CCTV, more police but crime on the buses gets worse

The London Assembly's transport committee said passengers felt less safe on buses than on any other form of public transport.

It listed the most problematic routes - all north of the river - as route 18 from Sudbury to Euston, route 25 from Oxford Circus to Ilford High Road, route 29 from Wood Green Station to Trafalgar Square and route 38 from Clapton Pond to Victoria.

There was a 15 per cent increase in the number of all crimes on buses since 2004 with teenage anti-social behaviour of particular concern. However, crimes per journey actually fell - one per 50,000 - because more people used the buses, meaning passengers were less likely to become victims. Roger Evans, Tory chairman of the transport committee, said: "Anti-social behaviour and crime on buses remain a real concern. We welcome the greater police presence and use of CCTV but other steps can be taken to safeguard passengers, our report makes a number of constructive recommendations."

The Mayor has tried to address the problem by requiring children eligible-for free travel to swipe passes on buses and show the driver photocards.

Transport for London has also increased the uniformed presence on buses and is using more technology to prevent and solve crime.

Tory Mayoral candidate Boris Johnson, who has campaigned for safer buses, said: "When I travelled around London's 32 boroughs ... the message that people do not feel safe on buses was loud and clear. Why should Londoners wait any longer?"

Mr Johnson said that his proposal for the introduction of a £150,000 CCTV system should now go ahead, despite Tfl pulling the plug on the pilot system.

However, TfL said crime rates on Lon-don buses were the lowest they have been since 2004 - not higher than two years ago. A spokesman said: "The vast majority of our passengers are unlikely to be the victim of crime on a London bus."

TfL claimed the table of worst bus routes was "meaningless" as it was not based on call-outs for anti-social behaviour - and did not take into account either the length of the route or the number of passengers.