Crime on Havering’s buses has decreased from last year, according to latest figures from Transport For London.

The statistics show that the level of overall crime on the borough’s buses was 28.9 per cent lower in the six months from April to September this year than in the corresponding period of last year.

From 2007-08 to 2010-11, there were also a 18.7 per cent fall in the number crimes reported on bus routes in Havering.

However, Billy Channon, 19, of Rushton Close, Romford, who was left with a black eye after an unprovoked attack on a 252 bus says that more still needs to be done.

The youth worker was travelling to his mother’s house when he was battered by two young men on the bus outside Elm Park station in June.

The incident left Billy so fearful of taking public transport that he was forced to pay more than �400 on taxis over the following two months.

One of his attackers pleaded guilty to assault by beating and was fined �85 with �100 court costs at �Havering Magistrates’ Court on September 14.

Billy said: “One of them jumped me, with the other one kicking me for no obvious reason.

“I had bruises all over me and went to Queen’s Hospital for a few days.

“It’s absolutely ridiculous that they can get away with it like this.”

The TfL crime figure are also broken down into statistics for types of offence.

In Havering, the biggest drop was in incidents of violence against the person, which fell from 92 to 57, followed by criminal damage, which dropped from 50 to 25.

The statistics also reveal a small rise in drug crimes, from five incidents last year to seven this year, while the number of robberies reported on Havering’s buses rose from 22 to 28 this year.

The priorities of Havering’s Safer Transport teams also feature in the TfL data.

These includes working on �violence affecting the bus network in Romford town centre, concentrating on theft on buses in Romford and trying to reduce antisocial behaviour on the 248 bus route.