Fears over anti-social behaviour on one of Wolverhampton's busiest bus routes

Reports of assaults on the circular 59 route – which runs from the city centre to Wednesfield – have also been reported to transport bosses.

Over the last few months, Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) has dedicated additional resources towards stepping up regular patrols on the service. Having extra Transport Safety Officers travelling along the route recently led to the identification of a youth who has been involved in a number of serious attacks.

The ongoing problem was highlighted by Wednesfield North councillor Phil Bateman, who wrote to TfWM outlining the situation following a recent Safer Wolverhampton Partnership meeting held at The Hub in Ashmore Park.

He said: “At the end of last year, I started to receive reports from bus users that antisocial behaviour – including several assaults – had been taking place on the 59 bus route that links Wednesfield with Wolverhampton. Of course, this is not just an issue here in Wolverhampton, but when it occurs on public transport it becomes a very serious and dangerous matter.

“The local authorites, police and transport agencies all working in partnership is the best way forward in tackling this issue.

All three Wednesfield North councillors – Mary Bateman , Rita Potter and myself – are working hard with these agencies to do all we can to keep our residents safe on the buses, and ensure our public transport services run effectively.

“We know its already hard enough for bus passengers when their bus services don’t turn up, or when they are delayed by bad behaviour and worse.”

A spokesperson for TfWM said: “I would like to thank Cllr Bateman for shining a light on the issues being experienced by passengers on the 59 bus route on a weekly basis. The many worrying incidents that have been reported have all been shared with our Safer Travel Team, National Express West Midlands and Neighbourhood Police teams.

“Taking a wider view of the 59 service, our Transport Safety Officers and Safer Travel Police Team have seen a reduction of incidents since their regular patrols began. In November, nine reports of antisocial behaviour were identified in relation to the 59 service. However, we saw this figure fall to just three in December.

“The patrols mirror the times that incidents have been reported and will continue to evolve alongside any further reports we receive. To date, four other youths have been identified using CCTV, and the Neighbourhood Police team have visited them and their parents to discuss their antisocial behaviour.

“One was given a first stage warning, while the remaining three were issued with antisocial behaviour advisory letters. This was achieved thanks to the coordinated efforts of the Safer Travel Team, bus operator National Express West Midlands and the Neighbourhood Police Team,” added the spokesperson.

“TfWM continues to actively work with partners to tackle this kind of behaviour, which will not be tolerated. We will continue to monitor the situation closely.”

Cllr Bateman said: “This particular issue has been difficult, but there are some positive actions that have come out of it. TfWM say that there has been a reduced number of incidents since the patrols were increased. My hope is that the actions of our police and partners will help to deliver safer bus travel for all passengers.”