Bus drivers claim they use bottles to urinate in due to lack of facilities

Bus drivers are forced to urinate in bushes and bottles due to a lack of bathrooms on routes.

The GMB union has said that drivers are bringing bottles to work to use and at least 175 bus routes in the capital only have one bathroom to use.

This means drivers could have to go up to four hours without access to proper facilities.

Bus driver Mike Tinnion said: “A lot of drivers are leaving the profession – it’s just grim.

“We need the keys to the city’s loos – it’s just a basic dignity.

“It can’t be right that you’re forced to bring a bottle to pee in to work – it’s worse if you’re a woman or have health issues.”

The union has passed a motion calling for toilet facilities for at the start and end of all bus routes to half the time drivers have to wait to reach a loo.

Another London bus driver who wished to remain anonymous said they had seen drivers running into pubs, cafes, petrol stations and bushes to urinate while on shift.”

The driver said Transport for London (TfL) is “hanging drivers out to dry” and won’t pay the money needed to provide toilets.

Tom Cunnington, head of bus business development at TfL, said: “Bus drivers play an essential role in keeping the capital moving and their welfare is our top priority. It is a basic human right to have access to a toilet and we ensure that drivers always have a facility within a reasonable distance.”

Pictured: An Arriva bus: Picture Wikimedia Commons/AlexNevinTylee