A young lady travelling alone at night in London was told she couldn’t board a bus as her fried chicken wings would ‘stink’ it out.
Grace Edun, 23, was informed by the driver that she would have to dump her food away or be left alone at Woolwich Station after midnight.
Grace expressed concern for her safety as she travelled 40 minutes to her house in Bermondsey. She further said that the bus driver insulted her as everyone saw her load food onto the vehicle. The argument was filmed on the CCTV of the double decker, with the driver refusing to move while the woman was onboard.
Other travelers supported Grace and advised him to continue the trek. She has asked Stagecoach, which operates the N53 route for Transport for London, to apologise.
According to the company’s policy on eating on buses, food is only forbidden if it causes “offence” or “upset” to other customers.
Grace explained she was travelling alone. It was late at night, and she was afraid she’d be kicked off the bus.
She went on to say that it can be rather frightening at night, and she would have had to wait for another bus on her own. It was impossible for her to believe. She assumed that was a joke.
The CCTV footage reveals her entering the building at 12:06 a.m. on April 12. As she gets on, the driver beats on the screen to gain her focus and says, ‘Oi love, you can’t come on with that food.’
‘I can’t come on with food?’ said a stunned Grace.
‘You can’t come on with fried chicken like that, sweetheart,’ he continued.
‘What?’ said Grace. When did that become a rule?’
‘You can’t come on with open food like that,’ the driver said again. ‘Either get outside or get rid of it.’
Young women travelling alone told to get off the bus because of her fried chickenA YOUNG woman travelling alone at night was told she wasn’t allowed on a bus – because her fried chicken wings would “stink” it out. The angry driver told Grace Edun she would have to throw her food away or be left marooned at the stop on her own in the dark.
Posted by Triangle News on Tuesday, 21 June 2022
Grace, who had been visiting a friend at her home, moved upstairs on the bus to avoid the conflict.
‘What’s the problem with her?’ he asked another passenger. She headed upstairs when I told her she couldn’t come on with fried food.
‘She can’t come on because fried chicken smells the bus out.’
After another passenger persuaded him to, the driver ultimately succumbed and let Grace resume her journey.
Grace added that she’s always eaten on buses, on the way home from school. In any case, there weren’t too many passengers on the bus. Some folks were simply yelling at him to drive the bus. She was so ashamed.
People were staring at her while she ate, and she felt so fat. It made her feel a little down. She walked upstairs and sat in the first row for added security.
According to the Stagecoach website, “you cannot eat or drink anything that could cause offence or disturb other customers.”
‘While it is our policy to encourage customers not to board buses with open containers of food for the benefit of other passengers, we ask drivers to sometimes exercise their discretion to avoid someone being left behind in the middle of the night,’ said Marlon Osborne, TfL’s Head of Operations.
‘Ms Edun’s safety was prioritised in this case, and she was allowed to finish her journey. The bus operator has spoken with the driver on how to tackle such circumstances in the future.’
