An angry commuter stood in front of a bus and demanded the driver “opens the doors” in east London as frustration at the Tube and rail strikes boiled over.
The irate Londoner was filmed stepping in front of a packed 123 bus in Blackhorse Road in a desperate bid to get fellow passengers on board at 7am on Tuesday.
He shouts at the driver who was gesturing for him to get out of the way: “What can I do? Open the doors!
“Hey, you close doors for over five minutes now, open doors.”
Since 6:30am waiting for a bus but the buses still passing without stopping. And my patients and coworkers still waiting for me because of the #RailStrikes
— David (@zimokapino) June 21, 2022
And we are not allowed to strike.
And my salary is totally worse than the ones that are striking.
The country needs a change pic.twitter.com/nnib8anvsu
The incident was filmed by a bystander called David, who vented his own frustration at the situation on Twitter.
“Since 6:30am waiting for a bus but the buses still passing without stopping,” he wrote.
“And my patients and coworkers still waiting for me because of the #RailStrikes And we are not allowed to strike. And my salary is totally worse than the ones that are striking. The country needs a change.”
The intervention came as Boris Johnson braced commuters for months of rail misery after London’s transport system was crippled with strikes on the Tube and train networks.
Many Londoners were forced to endure long queues to get a bus to work or had to drive in, or go by foot, bike or even boat.
The walkouts, the biggest in 30 years, were predicted to cost London’s economy around £120 million in lost output, with the hospitality sector bearing the brunt.
Speaking at the start of Cabinet, the Prime Minister condemned the “unnecessary aggravation” caused by the walk-outs, with rail strikes on Thursday and Saturday as well, and warned of more travel chaos this summer.
“I’m afraid, everybody, and I say this to the country as a whole, we need to get ready to stay the course,” he said.
“To stay the course, because these reforms, these improvements in the way we run our railways are in the interests of the travelling public, they will help to cut costs for fare payers up and down the country.”
But Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union general secretary Mick Lynch warned of a summer of strike action and called on other union leaders to co-ordinate protests and rallies on the streets of Britain’s towns and cities.
He stated: “My advice to the unions is to campaign on the issues and ultimately if the Government and employers do not change their direction, I believe more ballots for strike action are inevitable and more action is inevitable.”
