TfL Ref: 1279-1819

Thank you for your email received by us on 7 August 2018 asking for information about the Central line London Underground service.

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 hold some of the information you require. You asked for the following:

Please can you confirm the performance of the frequency of eastbound central line trains to Epping from Liverpool St against the advertised frequency after 16:00

Please find attached a table providing the number of trains run against the schedule for the above route and requested time period.

and the regulation policy in times of disruption

We do not hold a policy document regarding regulation in times of disruption.

Please can you also provide the details behind the decision to run more evening eastbound services to Hainault than in 2010.

The main change to services between 2010 to present occurred in September 2013, when the Working Timetable (WTT- Edition 67) was implemented. Whilst the current timetable (WTT69) was introduced for the purposes of the Night Tube, it did not change the service to Epping from Liverpool Street after 16:00, except during the running of Night Tube services.

Prior to this change there were 53 trains to the Epping branch from Leytonstone between 16:00 and 21:00 and 63 to the Hainault branch during the same period. After the introduction of WTT67, the number of trains to the Epping Branch during this time increased to 67 and the number to the Hainault branch rose to 68. Consequently, the Hainault branch which previously had ten more trains running during this period than the Epping branch now only has one more train. This change resulted from a general increase to the evening off-peak service. The number of trains to Epping itself increased from 39 to 48.

After 21:00 there are more trains to the Hainault branch because one of the Central line’s main train maintenance depots is located there. Before 2013, several additional trains returned to this depot earlier than 21:00 and so the service was geared more towards Hainault at the end of the evening peak, whereas with the introduction of the WTT67 these trains now continue to run until nearer the end of the traffic day, giving an even service to both branches up to 21:00. The amount of trains on the Epping Branch leaving Leytonstone after 21:00 rose from 18 to 21, whilst the number towards the Hainault branch was increased from 19 to 31, as more trains return to the maintenance depot during this period rather than earlier.

If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.

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
Information Governance
Transport For London

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