Passenger fury over bus delays

Tuesday June 2, 2009

Bus bosses admit an important borough route has problems but are refusing to help make the service better.

The 266 - which links Hammersmith and Brent Cross - is notoriously late and crowded. But officials from London Buses (a division of Transport for London) closed their consultation on the troubled route on May 29 - and your h&f news can reveal that a shake-up of the service is not on the cards.

Instead, they blamed roadworks over the five-year evaluation period for the delays. The double-decker 266 buses travel along the 10.7mile-long route via Askew Road, Harlesden and Neasden.

Regular users say that it is common to wait for up to 40 minutes, before several buses turn up at the same time. The 266 is also notorious for failing to finish the whole route and ditching passengers at Starch Green.

Your h&f news understands that London Buses did think of splitting the route to minimise delays, but decided there was no suitable location to do so.

It is not clear whether adding resources or trying to manage the existing ones more efficiently was discussed.

H&F cabinet member Nick Botterill reacted to the news by saying: "For residents, especially the elderly, the unreliability of the 266 bus has been a constant source of frustration.

"We wait to hear the precise details of London Buses' plans to improve the service, but it would be a bit simplistic to solely blame roadworks for the route's faults."

The most recent London Buses report shows that the 266 did fall below the agreed minimum standards for 'excess waiting times' on several occasions in just the past two years.

A TfL spokesperson said: "London Buses sets strict performance criteria for all routes and our review found that the 266 is meeting these criteria.

"We are aware of some delays on the route caused by traffic congestion and we will continue to work with the operator, Metroline, to monitor the performance of the route and ensure it operates as reliably as possible."

But Faderdera Justine, 37, of Percy Road, Shepherds Bush, said: "The 266 bus is the worst in London. It's a nightmare. I have lived in the area for 18 years and nothing has ever been done to improve it."

She added: "It doesn't run on time. Three buses come at once and then there will be none for ages. It's awful."