The new costs of the 18. Reducing bus services. Taking the 603 to the Royal Free. Differing seat heights. Bus emissions. Tendering articulated routes. Bus kilometres. Bus ramps. The end of the N159. Disability training. Live bus mapping. Fare change publicity. New countdown signs. Wheelchair access. Gritting bus routes. Impact of fare changes. The new Routemaster specs. Shortening the 8. Double-deckers on the 202. Problems in Lewisham. Extending the 225. Bus stop consultations. Extending the 440 rather than the 391. Timekeeping in Bromley. Coach parking. Anti-semitic attacks on the 82.

More and more Finchley people are being referred to the Royal Free Hospital. What would be the estimated cost of running an hourly service on the 603 bus route from the times of the existing morning journeys until midnight, including a small addition to the route to take it past the Royal Free until 6 pm in the evening? What would be the additional net subsidy for this, based upon a ridership of 700 people a day? – Jenny Jones

The cost would be approximately £190,000 per year, for a service on weekdays One extra bus would be needed plus additional driver duties. Based on other routes in the area, and similar routes in other areas, new usage of the bus network would not be greater than 350 trips per day. At this rate of usage the additional subsidy requirement is approximately £150,000 per year. The additional benefits would be insufficient to justify this level of subsidy.

Have you considered the need for different heights of seats on buses for people who find it difficult to use the standard height seat? – Jenny Jones

The height of seats is largely constrained by construction and use standards for the UK, such as a minimum and maximum height from floor to the seat cushion. TfL tries to assist people who are less mobile or find normal seats harder to access by providing priority seating. These provide more leg room, and tend to be between the front and centre doors to make it easier to alight when they reach their stop.

Can you provide me figures which compare the NOx, CO2 and PM10 emissions from replacement buses for routes 38, 507 and 521 with the contract bids which included new articulated buses? – Darren Johnson

TfL does not possess data to show the NOx, CO2 and PM10 emissions for the type of articulated bus that would have been used on these routes, should the decision have been taken to operate each route with new articulated buses. Operators bidding for routes 38, 507 or 521 could have chosen to purchase new articulated buses from a number of manufacturers, each with differing emissions figures. TfL could only have derived emissions data from any new articulated buses entering the fleet by commissioning the relevant testing.

Will the tenders for the remaining ‘bendy bus’ contracts due to be renewed require quotes for articulated as well as non-articulated options? – Darren Johnson

No. Although options for retaining articulated buses on routes 38, 507 and 521 were part of the tendering process, it is not intended to do so for the remaining routes currently operated by articulated buses.

How many bus kilometres are scheduled to run in total for the current financial year, 09/10? – Darren Johnson

The table shows the bus kilometres operated in 2008/09, the level forecast to be operated in 2009/10 and the percentage of the scheduled kilometres this represents.

2008/09 2009/10

(forecast)

Bus-km (millions) 478 484

% operated 97.0% 97.2%

How many kilometres have the three completed conversions from articulated to non-articulated buses added to the total bus kilometres run during the current financial year 09/10? – Darren Johnson

The conversions of routes 38, 507 and 521 will add 202,750 kms to the total bus kms run in 09/10. In addition, a Saturday and Sunday service was introduced on the 507 which will add a further 43,600 kms.

Please set out the exact procedures that bus drivers are expected to undertake to ensure ramps are fully operational before a bus leaves a garage and commences its route? Are checks done to ensure each ramp is fully extended and retracted before a bus leaves a depot? – Caroline Pidgeon

When the driver switches the ignition on at the start of their shift, the ramp goes through an automatic self-checking routine. It is designed to highlight any operational issues at this stage of its use. If there is a defect with the unit, it is highlighted to the driver and the vehicle should not enter service. As well as this check, operators are required to deploy ramps fully to ensure the vehicle is in a roadworthy condition before entering service. Bus drivers also conduct a ‘walk-round’ check before getting into the cab to look for any visual defects which might require attention.

During 2009 how many buses had to return to the bus garage due to ramps breaking down in service and on which routes? – Caroline Pidgeon

TfL is aware of the amount of service time lost due to mechanical breakdown of buses. Without considerable analysis it is not possible to determine what proportion of buses which must return to garages early have suffered defective ramps. Ramp reliability is monitored by TfL through monthly independent inspections of vehicles at garages. Operators are also required to check ramps as part of regular maintenance inspections.

