WBRA has succeeded, with the help of GLA member James Cleverly, in increasing parking at Elmers End Green after persuading Transport for London that two of the old bus stands were not necessary, and the London Borough of Bromley to put in four additional parking spaces where they once stood. This should help customers of the local shops and in particular patients at the St James doctors practice opposite.
After the bus transport interchange was opened at Elmers End station, WBRA asked TfL to remove the stands on the Green where the 54 and 289 buses used to stop between journeys. There was room for four buses at the two stands on the Green. At first, TfL was adamant that they still required all four stands in case of “emergencies” on routes other than the 54 and 289. It appears that an “emergency” would be when traffic build up had caused a bus to be so late running that it needed to curtail its route and start again from an intermediate point. So, for example, the 358 bus might be late running from Bromley, curtail its run to Crystal Palace and start again from Elmers End Green, but needing to wait a few minutes at the Green before starting up again.
While WBRA accepted a need for such a facility, we queried whether it was necessary to retain permanently all four stands for such an “emergency” – could four buses all require to stand at the same time? James Cleverly, our GLA member, helped by arranging a meeting at the Green with a TfL official, who agreed it would not be necessary to retain all four stands. Eventually, TfL agreed that two could be removed, and James then approached LB Bromley on our behalf to have the additional parking spaces installed. This was achieved in November, just about a year after we initially raised the issue – which, believe it or not, is quite fast for this type of thing! We hope the new parking will take pressure off surrounding residential roads. Our thanks to James for his help.