TfL reveal another bus service reduction in south east London
Bus service reductions have been arriving thick and fast recently in south east London and TfL have revealed yet another.
Route 486 will see a cut in buses per hour with a reduction to every 12 minutes during weekdays. It runs from North Greenwich station to Bexleyheath via Charlton and the Queen Elizabeth hospital in Woolwich.
It currently operates every 10 minutes thus stops along the route drop from six buses per hour to five. Not the biggest in isolation but it’s a continual chipping away which includes other routes.
Latest bus cuts
The 486 is just the latest in a string of cuts serving areas of new housing as well as hospitals across south east London.
Route 178 linking Kidbrooke – where 5,500 homes are planned and thousands already built – is seeing a reduction in buses to the hospital and Elizabeth line at Woolwich.
Other routes reduced in frequency late last year which also serve the Queen Elizabeth hospital include the 291 and 386.
Last month the 472 was axed entirely to be replaced by the limited stop SL11. It’s the only area in London where an existing route has been fully removed when a Superloop commenced and ensures a sizeable reduction in stopping buses at thousands of new homes along the former 472 route.
Council support
Greenwich Council supported that cut and have been very quiet on a succession of other service reductions. In recent weeks they appeared more keen to highlight minor changes to early morning service son some routes compared to all-day cuts on many other routes.
The 229 also saw service reductions on the same day the 472 was removed. Both served new homes in south Thamesmead now skipped by Superloop route SL11.
Something tells me if the Mayor and government wasn’t of the same party they would be a tad more vocal. See also rail cuts introduced by the Conservatives and now retained by Labour.
Whilst buses in London are struggling with falling passengers it seems odd TfL are choosing to cut routes serving major new housing developments where a good service would be expected to generate ridership.
As it is, thousands of new homes seem to do little when it comes to bus planning and a succession of service cuts.
I wonder if TfL are cutting routes like this as they see demand falling yet aren’t considering people switching to the 129/108 while its free. I confess I do that from the tube stop to Ikea. Trouble is that may be skewing figures and the free trips on the 129/108 end in April so then I will go back to using the 486 more.
Under a Labour government and Labour Mayor we are seeing bus cuts speed up and rail cuts retained. And Starmer promised change. If anything this is worse than the Tories.
Pennycook’s own constituency to make it even more ridiculous. Happy to extol the virtues of new housing but silent on cuts serving new transport in his own back yard.
Maybe when residents move into the new housing the buses will get busier, and the frequency will be restored!
Your are absolutely right in what you say ED I could really could not agree with you more. With a Labour Mayor For London, Labour Government and backed by Labour Controlled Greenwich Council we are definitely seeing bus cuts being speeded up with frequency cuts and routes axed completely. While cuts to rail services are retained and more services facing refucec services with less trains. Losing the Charing Cross trains on the Woolwich and Greenwich waa a major blow for local residents. Now even busy oute 53 does not reach Trafalgar Square or Whitehall (Horsehuarda) so another blow for lical residents who have lost two vital links to Central London. I also agree on what Graham.and anonymous said too.
Looking at the new housing nearing completion in Plumstead..
For the life of me I can’t see that it’s aimed at low income starter homes for 2 or 3 person families…
Am I missing something
The reason why many of the buses from the Bexleyheath garage and plumstead garage are changing/moving is because in the next 4/5 years the bus garage in Plumstead will be either moved or demolished along with the whole trade park.
The bus garage owns the land that the trade park is on and the deal has “unofficially” been done with the housing development across the road to build more towers. (This came from the guy managing the existing site across the road) They have already started ground work on the space by Mcdonalds.
Also makes you think that is why they finally doing something with the underpass but not enough yet as it will most likely have to be changed or refurbed when the blocks start going up so it gives the residents there direct access to station
South London has the worst Public Transport. Pay more into London economy. Very little underground Stations and we are being stripped again on more services.
These bus cuts introduced by a Labour Mayor For London who also controls TFL. Are also backed by Labour Controlled Greenwich Council and Local Labour MP”s.
These bus cuts are having a serious affect for people travelling to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for work hospital appointments and to visit patients. Routes affected are 178 291 386 486 which all serve the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Some areas of the Borough still do not have a direct bus service to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital despite the Hospital becoming the major Hospital for tbe Borough in 2001 after Labour Health Minister Feank Dobson signed off the closure of Greenwich District Hospital after they won the 1997 General Election.Despite local Labour MP’s promising to keep Greenwich District Hospital open.
We need to see more buses and bus routes serving the Queen Elizabeth Hospital on a daily basis from all areas of the Borough.
So we need to say to the Mayor of London TFL and ,Greenwich Council hands of our bus services. We need more buses not less.
Well said Graham. I totally agtee with ypu 100%..Hands off our bus services. Parking at the Hospital is virtually impossible at busy times during thd day and early evenings. Witb parklimg fines being issued even when you paid at tne pay machine.
To cut bus services tbat serve the hospital including routes 178 291 386 and 486 adds insult to injury. The cuts to bus services ate not necessarily and ate not acceptable.
