Londoners in Dire Straits after bus route immortalised by rock giants faces cut

Bus travel through London could be revamped, with one route carrying millions of people each year at risk of closure, while others could be reduced.

The London double-decker buses are an iconic part of life in the capital like the red phone boxes and Paddington Bear.

Bus route 19, which could be cut shorter, even featured on a song by the kings of ‘dad rock’ music, Dire Straits’ song Wild West End.

While loved by tourists, buses are like Marmite to locals who rely on them. And that relationship could get more testy if planned bus route changes go ahead.

Transport for London (TfL) is looking to rejig several bus routes after it has seen a drop in passenger demand on some legs while other sections are rammed.

Here is a roundup of how the central London bus routes might change in the new year, and why TfL wants to transform the network.

Buses 19 and 38

If the changes happen, route 19 between Finsbury Park and Battersea Bridge could be diverted to Victoria station instead.

Bus route 38 currently running between Clapton Pond and Victoria would be shortened to terminate at Holborn. Its frequency would be slashed from 6 minutes to every 10 minutes on Saturdays, and from 8 minutes to every 12 minutes on Sundays, early mornings and evenings.

However, bus route 19 would see its frequency increased on Sunday early mornings from every 15 minutes to 12 minutes.

TfL said route 38 with two overlapping legs ‘no longer matches the demand patterns’ after demand has dropped at Victoria and between Hackney and Essex Road.

‘Route 19 is unreliable, and the busiest section is around Islington Green,’ it insists.

Meanwhile, nightbuses on these routes would not be affected.

The good news is that TfL is looking to introduce a new route 10, which would connect Battersea Park and Dalston (Balls Pond Road). The new bus would run every 10 minutes on Monday-Saturday daytime, and every 12 minutes on Sundays and evenings.

TfL said the new route would help maintain enough capacity between Essex Road and Holborn where demand is highest.

Some passengers will be left worse off by the changes. Around 356 trips on route 19 between Knightsbridge and King’s Road and north of Angel. A total of 1,007 daily trips on route 38 between Victoria and Clapton Pond will be disrupted, TfL said.

Some people travelling to Great Ormond Street Hospital and the Royal London Hospital for Integrated Medicine will be forced to change buses if the changes go ahead.

What is happening with bus routes 349 and 424?

In north London, TfL is proposing to close route 349 between Ponders End and Stamford Hill. The service saw 4.2 million journeys a year, but TfL said the route ‘overlaps significantly with other services.’

Meanwhile in west London, bus 424 between Putney High Street and Fulham would be partially replaced with a newbus route 454 between Putney Bridge station and Fulham.

The new route would run every 45 minutes instead of the current 30 minutes.

Concerns have been raised over how the changes will affect disabled and elderly passengers in particular, from whom changing a bus might bring more hurdles.

Emma Vogelmann, the CEO of Transport for All group, told Metro: ‘Buses are a vital public service we should all be able to rely on, but for many disabled people they are a lifeline.

‘We know disabled people use buses more frequently than non-disabled people. So, when services are cut or reduced, we feel the impact first and hardest.

‘These proposals will mean longer waits and less certainty, making buses less usable for disabled people.  With fewer journeys taken, these cuts will lead to more cuts in the future.

‘Reliable buses don’t just move people around the city, they keep us connected to it. London needs a bus network that supports everyday life, not one that quietly shrinks it.’

Campaigners are currently working on their own response to TfL’s proposal, but this is what a London passenger watchdog, London TravelWatch, had to say.

Their spokesperson told Metro: ‘London TravelWatch understands the need to review different routes on the bus network to make the most effective use of resources, and we expect TfL to put savings back into the network to meet demand in those areas that most need it.

‘When TfL consults on changes to bus routes, we always highlight any concerns we have that might have a detrimental impact on passengers. This includes asking TfL to make sure it minimises the need for people to have to change buses where routes are altered – particularly at night – or at least provide the easiest way for passengers to change between buses where this is unavoidable.

‘We will continue to monitor changes to London’s bus routes, and urge TfL to make sure they engage with passengers to put their needs first.’

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