billion funding gap and its latest bailout only takes the transport authority through until June 24.
Mayor Sadiq Khan said 18 percent of buses (nearly one in five) would be removed from the TfL network if the network does not secure long-term investment from ministers.
The scenario is being referred to as ‘managed decline’.
On Tuesday May 24, Katie Pennick, campaigns lead at the Transport for All group, told the London Assembly’s transport committee she was “really concerned” about the impact that cuts and reductions on bus services would have on disabled passengers.
She said: “Any significant reductions could lead to more crowded services, both on the vehicle and the bus stops.
“That means an increased likelihood of that the one priority space per vehicle is already occupied, either legitimately by a disabled passenger or by a passenger with luggage or buggies – putting the disabled passenger into a position of conflict.”
She warned of an added risk to blind and visually impaired people and those who are less steady on their feet if bus cuts lead to overcrowding, while chronically ill people and those who are immunocompromised could also be deterred from using bus services due to the inability to maintain social distancing.
Ms Pennick added while ablebodied passengers often have a choice of routes, the lack of step free access at most Tube stations means buses are often the only option for disabled people in London.
She explained: “For disabled people there’s often only one route from A-B.
“Just 25 percent of mainline rail platforms have step free access. In London about 91 out of 271 Tube stations have step free access – so buses are often the only step free route available
“Any reduction in the service is going to have a disproportionate impact on disabled passengers.”
She added that cuts to services resulting in an increased averaged journey time will hit disabled people the hardest - both on the vehicle and the wait at the bus stop.
“Many disabled people can’t wait at a bus stop for 10 minutes.
When it becomes too long it can become an insurmountable barrier to leaving the house,” she said.
The warning of cuts comes at the exact same time that London celebrates the opening of its newest mode of transport, the Elizabeth line. The London Assembly Transport Committee has today started a two-part investigation into TfL’s 675 route-strong bus network.
It aims to to better understand TfL’s Bus Action Plan, its intended impact and how it will be delivered.
“That means an increased likelihood of that the one priority space per vehicle is already occupied, either legitimately by a disabled passenger or by a passenger with luggage or buggies – putting the disabled passenger into a position of conflict.”
She warned of an added risk to blind and visually impaired people and those who are less steady on their feet if bus cuts lead to overcrowding, while chronically ill people and those who are immunocompromised could also be deterred from using bus services due to the inability to maintain social distancing.
For disabled people, there’s often only one route from A-B... Any reduction in the service is going to have a disproportionate impact on disabled passengers.
Katie Pennick, Transport for All