Transport for London Confirms Changes to Bus Routes in Central London

Tranport for London (TfL) has published the results of their consultation on changes to bus services in central London. TfL has confirmed they will implement a range of changes to bus routes to improve the reliability of the bus network in central London, whilst also cutting congestion and helping tackle air pollution. You can download the full report here or read a brief summary below: 

The changes to 23 routes in central London follow this wide-ranging consultation and will ensure services are more closely matched to changing demand:

• Bus demand on Oxford Street is shifting, as people choose different travel options, including cycling and walking.

• A faster, more reliable Tube, with the Victoria and Northern lines now among the highest frequency services in Europe with a train every two minutes, has taken pressure off buses.

• The Night Tube is also providing new travel options to and from the West End.

• When fully open, the Elizabeth line will boost rail capacity in central London by 10 per cent and provide a key new east-west link across the Capital, with 24 trains per hour in each direction serving step-free stations at the heart of London.

• Buses will be re-routed away from Oxford Street, moving the termini for some routes to Park Lane, Trafalgar Square and Tottenham Court Road, while extending other routes to maintain connections.

• TfL will begin to implement the changes in the summer.

• Once all of the changes are in place, there will be 40 per cent fewer buses running on Oxford Street, improving air quality at the heart of Europe’s busiest shopping district.

Transport for London, along with the Mayor, recently outlined plans to encourage more people to use the bus network. The new and co-ordinated approach will see steps taken to make bus travel even more attractive for Londoners. These include:

• Matching bus capacity with demand by reducing the underused services in central London and reallocating them to where they are needed.

• Investing £20m per year in bus priority measures. TfL will deliver around 170 schemes, many in outer London, saving passengers time on some of the most congested routes.

• Reviewing traffic signal timings at 1,200 junctions and at 200 sites to improve bus speeds.

• Ensuring that 95 per cent of bus stops are accessible to passengers.

• Improving customer service on the bus network by giving all 24,500 bus drivers, bus controllers and other operational staff new training in how to assist customers‎.

• Overhauling information provided to passengers to make it easier to understand where bus services go and how frequent they are, including new signage on the outside of buses.

• Continuing the transformation of the bus fleet into a low-polluting means of transport with new ‘Low Emission Bus Zones’ introduced, phasing out the worst polluting diesel buses and replacing or modifying all buses to meet the toughest air quality standards by 2020.

TfL are also taking steps to reduce congestion on London’s roads, with the Mayor announcing a series of measures late last year including new and improved strategic management, technology and communication to tackle the problem head-on. A longer-term approach will be set out in the Mayor’s forthcoming Transport Strategy.

For further information on the changes including detailed route information, please click here.