Two friends have launched a campaign calling for action over a “chronically overcrowded” bus route.

Paul Dogan, 57, of Livingstone Road in Walthamstow, and John Darnell, 47, from Romford, have put together a report on the W19 bus route, which travels between Ilford and Walthamstow, through Aldersbrook and Leytonstone.

The report, put together over this year, claims there are hundreds of people on the route being turned away by buses because of overcrowding.

The friends both use the route and say the problem is worse in the rush hour outside Leytonstone station, where people have to wait for up to an hour to get on a bus.

They have contacted Waltham Forest council, which confirmed it would raise the issue at the next Transport Awareness Committee meeting.

They have also awaiting a response from Transport for London (TfL) on whether the route could use 29 or 32 seat buses, rather than the current 23, and increase the frequency of buses from one every 12 minutes currently to one every six or eight minutes.

This morning at around 8.30am, The Guardian witnessed the W19 bus drive past a crowd of people waiting outside Leytonstone station as it was already full.

Mr Dogan, who works as a part-time teacher, said: “It is pretty much survival of the fittest out there, a huge amount of people are being left behind at bus stops."

TfL has been contacted for comment.

For more on this story, see next week's Guardian - out Thursday