Labour Councillors and MP:s backed these bus service cuts with TFL. So it is time for a change of Administration at Greenwich Council.
Oh please don’t let another bus route to be axed and replaced by another Superloop just like what happened with the 472 that was replaced by the SL11. Or is this something different and services to be reduced.
Good morning,
The destance from Edgward to Victoria need superloop because bus N32 finished before o5 am
Well said Graham. I totally agtee with ypu 100%..Hands off our bus services. Parking at the Hospital is virtually impossible at busy times during thd day and early evenings. Witb parklimg fines being issued even when you paid at tne pay machine.
To cut bus services tbat serve the hospital including routes 178 291 386 and 486 adds insult to injury. The cuts to bus services ate not necessarily and ate not acceptable.
Labour Councillors and MP:s backed these bus service cuts with TFL. So it is time for a change of Administration at Greenwich Council.
I have to agree on what Graham said. Which is why many Londoners want Sadiq Khan out and to replace him with a new Mayor of London. Whoever it maybe to take on the job and make London a safer, better Capital City with better transport and better policing. Including in areas that are prone to crime and violence.
Absolutely Anonymous i agtee with both yourself and Graham. Both make very valid points. We do need a new Mayor in London that will do the job to improve London ncluding ransport and infrastructure.We have some of the worst public transport compared tp other capital cities across Europe and the world. We have seen services decline since 2016. London is no longer a city people want to rush to visit and choosing to visit other cities instead.
Absolutely Anonymous i agtee with both yourself and Graham. Both make very valid points. We do need a new Mayor in London that will do the job to improve London ncluding ransport and infrastructure.We have some of the worst public transport compared to other capital cities across Europe and the world. We have seen services decline since 2016. London is no longer a city people want to rush to visit and choosing to visit other cities instead.
Cutting bus services to Hospitals including Queen Elizabeth Hospital and Queen Mary’s Hospital which staff patients and visitors rely on to get to the Hospital shows just uncaring Labour Politicians are. As rightly said Sadiq Khan Labour Mayor For London, Labour controlled TFL and Greenwich Council and Local Labour MP”S supported these cuts to bus services. There was no public consultations to get passengers and local residents views and comments along with hospital staff and local charities who work with disabled and vulnerable people views on changes to bus routes and how the changes will affect them. them.
This changes were all agreed behind closed doors so much for transparcy..
Medice Cura Te Ipsum – perhaps some local communities could look at a Section22 permit operation for local bus services which is carefully crafted to deliver the local services using Class B licence holders, on routes that cannot be challenged by TfL contractors as ‘unfair’ – drivers can be Class B (with MIDAS) & services locally managed (and include a late night pub sweeper get you home service with ‘a paid ahead’ fund that provides ‘trip credits’, and encourages young drivers to use local minibuses to get out at night for social activities
Drivers could be p/t retired folk looking for something to keep busy with
Modern systems could also enable audit of staff/client use of a service for NHS sites. My estimate is that a big hospital generates 30,000+ trips per day, & the costs to provide & manage the car parking (often using over 50% of the land in the NHS sites) could be reduced by a substantial amount with some well planned local mobility provision
Some examples local to me
– local rail service = 24 trains/hour 06.00-00.00 just 5-8 min walk but obstructed route through car park!
– local buses as frequent but a 500 mtr hike & crossing busy road
– local bike hire – no provision at hospital
Some staff drive under 2Km & complain about taking 20 min to get in/out of car park – they could cycle in 6 min, or run gently in around 20 min!
Let’s talk a MobilityMakeover? saving the £6000/year it costs to run a car?
So apparently TfL reveals another bus service reduction with more Superloop bus routes to be added that could replace and axe existing bus routes in and around Southeast London and other parts of London. Would that change the way on how people use the bus to get around and to commute to work who don’t drive.
We do not really need anymore superloop routes serving outer London orbital.routes. with very limited stops. We need good reliable frequent local bus services going where people need to go. Cutting us setvices serving Hospitals which normally have vety limited parking or very high parking charges with parking fines being given out two a penny by the parking firms employed at Hospitals..These bus service cuts to routes 178 229 291 386 486 serving Hospitals and other local bus route cuts including route 51 which has also seen a frequency cut recently are step too far. All of which have been backed by Labour Controlled Greenwich Council. So it may we have to say goodbye to the current Labour shambles at the town hall and vote for change witb local councillors who really care about their community local residents the elderly disabled vulnerable people many who rely on local bus services. We are simply not seeing this from the Council at present. Stop the cuts to our bus services now and restore them.to their previous frequencies..
So a small part of SE London gets the Elizabeth line and that’s great but over the past decade we have seen bus and train cuts at stealth
The 53 cut back to Lambeth from the West End, the 180 being pointlessly rerouted cutting Thamesmead off from Lewisham the 472 being axed and replaced by the SL11, SE axing Charing Cross trains from the Bexleyheath, Woolwich and Greenwich lines, now all the bus reductions.