Our Ref:         FOI-0559-2021

Thank you for your request received on 7 July 2020 asking for information about buses.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm we do hold the information you require. You asked:

Will more SRM vehicles be ordered for London bus routes?

TfL completed its order of around 1,000 New Routemasters some years ago. As we are no longer procuring a proportion of the fleet directly from manufacturers, buses bought or leased for the fleet in relation to the tendering of routes contract is a matter for the private bus operators involved. They will select the vehicles that satisfy the capacity requirements of their services. There are no plans for a ‘Son of New Routemaster (NRM), vehicle but some bus models available from the market may borrow features from the NRM such as a more rounded shape.

Will any more bus cuts or route shortenings take place?

We are currently returning the bus network to normal capacity as part of a short-term funding agreement with the Department of Transport. Once we recover the network from the coronavirus lockdown, we will monitor patronage and look to see if adjustments are necessary. We are not planning any changes at this time.

We continue to keep the bus network under review and any proposals for permanent changes to routes will be subject to usual consultation, including on the consultations area on our website: https://consultations.tfl.gov.uk/.

However we have not consulted recently on any permanent changes to routes. We also report on the outcome of previous consultation on the above webpage.

From time to time we do make temporary changes to routes, mainly due to roadworks, and these are advertised locally and on our website (https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/buses/bus-changes?intcmp=47904). These changes normally only last for a few weeks.

If this is not the information you are looking for please feel free to contact me.

Please note, the Government has announced a series of measures to tackle the coronavirus. It is essential for London, that we continue to provide a safe transport network for essential journeys.
 
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.
 
Answering FOI requests will require the use of limited resources and the attention of staff who could be supporting other essential activity. In any event, please note that our response time will be affected by the current situation.
 
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Jacob
Senior FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London

[email protected]