Activists turned up to the Town Hall in anger at the council updating its plans for Queensbridge Road
Campaigners have railed against Hackney Council’s move to bring in controversial bus stops they say are “frightening” and dangerous for disabled people.
In November 2025 the East London council wrapped its consultation on a scheme which proposed to introduce new cycle lanes on Queensbridge Road, along with other traffic control measures and the removal of 33 car parking spaces. However, an updated version of the proposal including bus stop bypasses – known as floating bus stops – intersected by the cycle lanes, was signed off in July 2026.
John Thornton, a visually-impaired wheelchair user and Dalston resident, says the design will put residents like him in potentially mortal danger. Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), he said: “I can’t see either side as I go down the [bus] ramp. Two and a half metres from the bus is a fast-moving cycle lane, with speeding e-bikes and scooters,” he said. “They don’t stop, so I’m wheeling straight down into fast-moving traffic.”
Mr Thornton came to the Town Hall to protest the updated scheme on Wednesday, September 16, and told the council he was going on hunger strike until it changed course. He added that unlike previous projects, the council did not hold an accessible consultation event with disabled residents, “in particular with blind and visually-impaired residents” – despite the vast majority (70 per cent) of disabled people rejecting the overall proposals for Queensbridge Road last year.
He was joined by Sarah Leadbetter, who is also visually-impaired, who said pedestrians like herself cannot see or hear the bikes as they ride through bus stops. “There’s just no way to know when it’s safe to cross. And we know the vast majority of people will not stop,” she told the LDRS.
The council’s updated proposals justify the use of the stops by pointing to other measures included to aid the visually-impaired and disabled navigate crossings, such as cycle speed-activated warning signs, distinctive bypass paving, kerb upstands, and textured strips on the pavement.
But Mr Thornton accused Mayor of Hackney, Zoë Garbett, of breaking two of her manifesto promises: to prioritise disabled access and improve the quality of the council’s consultations.
The Hackney Greens’ manifesto does not refer specifically to floating bus stops, but acknowledges the “access barriers” that disabled residents face on London’s public transport system. It adds: “We will always stand in solidarity with Black, racialised, LGBTQIA+ and Disabled communities and women, and centre their inclusion and rights in all that we do.”
‘Blind people are being designed out’
Joining the demonstrators was Sarah Gayton from the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), who also warned that the “Russian Roulette” bus stop bypasses meant the disabled were being “designed out” of London.
“I’ve had blind people in tears to me on the phone. There are blind people who have to take taxis or who don’t bother going out to pubs and social activities. They’re becoming much more isolated,” she said.
The council’s consultation report explicitly justifies the floating bus stops by stating they comply with Department for Transport (DfT) volume guidelines for pedestrian, cycle, and bus traffic on Queensbridge Road.
Pro-cycling groups and City Hall view floating bus stops as a means to help the capital become more cyclist-friendly and inclusive. Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, wants to see 80 per cent of all journeys in the city being done on foot, bicycle or public transport by 2041 – necessitating more cycling infrastructure.
However, last year, ministers announced they would pause the rollout of one type of floating bus stop, known as the Shared Use Bus Border (SUBB) where the cycle lane runs across the front of the bus stop. However, the use of bus stop bypasses, where the bike lane runs behind the bus stop, has continued. The LDRS reported in August that both these types make up around 1.5 per cent of the capital’s 19,000 bus stops.
Ms Gayton pointed to Transport for London’s decision earlier this year to withdraw a report defending floating bus stops as safe amid questions over the quality of its data.
Cllr Jacob Cable, Cabinet Member for Climate, Clean Air, Energy and Transport, told the LDRS he was committed to arranging a meeting between John and council officers during the consultation.
“I met with John yesterday and I’m writing to him to follow up on our discussions. I appreciated our frank conversation about the impact floating bus stops are having on him and others with access needs,” Cllr Cable said.
“These changes are still at the proposal stage and no decision has been made. We [opened] a 21-day statutory public consultation this Friday (September 18), giving everyone the opportunity to review the plans and raise formal objections. We are legally bound to consider and respond to any objections we receive.
“We want to make sure feedback is properly considered and work together to make Hackney safer and more accessible. As part of this, I want to bring together advocates for continuous cycle routes, accessibility advocates and transport engineers to explore what is a really challenging transport design question,” he said.
Mr Thornton has since paused his hunger strike, but told the LDRS this would resume if floating bus stops came “back on the agenda”.
Hackney Council’s consultation on Queensbridge Road upgrades was due to go live on Friday, September 18 but as of 6pm it was not available on the authority’s website.
Got a story? Email josef.steen@reachplc or @jslondonldr on X.
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