Elderly forced to stand at bus stop because TfL thought the seat caused yobbery

Sitting target: retired foster carer Joan Jagger and one of the bus stops

Transport bosses are under fire for removing a bus stop seat used by elderly and disabled Londoners travelling to hospital.

It was taken away to assess "whether it was a contributory factor to anti-social behaviour" in the area — after a single complaint was made.

But residents say that while unruly behaviour has been a problem in the past, it has been all but cleared up in the past 18 months.

Now passengers unable to stand for long periods are having to sit across the road and make a dash through traffic when their bus arrives.

Patients bound for University College London Hospital in Euston and St Pancras Hospital are even bringing their own chairs to the stop.

More than 200 residents and local businesses signed a petition demanding the return of the bench at the stop in Malden Road, Kentish Town.

The police and council said the removal of the bench had had little or no impact on loitering and Transport for London has now promised to replace it within two weeks.

Yasmin Allen, 50, a single mother campaigning for the reinstatement of seats, said: "Last month they took the seat away overnight and now old people struggle to stand there with their sticks or they have to sit in the bus shelter on the opposite side. It means they have to dash through the traffic when they see the bus coming."

She added: "It especially ridiculous because there is a clearly signed CCTV camera above the bus stop."

Anti-social behaviour in the area, including street drinking and low-level crime, led to the local neighbourhood sergeant Danny Hewitt pinpointing the hotspots.

A Camden police spokeswoman said: "The outcome of the research is that the bus stop might have contributed to anti-social behaviour."

The report was left with TfL but no action was taken until a month ago when officials decided to remove the seat. But over the past 18 months residents have commended the Safer Neighbourhoods team for their successful efforts in cleaning up the area.

A TfL spokesman said: "Earlier this year TfL received a complaint regarding anti-social behaviour at the Malden Road bus shelter which was alleged to have taken place over a two-year period. TfL removed seating to assess whether it was a contributory factor.

"TfL has now evaluated the effect of removing the seating and has taken a decision to reinstall it in the next two weeks.

"We will continue to work closely with the local authority and the Metropolitan Police Service who are primarily responsible for tackling anti-social behaviour in the area."

TRANSPORT BOSSES ATTACKED

Joan Jagger, 70, above, retired foster carer
"I'm furious. I use the buses all the time if I want to go to Camden or the West End. But I have arthritis and back problems and if I have to stand up for too long it's agony. The seats are essential for people like me. You can also put your shopping on them to save bending down. Only one person wanted the seats taken away because she said kids were congregating here but since the CCTV camera was put up there is no problem. We were never asked first, and we want them back straight away."

Olivia Leun, 36, who works in the Fortune Food café next to the bus stop

"Everyone's very angry about it. We're raising a petition to TfL to bring the seats back. They didn't consult anybody first, they just took them away. There's a lot of elderly people and pregnant women who need to sit down. We would like to let them sit in the shop but we can't for insurance reasons. As a community we need to sort this out. There used to be trouble here but not any more, now there's a camera right there. It doesn't make sense."

Divyang Joshi, 41, shopkeeper
"A lot of my customers are complaining. Older people find it difficult standing to wait for the bus. TfL haven't thought about the effects on passengers."

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