Since April last year, TfL has arranged for 1,447 bus ramps to be independently checked and of these only two were found to be defective. TfL has additionally investigated ramp complaints regarding routes in Barking and Ilford in January in response to some of your concerns; of the 108 vehicles checked at Barking Bus Garage, only two ramps were found to be faulty. Both of these were repaired before the vehicles were due to go into service. At Rainham Bus Garage, 35 buses were checked and all ramps were working.

Would you reconsider the TfL plan to cease the N159 bus service which means residents of Addiscombe and Shirley won’t have a night bus from central London? – Caroline Pidgeon

TfL propose that route N159 be replaced with three new services: an enhanced route 159 service, which would run 24 hours per day between Paddington Basin and Streatham; a new N109 service between central London and Croydon, and a new 24-hour service on route 64 between Thornton Heath and New Addington. Addiscombe and Shirley would retain the existing 24-hour service on route 119 (Croydon-Bromley). TfL consulted stakeholders on its proposals in a consultation ending on 8 January 2010. TfL is now considering the responses and expects to announce the outcome of next month.

What proportion of bus drivers operating on routes tendered by TfL have received disability awareness training? – Caroline Pidgeon

Disability awareness training is part of the BTEC vocational qualification which all London bus drivers are required to attain in their first year of service. In recent years there has never been less than 90% of drivers who have achieved the BTEC (the remainder will be in training) and therefore having attended the disability and diversity awareness training day.

In your election manifesto of 2008 you said: “I will introduce live bus mapping to coincide with the introduction of iBus. There will be an interactive map on the TfL website which will allow users to access a map of their local area, and see where their bus is in real time. This will enable people to know about any delays immediately, and change their plans accordingly.”

Should London’s Bus users have the same access to information as that you announced on January 7th that data users would have? When will live bus mapping start on the TfL website? – Caroline Pidgeon

The new Countdown system will deliver real time information for all bus routes across the network. Using either mobiles phones or the internet, users will have access to bus arrival time predictions for each of the 19,000 bus stops and 700 routes across London. The data is live, and will be updated every 30 seconds.

These services are scheduled to be available in 2011, further details of which will be publicised prior to implementation.

The number 18 bus route has been reviewed as a result of your decision to eliminate bendy buses. I am informed that as part of this TfL now need to use extra double deckers, and therefore extra drivers to serve the existing route. In light of this:

(a) What is the new cost of the number 18 bus service compared to how much it cost to run with bendy buses?

(b) Are there any plans to extend the number 18 bus route?

(c) How much would it cost to extend the bus route to Northwick Park Hospital? – Caroline Pidgeon

(a) The current cost of the contract for route 18/N18 is £11.4 million. The cost for operation with double-deck vehicles will be agreed shortly as part of TfL’s tendering process and the results will be published on the TfL website.

(b) TfL has not proposed an extension of route 18.

(c) Extending route 18 to Northwick Park Hospital would cost approximately £1.3 million per annum. There is an existing high-frequency service on route 182 and convenient interchange between routes 18 and 182 in Sudbury. Therefore, extending route 18 to the Hospital would not represent good value for money. Less costly schemes (for example extending only every second bus) remain expensive and would also not represent good value.

Have any bus routes had their level of service reduced other than as part of a formal service review since May 2008? If so please list which routes, and when the decision was made. – Caroline Pidgeon

All permanent changes to the bus network, including frequency changes, arise from formal reviews.

What publicity did TfL undertake to warn bus passengers of the Oyster single fare increase? – Mike Tuffrey

To highlight the January 2010 fares revision, TfL ran a pan-London campaign across the TfL network including posters in the Tube, DLR and London Overground stations, in bus shelters and advertisements in the Metro. The campaign was started in the week ending 11 December 2009, and ran for five weeks, promoting the fares revision from 2 January 2010. It also directed customers to the TfL website (www.tfl.gov.uk/fares) for further detailed information.

What criteria are you using to assess where new countdown signs go? – Caroline Pidgeon

Each of the London bus network’s 19,000 bus stops will be considered as part of TfL’s stop-selection strategy. A range of criteria will be used to determine which stops receive signs. Factors which will be taken into account will include the number of passengers using the stop and its proximity to population centres, transport interchanges and key local services.

The selected locations will be finalised following discussions with each of the London boroughs, which commenced on 18 January, and concludes in November 2010.

