As a result of the error hundreds of pass holders are being forced to rely on bus and Tube staff goodwill to let them travel without additional payment.
In a statement, the council said: “This is obviously deeply regrettable and we would like to apologise sincerely to all those who have been inconvenienced.
“We are now taking urgent action to put matters right. We have begun immediate steps to make sure that everyone eligible to use a pass who is affected is issued with new a pass as quickly as possible.
“Unfortunately, the existing passes will need to be replaced with new ones and we are arranging to have these sent out as quickly as possible and we hope this process will be completed within the next few days.”
Wandsworth has also promised to reimburse anyone who has to pay for their journey as a result of the technical hitch.
Despite the disruption and concern to those affected, Transport for London initially failed to issue guidance to staff and drivers that the cards should be accepted as normal.
However the Mayor’s transport agency u-turned following the intervention of local London Assembly Member Richard Tracey.
A TfL spokesperson says “messages have now been sent out to all staff about the problem,” meaning affected pass holders should now be able to travel as normal.
Bernadette Keeffe says
My son and I found our passes deactivated on Saturday January 10th. My son was mid journey to first day to saturday college. The bus driver would not allow him to travel and being autistic my son could not negotiate with him. He phoned me in distress, had to walk the rest of way alone and was over half hour late. I couldn’t get to him because my pass was also deactivated. Since then I’ve spoken to several people inc Concessionary Travel (5 people in a two hour call) inc Manager last Monday – the first day I could call due to there being no emergency travel service at weekends. Freedom Pass helpline couldn’t help.
The information I was given by Wandsworth Council last Monday clearly indicates this was not a database error. It was a deliberate decision. Wandsworth passed the buck to London Councils so I spoke to Nick Lester who gave me assurances that they did not instruct Wandsworth to deactivate. I also spoke to the freedom pass helpline again who had the database in front of them and were able to give me info re who deactivated my son’s pass. To put it bluntly it seems Wandsworth are not being altogether honest about the cause of the mass deactivation. But I spoke to them before the press and councillors, therefore know what they did, how they handled it, how they spoke to me and what they told us to do about it.
Since last Monday I have had nothing from Wandsworth Council about this, not even a courtesy communication. Our fares are adding up thanks to this and hike in London fares overall. Meanwhile my efficient GP wrote a letter about my eligibility for my pass within 2 hours of my call to her.
There must be an enquiry into what happened, or do the disabled have to resort to the FOI Act to get to the truth.