Bus announcements on a CD
Request ID: FOI-0408-2021
Date published: 26 June 2020
You asked
Dear Transport for London,
Where can I get a CD covering London bus routes for a certain area of London or full.
284
P5
P4
176
124
181
320
160
75
185
21
89
148
177
178
180
199
202
229
233
273
321
333
343
355
380
108
401
507
521
53
1
68
664
36
B12
B13
B14
B15
B16
S1
S2
And all ibus annocuments like please move down inside the bus ect.
Dear FOI,
484 too
We answered
Our ref: FOI-0408-2021
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 18 June 2020 asking for audio files for bus routes 284, P5, P4, 176, 124, 181, 320, 160, 75, 185, 21, 89, 148, 177, 178, 180, 199, 202, 229, 233, 273, 321, 333, 343, 355, 380, 108, 401, 507, 521, 53, 1, 68, 664, 36, B12, B13, B14, B15, B16, S1, S2, 484 and our other
iBus announcements.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we do hold the information you require
However, we are refusing your request under section 14(1) of the Act. We consider that providing the requested information would place an unreasonable burden on us at this time. As you will be aware, it is essential for London, and in particular for all critical workers, that we continue to provide a safe transport network that enables them to make the journeys they need to and our staff are working hard to support them and protect all Londoners. We consider that answering this request would represent a disproportionate effort and would require the redirection of limited specialist resources and the attention of staff away from their core functions who could be supporting other essential activity.
We do wish to clarify that whilst we consider that your request falls under section 14(1) of the FOI Act, this does not reflect a conclusion that it has been your intention to place an undue burden on our resources.
On the specific application of section 14(1) we have been steered by the ICO guidance on the use of that exemption that can be found on its website here: https://ico.org.uk/media/1198/dealing-with-vexatious-requests.pdf
To be clear, it is the current context in which the request has been made that is central to our decision to apply the exemption set out in section 14(1) in response to your request.
We have responded to several hundred requests for audio recordings over many years. However, due to alternative working arrangements aligned with the Government’s measures to tackle the coronavirus, the FOI Case Management Team do not currently have access to the necessary hardware required to create CDs of audio announcements in response to FOI requests and so we are unable to process these requests remotely. Please also note that iBus announcements are recorded as fragments. As a result, some announcements would not feature in full as the full announcement would just be made up of two or more fragments that have already been recorded. The iBus files are extremely large at around 600MB and the fragments total around 14,000 individual items. We are unable therefore to send the audio files by email or extract the ones you are specifically asking for.
Additionally, whilst we have also explored alternative technological solutions, it is an unavoidable consequence that processing requests of this nature would require critical employees to be diverted from their operational responsibilities and, in the current circumstances, we consider that our priority must remain on providing and maintaining an effective transport system to essential workers across the capital and that our limited resources are utilised as effectively as possible to ensure that happens. Therefore we are refusing your request under s14 of the FOI Act.
Please note the Government has announced a series of measures to tackle the coronavirus. It is essential for London, and in particular for all critical workers, that we continue to provide a safe transport network that enables them to make the journeys they need to.
In current circumstances, we are not able to answer FOI requests readily and we ask that you please do not make a request to us at present. Should you wish to submit a revised request please note that our response time will be affected by the current situation and so you may wish to reconsider the timing of this request.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Sara Thomas
FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London
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