Timetable uproar at altered bus service (From East London and West Essex Guardian Series)

Timetable uproar at altered bus service

11:00am Thursday 10th March 2005

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TRANSPORT for London has still not updated its timetable information more than ten days after making major alterations to the 549 bus schedule.

Councillor Morris Hickey has lost patience with Transport for London (TfL) which has failed to amend its timetable after reducing the service, which runs from South Woodford Tube station to Loughton Tube station, from a half-hourly service to an hourly one as from Saturday, February 26.

Buses have also stopped running from around 7pm.

But, as revealed in the Guardian last week, the TfL website still shows buses from South Woodford towards Loughton as running at 10 and 40 minutes past the hour from 6.40am.

It also says buses still run at 10 minutes past the hour between 7am and 11pm. It states that the last bus leaves South Woodford at 11.10pm.

Despite last week thanking the Guardian and Mr Hickey for bringing the matter to its attention and "assuring the public that this matter will be dealt with as soon as possible", both the website timetables and those at the various bus stops have still not been altered.

This means passengers are still expecting a service after 7pm when in fact a bus would not turn up until 6.40am the next day.

In an e-mail to TfL service change advocate Chris Hall, Mr Hickey said: "The website has still not changed.

"I begin to wonder whether TfL has even the competence for organising a Bacchanalian festival on the manufacturing premises of brewers.

"I understand that TfL as a Government organisation is subject to the corporate performance regime of the Audit Commission.

"It's my intention to draw to the attention of the commission these quite insufferable failings regarding publicity so that they can be taken into account."

Mr Hickey added: "To add to my already high level of anger, I discovered this afternoon in Hillside Avenue, Woodford Green, that the roadside timetables still have not been changed.

"This is an absolute disgrace."

A spokesman for TfL said the correct information would appear on the TfL website this week.

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