How many will you introduce each year? – Caroline Pidgeon

The roll-out of the new generation of Countdown signs will take place at 2500 key bus stops across London. Implementation is planned to start in 2011, and is set to be completed by summer 2012.

How many bus stops with Countdown signs will there be in total per borough? – Caroline Pidgeon

There will be 2500 signs in total across London. The exact number in each borough has not yet been finalised and will be agreed in consultation with all the boroughs.

What size space for wheelchairs is in your specification for buses? – Caroline Pidgeon

The TfL vehicle specifications require new buses to meet or better the dimensions detailed in the Disability Discrimination Act.

Many new buses entering the fleet exceed these by a significant margin.

I understand that Bus routes 118/60/249/417 were not gritted until midnight in the case of Greyhound Lane/Streatham Vale, and until 7.45pm elsewhere, after a local Councillor stepped in and made contact with the snow clearing team. Given these are priority 1 gritting routes:

a. Why were buses stranded for so long?

b. What lessons have you learned for future bad weather? – Caroline Pidgeon

a) There were incidents where bus services were disrupted and had to be curtailed. As soon as requests for salting were received, they were passed to the London Streets Traffic Control Centre or the London Local Authorities Co-ordination Centre (LLACC) so action could be taken without delay. There were more than 220 gritting requests made on January 6 and not all roads could be gritted at once. Priority was given to major corridors and key connecting roads in hilly areas.

b) Feedback so far suggests that the system stood up under very challenging conditions apart from a few isolated incidents.

What has been the impact of increased bus fares on passenger numbers since the beginning of January? – Val Shawcross

The available bus usage data coincides with the bad weather in early January which affected bus usage. For this reason usage in early 2010 cannot be compared to the same period in 2009.

Following my question 3724/2009, what lessons have been learned from the experience with the V3 bus, the 1980s model with two staircases, where the area between the two staircases was invisible for the driver requiring it to be operated with an extra crew member? Is this the real reason why you need a second crew member on board your new bus? – Jennette Arnold

This was not the only vehicle of its era which had interior space invisible to the driver – prior to CCTV, all one-person operated double-deckers did. The New Bus will have a comprehensive CCTV system, which will cover all areas of the bus and no areas will be ‘invisible’ to the driver.

The second crew member will only be present to supervise boarding and alighting when the rear platform is open.

In light of the news that the much anticipated Wrightbus Routemaster Bus could be in service from 2011, can you confirm that there will be conductors (as well as drivers of course) at all times on the bus? – Caroline Pidgeon

Although the New Bus for London will have an open-back platform for hopping on and off during daytime operation, the new design will enable this area to be closed off to allow flexibility during less busy times, such as at night. The second crew member will only be present to supervise boarding and alighting when the rear platform is open. When the rear platform is “closed” there will still be a driver operated door meaning the bus will always have three entrances.

In their press release of the 23rd of December Wrightbus claims that the New Bus for London will have the latest engine technology, which will make it 15 per cent more fuel efficient than hybrid buses currently operating in London. What evidence has Wrightbus presented to verify this claim? – Jennette Arnold

TfL has confidence that greater fuel efficiency will be provided through vehicle weight-saving, an enhanced battery, engine and hybrid technology.

Could bus shelters in East London be the first to be installed with the new GPS Countdown technology? East London was the last area of London the roll out of the radio controlled service and, as a result, did not get many shelters installed with the technology. Can the new roll out timetable prioritise East London to address the current imbalance? Your predecessor agreed I made a strong case for East London being prioritised. Will you? – John Biggs

A decision on which part of London is first to receive the signs has not yet been made. Discussions regarding implementation have recently begun with all of the London boroughs, and will finalise in November.

Last year TfL shortened the Route 8 service to terminate at Oxford Circus instead of Victoria, which they claimed would make the route more reliable, recommending that passengers take the new C2 route to complete their journey. This was opposed by me and by Route 8 passengers. Your recent answers to London Assembly colleagues confirmed that the Route 8 was the fifth most complained about bus route for overcrowding and poor performance for the 8 months since the start of this financial year, and that TfL are reviewing reported capacity issues on the C2. This service change clearly hasn’t panned out as planned by TfL. Please can you commit to improvements to the continuingly unreliable Route 8 service? What urgent interventions will you take to finally improve the service on both routes for my constituents? Will you consider reinstating the full Route 8 route and instead find other ways to improve its reliability? – John Biggs

TfL’s monitoring shows that route 8 generally performs reasonably well, although there have been reported delays in the evening peak in particular. TfL is aware that there had been operational difficulties within the garage at which route 8 is based, and these have been resolved recently through a re-location of resources. TfL has no plans to revert back to the original routeing, but they will continue to monitor the service and work closely with the operator to ensure its performance continues to improve. Route 8 was shortened as part of TfL’s plans to reduce buses on Oxford Street by 10% during 2009. TfL’s monitoring of route C2 indicates that the service is operating well. If passengers have any specific complaints I would recommend that they contact TfL Customer Services at www.tfl.gov.uk/contact, who will investigate.

