Exclusive: Transport for London’s conviction comes nearly three years after a retired nurse was fatally hit by a double-decker bus in December 2023, reports Marco Marcelline
Transport for London (TfL) has been fined £2million after retired nurse Grace Mecaley, 74, was fatally struck by a double-decker bus at Walthamstow Bus Station in December 2023.
At a sentencing hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court this afternoon (25th September), it was ruled TfL had failed to ensure pedestrians and vehicles could circulate safely at the station for nearly 20 years.
Grace was walking home after shopping on Walthamstow High Street on 15th December 2023 when she was struck by a 212 bus.
At around 5pm, Grace was walking across the station’s northern crossing when the bus rounded the corner and hit her.
She suffered catastrophic head injuries and was sadly pronounced dead at the scene.
Westminster Magistrates’ Court today (25th September) heard how the crossing’s position and the angle at which buses approached meant drivers could turn towards the crossing without having a clear view of its full length, creating “blind spots”.
It was ruled that the crossing’s layout created “ambiguity” over right of way and increased the risk of a serious collision.
The court also heard how TfL failed to risk-assess the crossing after a pedestrian was struck by a bus in a similar circumstance in April 2022. CCTV footage also captured five near misses in the two days before Grace was killed.
Delivering his ruling Judge Robinson gave three examples where TfL fell “far below” standards it should have kept to ensure safety at the bus station.
These were failing to make appropriate changes to the site following the April 2022 incident, not acting over a nearly 20 year period to safeguard the station, and for having “generic and inadequate” risk management systems in place between January 2004 and December 2023.
Grace’s death prompted the installation of new permanent pedestrian crossings on its northern and western sides in December 2024.
The crossings came after new “temporary signals” were added to the station in May that year in response to a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) contravention notice that was filed in March 2024.
A fresh contravention notice was issued in March 2025 after unannounced HSE inspectors found bus drivers were failing to give pedestrians priority to cross to and from the bus station’s “central island”, where passengers board and alight from buses.
The HSE, represented by Jon Mack, told the court today (25th September) that TfL “missed an opportunity” to make Walthamstow Bus Station safe following the April 2022 incident.
This was due to the investigation focusing on the driver’s culpability in the incident rather than on adapting the station and crossing to make it safe for users, Mack said.
Delivering his ruling Judge Robinson said: “Grace Mecaley was a vulnerable road user, and TfL failed in its duty to ensure that the bus station was safe. The design at the station made the turn at the station crossing complex and difficult for drivers to complete, with drivers’ view being restricted while turning at the sharp end.
“Steps should have already been put in place before Grace’s death. A safer crossing for pedestrians was always possible [between January 2004 and December 2023] but TfL failed in this regard.”
Prior to the hearing, TfL pled guilty to a charge of breaching Regulation 17(1) of the Workplace Health, Safety, and Welfare Regulations 1992.
As Judge Robinson imposed a £3m fine, reduced to £2m to reflect TfL’s guilty plea, he said: “No fine could ever lessen the loss or reflect the tragedy and grief experienced by Grace’s family and friends.”
Speaking ahead of the sentencing, Grace’s son Don Mecaley said his mother’s death had caused him “significant emotional distress”, describing it as the “most traumatic experience of my life”.
Don, who lives in Walthamstow, said: “I now avoid the bus station altogether and every time I board or see a bus I am reminded of what happened to her. I still feel there are unanswered questions.
“The lack of closure has made it more difficult to move forward. Her death has created an absence that cannot be replaced and I want appropriate accountability to follow.”
TfL must pay the £2m fine and £5,081 in legal costs within one month.
The size of the fine was mitigated by TfL’s status as a public body. The Echo understands a private company with an annual turnover similar to TfL’s could expect a fine in the region of £50m if convicted for similar health and safety offences spanning a similar time length.
Speaking at Westminster Magistrates’ Court HSE Inspector Laurence Goodacre said: “Our deepest sympathies remain with Grace’s family who are represented here today by her son. Grace was a vibrant member of her community and her loss will be deeply felt.
“Grace was simply walking home after shopping when she was struck and killed while using an authorised pedestrian crossing.
“TfL had a responsibility to keep pedestrians safe, but its failings meant Grace never made it home.
“It is HSE’s role to hold organisations to account when their failures to manage health and safety put members of the public at risk or result in tragic incidents like this one.
“Grace died just days before Christmas and her family will continue to feel that loss particularly deeply at what should be a happy time of year.
“I hope today’s sentence provides them with some measure of comfort, knowing that those responsible for her death have been held to account.”
The sentencing came on the same week an elderly man was struck by a bus at the station’s southern crossing in Selborne Road.
Lorna Murphy, TfL’s director of buses, said: “Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of Grace Mecaley. Every death on the transport network is devastating, and we’re determined to end the trauma caused by loss of life and injury.
“We treat bus station safety as part of our wider Vision Zero and Bus Safety Programme, combining operational controls, infrastructure measures and operator assurance to reduce risk to customers, pedestrians and staff in bus station environments. In December 2024, we completed works to permanently improve pedestrian safety at Walthamstow Bus Station.
“We care deeply about the safety and security of everyone who uses or works on our transport network and continue to work closely with all bus operators to improve driver monitoring, driver communication and enforcement.”
Read more: Tributes paid to retired nurse fatally injured in Walthamstow Bus Station crash
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