Passengers forced to make other travel plans by West Midlands bus strike disruption
It has been a day of disruption and making other plans for bus passengers travelling through a central travel hub.
Wolverhampton Bus Station was quieter than on normal days on Monday as the effects of the National Express West Midlands bus drivers strike were felt through cancelled buses and less frequent services to certain locations.
There were people present at the station to help direct passengers to services from operators such as Diamond Buses and Banga Buses, but there were still travellers left wondering what to do next and making other arrangements.
Jon Burke from Brierley Hill was struggling to find a way home from Wolverhampton and onwards to Stourbridge, having spent his morning at the university.
The 22-year-old said it was an inconvenience for him in terms of getting home, but said he also understood why the drivers were on strike.
He said: "It's kind of an inconvenience for me as I need to be heading towards Stourbridge this evening, so I'm not exactly sure about how I'm going to get there and I'm stood here trying to figure it out.
"I do sort of get why they're striking as people should get a fair wage and if that's the major problem, then people should go on strike to get what they want.
"If this goes on, it won't cause me a massive issue as I will probably ask my parents to come and get me, but it's made things just a little bit more difficult."
A steady stream of people were coming in and out of the station, with some consulting phones or talking to representatives of National Express West Midlands to work out what they did next.
Scott Cooper from the Scotlands in Wolverhampton said the strikes had been a big inconvenience for him, with the 33-year-old lathe engineers saying he'd had to take the day off due to being unable to get to work.
He said: "I work in Birmingham, but I work in an area where the only public transport is by bus and the trains don't get me near there on time, so I've been stuck today for getting to work.
"I think the drivers deserve a pay rise as I know people who work on the buses and there's not a lot of work there, so they need to be paid fairly.
"The buses being off massively affects me, though, as I need to go to work and I've not been able to today and had to go all the way back to Wolverhampton to get home."
Dainah Ashfield from Codsall was also affected by the bus strikes as the 19-year-old art student was trying to get home from Birmingham City University.
She said: "I've travelled back from Birmingham and rely on the bus to get me home, so it's been a bit of a faff trying to get home today and I've had to call my brother to come and get me.
"I think if the strikes go on, they'll definitely affect me as it's quite a struggle to get to Codsall as the trains aren't regular and I don't know what else I'll do in the meantime."