The occasional use of double-deck vehicles on route 202 between Blackheath and Crystal Palace is warmly received by passengers on account of the increased capacity these buses provide. More standard use of double-deckers would improve facilities for route users, who are routinely subjected to overcrowding. Will you instruct the route operator to use double-deckers more regularly or, as a minimum, undertake a capacity study of the route? – Len Duvall

TfL has no evidence to suggest there is routine crowding on this route so there are no plans to use double deck buses as standard. If you have specific complaints about when and where crowding is occurring it would be useful if these could be forwarded to TfL, so that they can investigate.

Please provide an update on when electronic bus monitoring information will be made available (Countdown/iBus) at the bus stops along Catford Hill and Perry Hill in SE6, in particular at the very busy stops outside Laurence House and the Bell Green/Southend Lane stops? – Len Duvall

While we appreciate how useful Countdown would be at all bus stops, TfL needs to balance the cost of providing Countdown on-street signs with the benefits to customers.

The selection of stops to be fitted will be based upon a selection strategy in which every stop will be assessed against a range of criteria, for example the number of passengers using a stop and its proximity to population centres, key transport interchanges or major local services (schools, hospitals, etc.). New generation Countdown signs will be installed at the stops where they will provide the most benefit to the greatest number of passengers.

All stops across the London bus network have been considered as part of this “stop selection” process.

The final location of on-street Countdown signs will be finalised following discussions with each of the London boroughs which commenced on January 18th 2010 and will conclude in November 2010.

Problems are persisting with this bus stop, which serves as an interchange for a number of key routes, as the back wall of the bus shelter there runs along the kerb line. When a number of buses are at the stop, bus exit doors often end up opening onto the rear of the shelter meaning a tricky exit even for able bodied passengers and something of an impediment for any wheelchair or mobility impaired passenger or parents with buggies. Could TfL consider turning the shelter around to a different position to rectify this? – Len Duvall

TfL is aware and is seeking to rectify this. However, it does not own the shelter in question, which has been provided by a private advertising company under contract to Lewisham Council. TfL has raised the matter with the Council in the past. They will do so again by the end of this month, and will make sure that the Council is aware of your interest in the matter.

There have been a number of proposals for alterations/extensions to route 225 to potentially be included in the imminent re-tendering process. One such suggestion involved extending the route at its southern end (currently terminating at Hither Green) along Verdant Lane and Whitefoot Lane to Catford Garage, hence addressing the local call for a bus service running the entire length of Whitefoot Lane. Please could you provide an update on plans for this route? This issue has now become more pressing, as Phoenix Community Housing are due to close their offices at John Henry Neighbourhood Office in Verdant Lane and such a link would enable Phoenix’s residents, which includes a high number of elderly people, to more easily access services at Bellingham Housing Office. – Len Duvall

TfL has reviewed this suggestion. Unfortunately it did not generate enough new trips to justify the extra expense involved. Cost of operation would increase by approximately £609,000 per year. Extra usage of around 800 passenger journeys per weekday could be expected, resulting in a subsidy requirement of approximately £516,000 per year. This level of usage is not sufficient to jusity the extra cost. However existing bus services in this area do provide direct links to Catford, Lewisham, Grove Park and Eltham.

Further to the answer to my question on bus stop consultations at the last TfL plenary, could you please clarify who TfL considers an “affected resident” when it considers installing a new bus stop? What proximity to the bus stop does a resident’s home have to be before they are considered to be “affected”? – Victoria Borwick

TfL would consider ‘affected residents’ to be the immediate frontagers. However TfL has not set a minimum or maximum distance within which it would engage but will instead consider what arrangements would be appropriate on a scheme-by-scheme basis.

