Mind the Gap between the train and the Platform... This is, Transport Times!

Starting on the Roads in London Today where campaigners are at work to stop the installation of “Floating Bus Stops”

These are the stops that sit between a cycle path and the road itself. Campaigners feel that the installation and use of these stops leaves some passengers fearing for their safety when trying to get from the bus stop to the main pavement.

A Floating Bus Stop in London | Source: BBC

These stops do have a small zebra crossing to give pedestrians the priority to cross, but many cyclists ignore the marking and weave around pedestrians attempting to board or alight from a bus.

Keith Prince AM, who proposed the motion, said

"the growing number of collisions and near misses cannot be ignored".
"Every Londoner should be able to get on and off a bus without fearing for their safety.
"Yet floating bus stops are putting pedestrians at risk, particularly blind, partially sighted, elderly and disabled Londoners”

Transport for London have paused the planning of future Floating Bus Stops whilst further research is undertaken, but says that the installation of three of these stops already under construction will go ahead.

Over on the Railways in Scotland, a scenic route has been closed for 9 days starting today

Parts of The West Highland Line running from Glasgow Queen Street up to the West Highlands and places such as Oban, Fort William and Mallaig was closed today to allow a 9 day possession to take place.

Glenfinnan Viaduct, Part of the line that has been closed | Source: TripAdvisor

Services will run as normal from Glasgow Queen Street to Oban, but passengers requiring Fort William and Mallaig will have to change to a replacement bus service at Crianlarich.

These works are being undertaken in order to renew some of the older track already in use, a section of 2.5 miles will be replaced over the nine day possession, the work is estimated to cost £13 million and will last until Tuesday the 17th of November,

And Fare Dodgers get another brush with the law

Following the success of ongoing Operation Vector, the British Transport Police along with Transport for London are continuing to crack down on fare evasion in the Greater London area, figures show that a total of 467 evaders were stopped, with 24 of them being arrested in the first month of the operation.

Plain Clothes Officers sit at various points at various stations | Source: TfL

TfL said that compared to last year, fare evasion rates sat steady at 3.5% of journeys not being paid for, costing around £190 million a year. Whilst offenders are questioned for fare evasion, police have also been checking records of people being stopped to link them to other potential offenses.

Seb Dance, the deputy mayor for transport, said:

"We have a clear message for the small but persistent group of people that aren't paying the correct fare: we will not tolerate it, and you will be held to account."

A gateline on the London Underground | Source: TfL

Siwan Hayward, TfL's director of security, policing and enforcement added,

"The officers are trained in techniques called behavioural detection and what that means is that it does require challenging some of your assumptions about who's a likely person to push through.

"It's not all teenagers. So what's interesting about how people behave, not how they look. it's just aspects of their behaviour as they approach the [gate], as they look out, that will be the giveaway for our trained officers.

"The way people approach the gate, the way people look at the gate, the way people look around, the way people pick someone who they're going to push behind them."

That’s all from me this week, until next week. Keep on travelling!