FOI request detail

Information about the performance of buses through Crouch End

Request ID: FOI-2229-1920
Date published: 30 January 2020

You asked

I am making the following request for information under the Freedom of Information legislation and my request relates individually (ie the information should not be consolidated) to the following bus routes in each direction: W7, W3, W5, 91 and 41. The time span over which I am requesting information is for four weeks from 23 September 2019 to 20 October 2019, both days inclusive. The data requested is: 1. Please provide the excess/excessive waiting time for each hour on each day for each route in both directions between the hours of 7am and 9pm. If the information is not available on an hourly basis, please provide the closest information that you have. Please also provide the minimum standard waiting time for each route. 2. Please provide bus speed data for each of the routes per day between the hours of 7am and 9pm during the four week period specified. Please provide this broken down into hourly slots or if this information is not available, please show each peak travel separately (am and pm) to the rest of the day. I am particularly interested in the evening peak period. Please confirm how TFL define peak travel 3. For each route please provide the daily passenger numbers over the four week period. I would be grateful if I could receive your response as soon as possible. I am requesting the data as the severe disruption to the bus journeys during the trial period for Liveable Crouch End road closures had a serious impact on the residents of Crouch End and their ability to use the buses. The Council do not seem to regard disruption to bus travel as a concern and I hope to persuade them that bus travel should be a priority. Thank you

We answered

Our ref: FOI-2229-1920

Thank you for your request received by Transport for London (TfL) on 24 October 2019 asking for information about bus routes.

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 some of the information you requested. You asked:

I am making the following request for information under the Freedom of Information legislation and my request relates individually (ie the information should not be consolidated) to the following bus routes in each direction:

W7, W3, W5, 91 and 41.

The time span over which I am requesting information is for four weeks from 23 September 2019 to 20 October 2019, both days inclusive.

The data requested is:

1.Please provide the excess/excessive waiting time for each hour on each day for each route in both directions between the hours of 7am and 9pm. If the information is not available on an hourly basis, please provide the closest information that you have. Please also provide the minimum standard waiting time for each route.

2.Please provide bus speed data for each of the routes per day between the hours of 7am and 9pm during the four week period specified. Please provide this broken down into hourly slots or if this information is not available, please show each peak travel separately (am and pm) to the rest of the day. I am particularly interested in the evening peak period. Please confirm how TFL define peak travel

Unfortunately, to provide the information you have requested in Questions 1 and 2 would exceed the ‘appropriate limit’ of £450 set by the Freedom of Information (Appropriate Limit and Fees) Regulations 2004. Under section 12 of the FOI Act, we are not obliged to comply with a request if we estimate that the cost of determining whether we hold the information, locating and retrieving it and extracting it from other information would exceed the appropriate limit. This is calculated at £25 per hour for every hour spent on the activities described.

We would need to establish if we hold the information requested from various bus companies who operate those routes then manually review each bus record from different drivers who worked on those bus routes at different times and on different days. It is also possible that further searches and checks would need to be conducted to ensure that we can be certain we have conducted as thorough a search as possible to determine what, if any, information we hold in relation to your requests.

The process of reviewing such a vast amount of information from different sources as well as reviewing any further searches necessary to ensure all recorded information is collated, would exceed the cost limit described above and so we are refusing the first two questions in your request.

To help bring the cost of responding to your request within the £450 limit, you may wish to consider narrowing its scope so that we can more easily locate, retrieve and extract the information you are seeking. You may find it more beneficial to request specific recorded information for a specific bus route.

If you want to refine your request or make a Freedom of Information Act request in future, please bear in mind that the Freedom of Information Act allows you to request recorded information held by us. You should identify the information that you want as clearly and concisely as you can, specifying the types of document that you are looking for. You might also consider limiting your request to a narrowed period of time, or fewer bus routes.

Although your request can take the form of a question, rather than a request for specific documents, we do not have to answer your question if it would require the creation of new information or the provision of a judgement, explanation, advice or opinion that was not already recorded at the time of your request.

3. For each route please provide the daily passenger numbers over the four week period.

I would be grateful if I could receive your response as soon as possible. I am requesting the data as the severe disruption to the bus journeys during the trial period for Liveable Crouch End road closures had a serious impact on the residents of Crouch End and their ability to use the buses. The Council do not seem to regard disruption to bus travel as a concern and I hope to persuade them that bus travel should be a priority.

Please find attached the passenger numbers for each of the bus routes you requested.

In the meantime, if you have any queries or would like to discuss your request, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Melissa Nichols

FOI Case Officer

Information Governance

Transport For London

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