Answer 289/2009 at the last TfL plenary, mentions TfL’s intention “to improve its processes for engaging people with homes or businesses . . . which have been selected [for consultation].” Please can you tell me how TfL intends to do this, and what considerations it has taken into account in its attempts to improve the process? – Victoria Borwick

To date, TfL has only engaged frontagers when it is proposed to install a shelter at a bus stop. TfL will “improve its processes for engaging people” by widening this work to include instances where its proposed to install, remove or move a bus stop, or where a material change is made to the footprint of existing infrastructure, such as installing a larger shelter.

The new arrangements were designed following discussions with stakeholders, wherein it emerged that there was an appetite for engagement on bus infrastructure to be widened.

Why is the route of the 440 bus being extended to run via Wellesley Road, rather than extending route 391 via Wellesley Road? – Tony Arbour

A public consultation was undertaken in 2009 on a proposal to re-route the H91 via Chiswick High Road and extend route 440 from its terminus at Turnham Green to Power Road via Wellesley Road. The majority of consultees (58%) were in favour of the proposals. The proposed extension of the 440 was welcomed, although there were strong objections from Wellesley Road and alternatives were suggested; in particular a diversion of the 391.

TfL therefore undertook an assessment of diverting the 391 rather than extending the 440 to serve Wellesley Road. The gross costs for each option were very similar but the 440 scheme had much higher benefits. This is because the alternative created disbenefits to through passengers on the 391 as their journey time increased, as the routeing via Wellesley Road would be longer than the current routeing.

Was there a public consultation on extending the 440 bus route rather than extending the 391 bus route via Wellesley Road, and if so, how many people were in favour and how many were against the proposal? – Tony Arbour

Yes. TfL held a public consultation on a proposal to extend route 440 from Turnham Green to a new terminus in Power Road via Wellesley Road from June to August 2008.

Although consultation is not a referendum, the majority of respondents supported the proposals. 311 respondents replied in favour and 51 were opposed. 105 respondents expressed that they were unsure and 87 respondents replied with comments but did not express a view either for or against the scheme.

Route 440 was extended on 9 January 2010.

During the adverse weather over the last month, what percentage of buses in Bexley and Bromley have remained on time and what percentage have managed to complete their route in spite of the snow and ice? How do these statistics compare to previous months? – James Cleverly

Reliability data is aggregated along the entire route, so it would not be possible to report specifically on the performance of a particular service in a localised area, for example within a particular Borough. Performance data for routes operating in Bexley and Bromley is available on TfL’s website and the most recently available data will be published in mid February. If you are interested in any route in particular please let TfL know.

The parking of coaches is a problem in London. At the moment coach drivers delivering tourists to London are not inclined to pay the excessive charges and wander round the streets until they have to pick up their clients. Can London adopt the Paris plan for the parking of coaches in designated places at a reasonable cost? – James Cleverly

TfL is working with the GLA and LDA to explore options to improve coach parking in London, including looking at whether the Paris scheme could be imported. A feasibility study is being conducted to determine options to redress the balance of coach parking supply to demand, and the associated cost implications of these. The study is due to be completed by early February at which point TfL, the GLA and LDA will discuss next steps.

How many anti-Semitic attacks on the 82 bus route have been reported in the last 12 months? What action is TfL taking to ensure that staff take appropriate action in the light of such attacks? – Brian Coleman

There was one incident of anti-Semitic behaviour along the route 82 reported to the police during 2009. This involved anti-Semitic graffiti at a bus stop. A further complaint of anti-Semitic behaviour was reported to TfL in December 2009.

The Safer Transport Teams (STT) in Barnet, Camden and Westminster (the boroughs through which this route runs) regularly carry out high visibility patrols on buses and monitor bus stops outside schools. The transport policing teams are also working with local schools and the community to provide support in addressing concerns about threatening behaviour or any related issues. Additionally, the Barnet STT regularly patrol bus stops during after school hours, to reassure local schoolchildren and deter any anti-social behaviour. The team hold monthly community surgeries in Golders Green and Finchley. These surgeries are an opportunity for officers to engage with the local community, and gather information on any ongoing problems the community may be concerned about.The Metropolitan Police Service Safer Transport Command has a close relationship with the Jewish Community Security Trust, with whom they regularly collaborate to address any emerging issues.Crime on London’s buses is low and getting lower across London, nevertheless, TfL know there is always more to do so they continue to work with the police and look into ways to improve safety – which is why I have introduced more police officers on the bus network and every London bus is fitted with CCTV.