The Transport Committee of the Greater London Assembly has published a report “Bus Services in London” on the challenge of rising demand for bus travel in London.
It held a seminar on 19 February which our Chair, Marie Pender, attended. She had challenged our GLA member, James Cleverly, at the joint Forum with CCARA in November, about the fact that half of the ten most crowded bus services in London are in his Bromley and Bexley constituency, and three of these are in Beckenham and Penge – the 176 Penge to Tottenham Court Road, the 162, Eltham to Beckenham Junction and the 358 Orpington to Crystal Palace.
Demand for bus travel in London grew between 2000 and 2012 by 64%. There are reported increases in waiting times for buses or not being able to find a seat. London’s population is forecast to grow by 1.2m by 2022, the equivalent of almost four double-decker buses a day. GLA Transport Committee’s report wants better bus service planning and a commitment to maintenance of an effective bus network.
Transport for London’s Managing Director of Surface Transport, Leon Daniels, gave many assurances about planning for London’s buses, particularly that contrary to popular belief the services were planned on an area basis rather than route by route. The Transport Committee wants TfL to make it rationale for any changes clearer. It also wants the Mayor and TfL to work more closely with NHS providers to plan better service for hospitals.
There are plans for different ticketing systems to help spread the load and make bus travel cheaper for lower income groups, such as an ability to change buses without having to pay an additional fare, and Oyster cards that allow part time workers to benefit.
There was much heated debate from disabled people attending the seminar about how many bus drivers do not follow their instructions on helping disabled people. WBRA Chair has also had discussions with TfL about buses stopping too far away from the kerb to allow the frail elderly to get off easily. Both at the seminar and in a previous response to the chair, TfL’s response has been complacent. The answer has been that divers are instructed on how to behave and therefore they must follow these instructions!
WBRA Chair wrote to Val Shawcross and Richard Tracey (Chair and member of TfL’s transport committee respectively) following the seminar. In a very full and helpful letter, the Director of Buses responded that bus services are monitored extensively by covert assessors (secret shoppers to you and me). He says that they report regularly that in 9 out of 10 cases bus drivers position the bus correctly in line with kerb. This does not match my personal experience and I replied to him that in my daily use of bus services the opposite is true – 9 out of 10 “alignments” are too far away or at an awkward angle.
The Chair also asked GLA to champion the Countdown displays at bus stops, because there were rumours that they are under threat and that TfL wants us all to get the information via mobile phones instead. I am pleased to say that the Director said that they are not removing existing countdown signs at bus stops, but they do not propose to install any more. Instead they are relying on use of mobile phones. This service is not cheap – one text for a specific bus stop will cost 20p -25p, which is a lot of money for say someone relying on the state pension. The response was that nearly all mobile handsets include a mobile web facility with the costs bundled into the monthly charge and smartphone apps are usually free. Of course those over on state pension who have such facilities are the ones least likely to rely on buses.
On the over crowded buses in Beckenham, James Cleverly has said he will take these issues up when the route franchises come up for renewal.