THE council’s minibus service has come under fire again after the incident last week which saw an elderly Alzheimer’s patient left in a bus overnight at the Kingsway depot.
The woman, in her 80s, should have been delivered to her flat at Jill Jenkins Court extra care home after attending Hockwell Ring Day Care centre.
Instead she was discovered in the vehicle at 7am the following morning when the Passenger Transport Unit took immediate steps to ensure her wellbeing and return her home.
Following more criticism about its “unbelievably inefficient and haphazard” minibus operation, a council spokeswoman told the Herald&Post: “There have been some slight changes to bus arrival times at Jill Jenkins Court but all aspects of the service have been subject to significant consultation with users.” She added: “This and other aspects of the service will be looked at as part of the investigation.”
When the incident was uncovered, the council’s chief executive Trevor Holden ordered an immediate probe into how the woman was left on the minibus, why the alarm was not raised earlier and to ensure safeguards were put in place for all service users.
Mr Holden also apologised unreservedly to the woman’s family.
He said: “Senior officials met with our client’s family to express how very, very sorry we are that this appalling incident took place. We deeply regret the distress caused to everyone affected.”
And he promised: “Action will be taken.”