Request ID: FOI-1053-2122 Date published: 11 October 2021
You asked
Hello,
Under the EIR 2004 can you please provide me with all correspondence, data, emails, copies of proposals and decisions and communications internal to TfL and with Brent Council and relevant bus operators as to when, why and under what powers buses 28, 452 and 302 now use Station Terrace in Kensal Rise as a de facto bus station. I would also like you to provide me with all modelling and analysis relating to pollution and emissions in Station Terrace as a result of the buses using this area as a bus station. If this is not available because no analysis has been carried out, please explain why not given the adverse impact on the environment that the buses cause.
Also please provide me with the equalities impact assessment TfL have carried out with regards to Station Terrace being designated and now used as a bus station.
Thank you.
We answered
TfL Ref: 1053-2122
Thank you for your request received by us on 17 August 2021 asking for information about Station Terrace in Kensal Rise and bus routes 28, 452 and 302.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Environmental Information Regulations and our information access policy. I can confirm that we hold some of the information you require. You asked for:
all correspondence, data, emails, copies of proposals and decisions and communications internal to TfL and with Brent Council and relevant bus operators as to when, why and under what powers buses 28, 452 and 302 now use Station Terrace in Kensal Rise as a de facto bus station.
I would also like you to provide me with all modelling and analysis relating to pollution and emissions in Station Terrace as a result of the buses using this area as a bus station. If this is not available because no analysis has been carried out, please explain why not given the adverse impact on the environment that the buses cause.
Also please provide me with the equalities impact assessment TfL have carried out with regards to Station Terrace being designated and now used as a bus station.
We would like to advise that for several years prior to Transport for London’s creation in 2000, Station Terrace in Kensal Rise has been used as a terminal point for various buses, in addition to those mentioned above. An example of this can be found on page two in the attached bus description for route 302 dating from June 1998, when TfL’s predecessor, London Transport tendered bus routes in the capital. Page five in the current bus description, also attached and produced in August 2021, references this area.
Please find attached a copy of email correspondence between TfL, the London Borough of Brent, various councillors and a member of the public in relation to buses using Station Terrace as a bus stand.
Please note that in accordance with TfL’s obligations under the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) some personal data has also been removed, as required by regulation 13 of the EIR. This is because disclosure of this personal data would be a breach of the DPA, specifically the first principle of the DPA which requires all processing of personal data to be fair and lawful. It would not be fair to disclose this personal information when the individuals have no expectation it would be disclosed and TfL has not satisfied one of the conditions of regulation 13 of the Data Protection Act, which would make the processing ‘fair’.
In regards to bus emissions, all buses in the core fleet have now been uplifted to the Ultra Low Emission Zone compliant Euro VI engine emission standard, which reduces the most harmful tailpipe emissions by up to 80 per cent. This enhances air quality in all parts of London, including Kensal Rise.
We are now moving towards making the bus fleet a zero emission network, which will steadily reduce noise and emissions over time. We expect just under ten per cent of the fleet to be at this level by March 2022. We have developed plans to accelerate the fleet going zero emission from 2037 to 2034, if Government support can be provided. This will play a vital role in significantly improving London’s air quality and help us continue to be good neighbours in the way we operate public transport. Further information on how we are making our buses greener can be found here: https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/buses/improving-buses?intcmp=42923
Station Terrace is managed by Brent Council, the local highways authority for this vicinity and is therefore not part of the Transport for London Road Network - the capital’s red routes. Whilst TfL has not located an Equalities Impact Assessment for Station Terrace, the following link to Brent Council’s website about the Kensal Corridor improvement scheme update, which includes Station Terrace, is available at: https://www.brent.gov.uk/your-community/regeneration/current-projects/kensal-corridor/
Whilst we have provided as much information that we reasonably could, given the very broad scope of your request, we are applying Regulation 12(4)(b) to the remainder of your request as we believe that the request is ‘manifestly unreasonable’ because providing the information you have requested would impose unreasonable costs on us and require an unreasonable diversion of resources given the volume of material that would need to be sourced, analysed and reviewed for public disclosure, which would cover a significant volume of material and reportage. It would take a considerable amount of time to obtain and evaluate the documents you are seeking, given that as mentioned previously buses have been using Station Terrace as a bus stand for several years, pre-dating TfL.
The use of this exception is subject to a public interest test, which requires us to consider whether the public interest in applying the exception outweighs the public interest in disclosure. We recognise that the release of information would promote accountability and transparency in public services and also help address your particular concerns about this issue. However, the time it would take to provide the information you have requested would divert a disproportionate amount of our resources from its core functions and on balance we consider that the public interest currently favours the use of the exception. We will consider your request again, if you are able to narrow its scope, to for example, a narrower period time but we hope the information provided to you will be of value.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.
Yours sincerely
Jasmine Howard FOI Case Officer FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
