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Original poster

London Transport- Bus Plans

32 replies

mrshoho · 18/08/2020 19:20

For a while now I've been wondering what the plan is for public transport in September when schools and colleges return and how they will handle SD with hundreds of thousands of extra passengers during rush hour. At the moment doubledeckers are limited to a max of 30 passengers and when they are full a sign is put on the front to let passengers know to wait for the next one. The plan is that school children will be given priority on every other bus so commuters will likely face some disruption, but fair enough it is important for the school kids to get to school safely on time, so far so good. The LT spokesman then goes on to say that the max limit of 30 will be removed on the bus transporting only school kids. In other words they will all be packed on together. Am I the only one who sees a huge problem brewing? Why the hell are they not saying they are going to increase the number of buses during these very busy times? I know I've highlighted London but is this the plan for the rest of the country as well? Our borough has spent the last two months turning every possible road into single carriage ways and adding cycle lanes. Traffic will be at a standstill and there's a push for as many kids as possible to cycle to school. I'd love for my kids to do that but the dangerous drivers and the casualties I've seen involving cyclists mean it's not happening. Luckily we live close enough that they will be walking every day but the majority of their school community will be travelling by bus and train.

OP posts:

Original poster

mrshoho · 18/08/2020 19:46

I'm so pissed off that it's the same old story in that the UK is constantly reacting rather than being innovative and proactive. We could have looked at using the army to drive coaches. If the government really wanted to do everything possible to keep schools open and prevent local shutdowns it could have done so much more.

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Feellikedancingyeah · 18/08/2020 21:01

Totally agree with you OP. We are in Sheffield and there is still no information about school transport buses for September. As you said, all the buses will be in demand. Our school buses often go past full and I can see a lot of pupils being late because of this issue

Original poster

mrshoho · 18/08/2020 21:35

I've just looked at the transport for schools guidance on gov.uk. All good in theory but has anything actually been done apart from making cycle lanes everywhere? it talks about liaising with schools and local government but when? Schools are rather busy right now with the results fiasco.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/transport-to-school-and-other-places-of-education-autumn-term-2020/transport-to-school-and-other-places-of-education-autumn-term-2020

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Feellikedancingyeah · 18/08/2020 22:23

That's a very long document but does not answer if there definitely will be extra buses or not. I will be complaining if students are marked late and given detention due to these issues

Spidey66 · 18/08/2020 22:32

I've heard TFL are suspending free travel for kids, to make up some of the lost revenue during lockdown. I know a lot of parents are up in arms about it, but it may actually help SD if it means kids use them less.

It should also stop them being mobile youth clubs, and encourage exercise. Win-win!

Feellikedancingyeah · 18/08/2020 22:37

Kids pay 80p a journey to travel on buses here. Will kids in London get a reduced fare?

Original poster

mrshoho · 18/08/2020 22:58

There's a child fare on the tube so I would guess it would be the same on the buses. Government are pushing for kids with less than 2 miles distance to school to walk or cycle to free up spaces so by charging they hope to put them off getting on the bus. I imagine this to be a contentious issue in the next mayoral election. The timing for after half term is questionable.

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Danglingmod · 18/08/2020 23:02

No, I don't think there's a plan for extra buses anywhere I've heard of. How could they? They can't magic up extra buses. Or trains.

School journeys are going to be as rammed as normal (even if the kids are not going to the same schools - so there goes the bubble system )

Original poster

mrshoho · 18/08/2020 23:09

That's the thing though there are currently coaches/buses idle due to less travel. We have had months to get our act together but instead we have cycle lanes. I'm all for cycling but as soon as you have to leave the cycle lanes you then have to contend with dangerous drivers and busy roads.

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Feellikedancingyeah · 18/08/2020 23:36

Thanks for the info. Sounds like our cities have the same issues. We also have new cycle lanes which are empty and have been in the news for hindering emergency vehicles

Aramox · 19/08/2020 07:16

There seems to be a plan to limit half the buses on some routes to pupils - www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.mylondon.news/news/local-news/london-bus-coronavirus-travel-rules-18788777.amp

mosscarpet · 19/08/2020 07:17

Im also annoyed about this. Where I live there has been NO info released about how this will be managed. I wrote to my MP in July asking what would be done about this whole transport to school issue. He did write back, and contacted the head of our local council. He sent me her reply which basically siad "were looking into it" and also stated that as I lived 3 miles form the school she thought my children should be able to "active travel" to school. Well in my opinion an hours walk each way, often in the dark at 7.30 am in the morning (teenage girls, one very porrly lit stretch of road past a woods) is not OK, and they cant cycle because it involves 2 60 mile an hour roads where people drive like lunatics, not to mention they have to take loads of stuff including PE kits, massive art folders and musical instruments which would not be possible on a bike.
And I havent heard anything else. And school starts in 2 weeks.....

mosscarpet · 19/08/2020 07:20

and dont get me wrong, I am also all for being active. We are active family. I run, a lot, and was about to run a full marathon in March, so I am not against my kids being active, but this whole "just get them to walk or cycle to school" asnwer is just not an option in a lot of cases.

