Pupils at a north-east London secondary have ended up in detention after changes to bus services made them late for school in the morning.
Transport for London has reduced the frequency of the W14 bus from three buses an hour to one an hour, while the W12 had its route changed, diverting it away from Walthamstow village, in a bid to reduce costs.
Students at Woodbridge High School, in Woodford Green, have complained about being unfairly punished for lateness due to the unreliability of the W12 and W14.
Deputy headteacher Jeremy Clifton, in an open letter that has been seen by TfL, told how the changes to bus frequencies were negatively impacting his students.
He said that “buses are frequently delayed and not running to the published times” and that “late buses mean that we have 30-50 students waiting for long periods at stops”.
Mr Clifton said the buses arrived at the end of the school day too full to pick up more passengers.
“I’ve witnessed buses just driving straight past, not stopping to pick up kids, literally one behind the other at some times,” he said Mr Clifton in an interview.
He said the long wait times had resulted in students walking home or battling to get onto the bus, “raising safety concerns as students panic and push to get on the bus”.
The school, which has 2,000 pupils, no longer gives detentions for lateness due to public transport as this is judged beyond the control of students.
There are four bus stops close to Woodbridge High School. Teachers help students catch buses at the end of the day.
Mr Clifton said he often had to board a bus to encourage students to move down the vehicle, which some avoid doing due to anxieties about not being able to get off at their stop.
Changes were made to the W12, W13, W14 and 549 routes by TfL last September.
The W14 has been reduced from running every 20 minutes to once an hour and was restructured to operate between Loughton Tube station and Whipps Cross Interchange
The new W14 route means it now terminates about 500m from the hospital. In addition, it no longer calls at Wanstead Tube station.
The W12 was restructured to run between Coppermill Lane in Walthamstow and Woodford Bridge via Church Hill Road rather than Orford Road, the heart of Walthamstow’s “mini Holland” area.
The W13 was extended to Leyton, while the 549 was withdrawn entirely and replaced with the extended W14.
Issues with bus services serving the school have been exacerbated by the closure of the nearby Broadmead Road bridge, over the Central line in Woodford. The bridge has been closed to traffic since July 2023 due to significant structural defects.
Mr Clifton said he had noticed that vulnerable members of society, including the elderly and disabled, were most affected by poor bus services. “Without a good bus service, you become detached from your community,” he said.
He wants TfL to provide a dedicated end of school service.
In his open letter Mr Clifton said: “I strongly urge TfL to reconsider introducing the new buses and to restore the W12 and W14 routes to the previous arrangement, or, at the very least, design a more effective route for each service.”
Liz Martins, leader of the Save Our Local Bus Services campaign, said the changes had also had an adverse impact on Nightingale Primary School, Wanstead High School, Our Lady of Lourdes RC Primary School and Wanstead Church School.
Ms Martins said: “We have seen that bus go past our houses empty since they implemented their discriminatory and divisive changes.
“Every day I leave my house it’s like torture, because I haven’t got a bus now.”
Protesters gathered at City Hall on March 20 to hear London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan asked about the changes by Tory assembly member Keith Prince.
The mayor said that 26,000 more residents now had a direct link to Whipps Cross Hospital and a new Sunday service, and claimed ridership had increased by 11 per cent in January.
Speaking afterwards, Mr Prince, who represents Havering and Redbridge, disputed the mayor’s figures.
He said: “I can’t believe that he’s got more people using the bus that’s only now once an hour and not going anywhere anybody wants to go. I just don’t think that’s true.”
Geoff Hobbs, TfL’s director of public transport service planning, said: “In September, we made changes to the local bus network that increase service by 10 per cent and took account of previous requests for better access to Whipps Cross hospital.
"The bus changes to W12, W13 and W14 mean these routes now run more frequently to major hubs, making it easier to travel in and around the area.
“We continue to engage with the local community and have met local residents and their representatives. Our focus now is to improve the reliability of these routes."
