TfL Publishes Average Dwell Times for New Routemasters (All-Door & Open Boarding) To Compare With Other Bus Types in London
It’s been a while since I posted an article on my website and some of my followers on Twitter may have seen my tweets linking to some interesting Freedom of Information requests that I found on the Transport for London (TfL) website.
The FOI requests worthy of an article are the ones concerning the average dwell times for New Routemasters in comparison to other buses on the London Bus network…
Let’s take a look at the Freedom of Information releases published by TfL:
Request ID: FOI-0290-2223
Date published: 25 May 2022
We would recommend exercising caution when comparing dwell times between different bus routes and over time as there are a variety of factors that can influence the data (in addition to boarding/alighting practices) which includes passenger demand, traffic conditions and schedules.
However we can advise that based on the same calculation methodology as used previously i.e. averaging the observed dwell time across all routes and stops, and allocating each route to their contracted vehicle type, the average dwell time calculated for the NRM with all door boarding was 14.8 seconds. This is from Period 9, 2018/19 to Period 10, 2019/20 (corresponding with the date range from 11 November 2018 to 4 January 2020). This is the earliest data we hold. This compares with an average dwell time of 14.5 seconds calculated for the NRM in 2022 with front-door boarding.
The results show the conversion of New Routemasters to front-door only boarding, in line with the rest of London’s Bus fleet, helps to reduce fare evasion, has slightly reduced average dwell times [0.3 seconds] at bus stops and that there were no changes to bus schedules as stated by TfL.
Request ID: FOI-3100-1920
Date published: 04 February 2020
The pilot on routes 8 and N8 has shown us that New Routemaster drivers will not need to work longer hours and that route schedules will not need to change. As it is so common for fleet vehicles to operate with front-door boarding and as we monitor the network regularly, there is no need to conduct a separate assessment. The proposed changes will lead to bus drivers working in a more consistent way as well as customer boarding and alighting in an even more standard way.
Request ID: FOI-3094-1920
Date published: 06 February 2020
We do not expect to see any net difference in end-to-end route travel time. Front-door boarding tends to be quicker at less busy stops with the driver only needing to focus on the front door when everyone has got off and this tends to offset the faster boarding and alighting times at much busier stops when all three doors are in operation. So, we expect any slower hopping on and off in a very busy location to be made up over the length of the route.
Another FOI release compares the dwell times with different bus types:
Request ID: FOI-0038-2223
Date published: 09 May 2022
| Vehicle Type and Door Configuration | Average Dwell Time in Seconds |
| New Routemaster with (three door & two staircases) open boarding before 2019. | 14.8 |
| New Routemaster with front door only boarding (started since 2019 to reduce fare evasion). | 14.5 |
| Standard double deck bus with two doors | 12.1 |
| Standard double deck bus with single door only, used on route X26 | 40.2 |
| Single deck bus with two doors and open boarding only on routes 507 & 521 | 14.4 |
| Single deck bus with two doors and front door only boarding | 10.5 |
| Single deck bus with single door | 10.2 |
| Other – London Underground/National Rail Replacement Services (Mixed fleet) | 23.7 |
The average dwell times of the New Routemaster is two seconds longer than the standard double-deck bus with two doors. The reason is, the driver had to check the rear of the New Routemaster through the CCTV monitor to see if passengers are exiting (alighting) the bus.
As for the standard double-deck bus, it depends on the time of day and the area where the service is very busy, which increases dwell times at bus stops. At a busy bus stop, passengers boarding by the front door have to wait by the gangway next to the staircase for passengers from the upper deck to exit the bus by the middle door; this also delays passengers trying to board the bus by the front. During busy periods, New Routemaster (or a bus with three doors and two staircases) passengers would exit the bus by the stairs and door at the back, which makes it easier for passengers boarding the bus at the front as it helps reduce dwell times at bus stops.