Elderly defy lockdown at bus station
POLICE SAY PEOPLE GATHERING UNNECESSARILY TO CHAT AND RIDE BUSES FOR SAKE OF GOING OUT
HUDDERSFIELD Bus Station has become a hotspot for people gathering in defiance of lockdown regulations.
People are not allowed to meet up in groups of more than two people – unless they are from the same household.
Bus operators are now running an emergency timetable aimed at helping key workers, such as those in the NHS, schools or supermarkets, get to and from work.
But police have warned that some elderly people are gathering in the bus station and sitting down to meet up and chat with others.
There are also reports of some elderly people just riding around on buses for the sake of going out, which contradicts the Government’s plea that people only go out for essential food or medicine or for one daily exercise, lasting around half an hour.
Safer Kirklees, a group made up of Kirklees Council, police and other emergency services, issued a report this week which said that some elderly people were gathering in Huddersfield Bus Station and just “sitting chatting in close proximity.”
The report adds: “There are also several beggars and street drinkers clearly not using public transport.
“The bus station is now the only place indoors where it is possible to sit down and socialise.
“The bus station has been unable to turn off the free Wi-Fi as this would also turn off other essential systems.
“However, they are looking at upgrading the system so the public Wi-Fi can be disabled which may discourage some socialising.
“Some elderly/disabled people are getting on the buses just riding around.”
A statement on the website of West Yorkshire bus operator Metro says: “The West Yorkshire Combined Authority and the bus and rail operators who work together to provide multi-operator tickets within West Yorkshire are strongly urging people to consider whether their journey is essential and to follow the Government’s guidelines to stay at home unless: you are travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home; for medical reasons; or shopping for basic necessities.”