TfL fined £2m after nurse's death at Walthamstow Bus Station

Transport for London (TfL) has been fined £2 million after retired nurse Grace Mecaley, 74, was fatally struck by a bus at Walthamstow Bus Station. The penalty was imposed by Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 25 September, where it was ruled that TfL had failed to ensure pedestrians and vehicles could circulate safely at the station for nearly two decades.

Ms Mecaley was walking home after shopping on Walthamstow High Street on 15 December 2023 when she was hit by a 212 bus at approximately 5pm. The court heard that the bus rounded a corner and struck her as she crossed the station’s northern pedestrian crossing. She suffered fatal head injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Long-standing safety concerns

The court was told that the crossing’s position and the angle of approach for buses created blind spots for drivers, who could not see the full length of the crossing. This design was found to create ambiguity over right of way and increased the risk of serious collisions. Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard that TfL had not conducted a risk assessment of the crossing after a pedestrian was struck in a similar incident in April 2022. CCTV footage also showed five near misses in the two days before Ms Mecaley’s death.

Judge Robinson stated that TfL fell “far below” the expected standards. He cited three key failings: not making appropriate changes after the April 2022 incident, inaction over nearly 20 years to safeguard the station, and the use of “generic and inadequate” risk management systems between January 2004 and December 2023.

TfL pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 17(1) of the Workplace Health, Safety, and Welfare Regulations 1992. The initial fine proposed was £3 million, which was reduced to £2 million to reflect TfL’s guilty plea. The judge remarked that no fine could diminish the tragedy experienced by Ms Mecaley’s family.

Grace’s son, Don Mecaley, who lives in Walthamstow, described the incident as the “most traumatic experience of my life” and stated he now avoids the bus station. He expressed a desire for appropriate accountability and noted the difficulty in moving forward due to a lack of closure.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), represented by Jon Mack, told the court that TfL had “missed an opportunity” to improve safety after the April 2022 incident by focusing on driver culpability rather than station design.

Improvements and ongoing issues

Following Ms Mecaley’s death, new permanent pedestrian crossings were installed on the station’s northern and western sides in December 2024. Temporary signals had been added in May 2024 in response to a contravention notice filed by the HSE in March 2024. A further contravention notice was issued in March 2025 after inspectors found bus drivers were not consistently giving priority to pedestrians crossing to the central island.

Lorna Murphy, TfL’s director of buses, stated that TfL is determined to end the trauma caused by loss of life and injury on the network. She added that TfL treats bus station safety as part of its wider Vision Zero and Bus Safety Programme, and that work to improve pedestrian safety at Walthamstow Bus Station was completed in December 2024. TfL must pay the £2 million fine and £5,081 in legal costs within one month.

The court heard that the size of the fine was mitigated by TfL’s status as a public body. A private company with similar turnover might expect a fine closer to £50 million for comparable offences spanning a similar period.

HSE Inspector Laurence Goodacre expressed sympathies to Ms Mecaley’s family, noting that she was simply walking home when she was killed. He stated that TfL’s failings meant Grace never made it home and that the HSE’s role is to hold organisations accountable when their health and safety failures put the public at risk.

The sentencing occurred in the same week an elderly man was struck by a bus at the station’s southern crossing on Selborne Road.