Proposed cuts or alterations to bus services

Just read this tweet and thought the message needs to be passed on.

I’d happily give up on the inner London sections if instead the 172 could be extended to Bell Green Retail Park. There are plenty of ways to navigate through Central London but to get to the largest local retail hub you really need a car from many parts of SE23.

Has Vicky actually been told what the proposals are?
If the article is correct then the affected sections are E&C to Holborn and Aldwych to Clerkenwell which you could hardly describe as “our local bus routes”. What I read in the article is TfL wanting to move resources from lightly used inner London routes to busier sections in the suburbs - I can’t see what’s wrong with that. With fares frozen and hopper fares allowing free interchange, surely something has got to give.

I think (if I am interpreting it correctly) that the 171 would stop and start at E&C. So I guess it would only affect someone who travels the journey past E&C into town and before E&C outbound. So, instead of being able to get on the bus from near home all the way to Holborn, say… they would have to change at E&C for the last part of the journey… it’s in inconvenience, I suppose… getting a bus from E&C can be problematic especially in rush hour. But I imagine you’d get used to it fairly quickly.

I went through E&C every day when I commuted from Camberwell. At rush hour there was a fight for scant few seats on to most buses. I’d hate to be in that mob.

And this is why I leave very early in the morning and leave the office at 4, thus avoiding the worst of rush hour…

Buses starting at E&C would be empty - plenty of seats … initially. But a larger problem is that buses between E&C and Aldwych may well be busier and going into town you might find it difficult to do the final bit of the journey on packed buses. Still, not everybody wants to go to Holborn, so it probably makes sense to maximise the number of people changing at E&C (or Waterloo).

The problem being not everyone is able to work flexible hours and have no choice but to travel in rush hour…I sadly am one of them!
I live in Forest Hill (near Horniman)and regularly bemoan the lack of busses into the west end from my neck of the woods.
The bus service in SE London is quite frankly pants compared to SW london.

I agree. A lot of bus routes either replicate rail routes or are just obscure.

Leave only the P4 and a night bus to New Cross for the “night tube”.

Here is a handy link to FH bus routes.

I agree… I am very luck in that regard.

What is E&c?

Elephant & Castle

Oh yes of course!

If you live near the horn I’m an then you have an abundance of buses going into the west end 176, 185.and if you get on a 197 to the end of Barry Road, then you can also pick up a 12 to go to Oxford Circus.

But surely if you do not drive then you do not choose to live a long way from bus stops? I am disabled and therefore cannot drive. When we bought a property in Forest Hill we chose a place that was very near to transport. If you live near a bus stop in Forest Hill then you have a good selection to either go to Central London or Croydon. Saying that, I now do 95% of my shopping on line. It’s the way forward! Anything I buy online I use price checking websites. The way prices can vary is ridiculous. I was looking for a travel bag the other day. Prices varied (for the exact same bag) from £109 in John Lewis to £89 in Debenhams to £75 at Amazon with free next day delivery. Forget the retail parks, they are a huge rip off. Shop online and save your self money and use your free time for nice outings to the countryside and the coast.

The 185 only goes to Victoria-though it may indeed be central I work in W1 so its no use at all -If I wanted to get to Victoria I always use Southern rail.
The 176 only goes to Tottenham court road (it used to go to Oxford Circus much handier)
Again needing a 25 minute walk to get to bond st or Marble arch.
The 197 goes from Peckham to Croydon-definetely not the west end.
And finally the 12-which is my bus of choice during problems with the overground BUT its still a bit rubbish…we actually don’t have a single bus route in SE23 which takes us into Oxford Circus
or Marble arch-I believe Peckham has about 3 that do just that.

Well I’m disabled and I manage to get to W1. You can get the 185, then change to a 38 which goes from Victoria, through Park Lane. Or you get a 176 to Tottenham Court Road and change onto a 73 which will take you to Marble Arch. And as I said in my reply, you change from 197 at Barry Road and can jump on a 12.