Chaos in UK town as red London buses keep crashing into cars - and 3,600 caught speeding

Local residents are demanding the introduction of new safety measures after claims that London bus crashes and speeding drivers are causing traffic chaos. Catford has recorded a whopping 10 crashes involving buses over the past seven months, with some public transport colliding with cars.

Some residents have reported "hit-and-run" style incidents with locals claiming that vehicles have been left with "suspicious red paint marks". There are also concerns that thousands of bus drivers were exceeding speed limits on urban routes, potentially posing a major safety risk. Alison Howard, a local resident who lived on Sandhurst Road in Catford, claimed over 3,500 drivers had gone above the legal limits on one stretch of road alone.

Alison explained that locals were now “concerned” someone could get killed and called on bus operators to take action.

She told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “In the last year, we asked TfL for the speeding data they have, all of the buses have what they refer to as a speed limiter but it doesn't actually limit their speed, it just records when they go over 24mph, it doesn't record under that.

"So we had 3,600 buses last year that were going faster than 24mph in a 20 zone and we have an average of six per day that are currently speeding on this road according to the data TfL has given us."

Safer Sandhurst and Sangley is an X account dedicated to raising awareness to the concerns of local residents along the route. In May, they uploaded images of what appeared to be the aftermath of a bus striking a vehicle with scratch marks evident on the the front of the single-decker.

The group has claimed that Transport for London (TfL) has continued to ignore their requests for a meeting to discuss the problems along the route. However, Philip Gerhardt, TfL's Head of Bus Performance, stressed the company was committed to ensuring the safety of customers.

He stressed TfL were happy to work alongside Lewisham Council to explore long-term alternatives to the issues affecting Sandhurst Road.

Philip told Express.co.uk: "We remain fully committed to ensuring the safety of all customers and residents. iBus technology is used to closely monitor London-wide bus routes and trends so that we can make journeys more reliable and safer, providing customers with accurate and up-to-date travel information only.

"An additional set of data which measures speed of buses more precisely is used by bus operators. We continue to work with bus operators to ensure that appropriate action is taken against any driver found to be breaking the speed limit. Alongside the operator Stagecoach, we are happy to support Lewisham Council with any future proposal they have for Sandhurst Road and continue to explore long-term alternatives.”

Meanwhile, Lewisham Council explained they were working with engineers to check speed limit bumps along the street and had passed on concerns to TfL

The Council told Express.co.uk: “We are in the process of introducing new measures (planters and street furniture) to calm traffic and prevent inconsiderate parking, which causes severe disruption to pedestrians, particularly those with children or mobility issues.

"The Council has also undertaken a comprehensive consultation with local residents as part of the Sustainable Streets programme to explore proposals to improve safety and accessibility."