Central London Bus Route Changes & Electric Vehicles
Request ID: FOI-1779-2122 Date published: 24 November 2021
You asked
In 2019, major changes commenced with Central London Bus Routes.
Following my above statement, could you please answer the following;
1) Will there (in due course) be a consultation launched for further changes to Central London Bus Routes? If yes, will this be more route changes, curtailments, PVR reductions or full route withdrawals?
2) Will there (in due course) be new bus routes created in Central London?
3) Why are majority of Central London Bus Routes awarded/retained with existing Hybrid vehicles rather than being awarded brand new Electric vehicles (e.g bus routes 56 & 139)? Isn't it more logical to have more brand new Electric vehicles within Zone 1 Central London with older Hybrid vehicles relocated to Outer London Bus Routes?
We answered
TfL Ref: 1779 - 2122
Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 9 November 2021 asking for information about central London bus route changes. 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 the information you require. Your questions and our replies are as follows: In 2019, major changes commenced with Central London Bus Routes.
Following my above statement, could you please answer the following;
1) Will there (in due course) be a consultation launched for further changes to Central London Bus Routes? If yes, will this be more route changes, curtailments, PVR reductions or full route withdrawals?
2) Will there (in due course) be new bus routes created in Central London? We keep the bus network under continuous review to ensure our services reflect changing demand and deliver value for money. As part of this work, we are making adjustments to some bus routes at certain times to reflect changing demand. In central and inner London, increased rail capacity and improved active travel options have continued to change the way people travel. Demand on many routes was declining prior to the coronavirus pandemic, and while the long-term impacts remain unclear, ridership is not expected to fully return to pre-pandemic levels in the near future.
In the immediate term we have been making some frequency reductions at certain times to reflect projected usage will help rebuild our financial sustainability by reducing operating costs – ensuring we can continue to invest in the services that customers rely on. We will also be looking at more substantial structural alterations to bus routes in inner and central London, which may include elements of new bus services, with any such changes being subject to full stakeholder and public consultation and an Equality Impact Assessment. All details, including the consultation material will be available on our website in due course. The first consultations on these are likely to take place later year and will potentially include all of the measures mentioned in question 1.
3) Why are majority of Central London Bus Routes awarded/retained with existing Hybrid vehicles rather than being awarded brand new Electric vehicles (e.g bus routes 56 & 139)? Isn't it more logical to have more brand new Electric vehicles within Zone 1 Central London with older Hybrid vehicles relocated to Outer London Bus Routes? Making the bus fleet zero emission by 2034 is a pan-London plan which benefits all the capital as well as the central zone you mention. When new vehicles join the fleet now, they are zero emission to help us with this rapid transition. It is much more financially efficient to introduce these at the time their contracts come up for renewal rather than vary the contracts ahead of these points so that one particular zone can be focussed on first. The latter would tend to result in a much less cost effective use of the same investment for overall fleet emissions reduction and a slower transition unless premiums were paid for displacing the existing vehicles involved. The earlier work to lift the diesel fleet to the ultra-clean Euro VI standard also focussed on the capital as a whole but was also to able to incorporate retrofitting of mid-life vehicles without the need to renew their contracts.
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Yours sincerely
Sara Thomas FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