Hearhoovesthinkzebras · 19/08/2020 07:26

The LT spokesman then goes on to say that the max limit of 30 will be removed on the bus transporting only school kids.

Do LT buses transport only school children though? The buses here certainly don't. They are regular buses that school children and the public both use. They are usually jam packed at school start and end times so how will they manage if numbers are so limited?

AveEldon · 19/08/2020 07:34

This is the gov guidance www.gov.uk/government/publications/transport-to-school-and-other-places-of-education-autumn-term-2020/transport-to-school-and-other-places-of-education-autumn-term-2020

From TFL tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2020/august/tfl-urges-children-to-walk-cycle-and-scoot-to-school-to-help-children-safely-return-to-the-classroom

runwithme · 19/08/2020 07:43

To the PP, there is a school in our borough that uses a London bus for their students. Not my the school that DS1 goes to. It's a 45 min walk for him, uphill. I can take him to school or bring him home but I cant do both

runwithme · 19/08/2020 07:45

Oh, and my sons bus runs every half hour and is a single decker! He says that sometimes at the stop after the one he gets on it doesnt stop because it's at capacity! Going home, he is lucky if he gets on the first one. The same single decker bus serves 3 secondary schools and a primary (so a couple of mums get on with prams). One of the secondary schools is the one that has their own bus! So at the best of times it's awful.

Original poster

mrshoho · 19/08/2020 08:11

@Hearhoovesthinkzebras

The LT spokesman then goes on to say that the max limit of 30 will be removed on the bus transporting only school kids.

what LT are saying is that every other bus that comes along will be prioritised for school children. it is these buses where the max limit of 30 will not apply. So in other words cram them on and forget about SD.

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basilika · 19/08/2020 08:23

I've been wondering about this. The buses that go through where I live are taking the kids to 3 different secondary. Not much further away are 3 secondary schools (boys school, girls school and faith school) right next to each other, with children using the same buses. These buses are always packed.

Danglingmod · 19/08/2020 08:33

This is what teachers have been saying for weeks. Even if a small bubble system were possible in secondary (it's not), even if social distancing were possible in secondary (it's not), it's all popped by the transport infrastructure. Kids going to multiple different schools on the same tram, train, bus or tube, packed in as closely as ever before. They do have to wear masks on public transport, though.

Original poster

mrshoho · 19/08/2020 08:38

@basilika

Sounds v similar to my area. I'm starting to think it's going to be so chaotic that the children will end up being forced to cycle as our LA seem to have invested so heavily in cycle lanes. My Son has wanted to cycle in the past but I've always put him off and so he walks about a mile which is fine. My friends who are both retired police said it was the one thing they put their foot down with their Son as they had seen too many cycling accidents over the years. Yes the cycle lanes make things safer but there are still roads along the route where they end.

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Flagsfiend · 19/08/2020 09:06

If lots of the children do start cycling I wonder what we will do with all the bikes? If a quarter of our students cycled we'd have 500 bike needing securely storing on site for a school day...

motherrunner · 19/08/2020 09:09

@mosscarpet

Im also annoyed about this. Where I live there has been NO info released about how this will be managed. I wrote to my MP in July asking what would be done about this whole transport to school issue. He did write back, and contacted the head of our local council. He sent me her reply which basically siad "were looking into it" and also stated that as I lived 3 miles form the school she thought my children should be able to "active travel" to school. Well in my opinion an hours walk each way, often in the dark at 7.30 am in the morning (teenage girls, one very porrly lit stretch of road past a woods) is not OK, and they cant cycle because it involves 2 60 mile an hour roads where people drive like lunatics, not to mention they have to take loads of stuff including PE kits, massive art folders and musical instruments which would not be possible on a bike. And I havent heard anything else. And school starts in 2 weeks.....

Agree @mosscarpet. I’m a teacher and I know how much equipment my students take to school each day: full PE kit (guards, sticks, boots etc), food tech ingredients, musical instruments, GCSE pupils have folders and test books. They are laden! My own children live half a mile from school. Its an easy excuse to say ‘be active’.

motherrunner · 19/08/2020 09:11

Posted too soon. Was going to say my own children live half a mile from school and even they can struggle with their musical instruments and bags!

phlebasconsidered · 19/08/2020 09:17

Rural areas are no different. In my primary bubbles are a myth as allthe kids from outlying farms and hamlets get on one coach and 3 minibuses together anyway. Similarly, my secondary kids will be getting their usual crammed coach fir a 25 min journey with every other yeargroup.

Teachers have been pointing this out since March. There's no extra funding for schools either. Maybe direct your anger at that.

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