News that London’s bus service is to join a confidential whistleblowing scheme from January has been welcomed by safety campaigners and a member of the London Assembly.
Earlier this year Mayor Boris Johnson confirmed that Transport for London was in talks to expand the Confidential Incident Reporting & Analysis System (CIRAS) to the bus network, a move which would allow staff to register safety concerns.
The scheme is already available to Tube workers and safety campaigners have long called for the bus service to be brought within its scope to help cut the number of road collisions involving buses.
It’s now been confirmed that preparations are underway for the scheme to be extended to the capital’s bus service from January 2016.
Today’s news has been welcomed by safety campaigner Tom Kearney who was knocked down by a bus in Oxford Street in 2009.
Mr Kearney, who has long-campaigned for bus drivers and workers to have access to the scheme, expressed hope that his campaign’s success “might give other survivors (or their surviving families) some hope that it’s worth campaigning in this country and even the weakest voices can be heard.”
London Assembly member Darren Johnson has also welcomed today’s news, saying: “This is a common sense measure given the concern that bus drivers are being put under pressure to meet tight schedules on congested roads, at the expense of safety.
“Londoners needs a first class bus system in order to make our congested city function.
“I’m glad that pressure from myself and campaigners has overcome the initial reluctance of the Mayor and Transport for London. This is good for drivers, good for passengers and good for the public who want to share the roads safely.
