INTRODUCTION BUS SERVICES IN CHAMBERLAYNE ROAD NW10 1 LONDON BUSES 1. This note reviews the issues in Chamberlayne Road, Kensal Rise. It covers the range of bus routes in the area, their characteristics and recent changes. It shows the level of use of each route and why we run the frequencies we do. We also show the level of bus use compared to car traffic in the area. There is then a discussion of what changes might be possible to reduce the number of buses serving the road and the impact of these changes on the people that use them. THE LOCAL BUS NETWORK 2. Chamberlayne Road, between Kensal Rise Station and Willesden, is served by routes 6, 52, 187 and 302, a total of 33.5 buses per hour (22.5 evenings, 21 Sundays). Frequencies (buses per hour) Route Mon-Sat daytime Evening Sunday 6* Willesden Aldwych 10 6 6 52* Willesden Victoria 10 7.5 6 187 Finchley Road - Park Royal 6 4 4 302 Mill Hill Broadway - Kensal Rise 7.5 5 5 Total 33.5* 22.5 21 * There are some extra journeys in the peak hour on routes 6 and 52. Note: routes 28 and 452 serve Kensal Rise from the south, terminating at the station. 3. The main characteristics of the routes are: Route 6 (24-hour service) Trunk service between Willesden and Aldwych with links to Queens Park, Edgware Road, Oxford Street and the Willesden Centre for Health and Care. Approximately 21,000 passengers per day use the route, of which 4400 (21%) are passengers to, from or through Chamberlayne Road. The busiest point is Edgware Road. Peak frequency was reduced from 12 to 10 buses per hour in September 2010. At the same time some afternoon journeys which ran only between Aldwych and Kensal Rise were extended to Willesden.
Cutting it back to run between Aldwych and Kensal Rise Station only would mean that 8% of passengers (about 1750 per day) would have to take a second bus to complete their journeys. Route 52 (24-hour service with route N52) Trunk service between Willesden and Victoria with links to Ladbroke Grove, Kensington and Knightsbridge. There are 25,600 passengers per day in total and 28% (about 7200 per day) are passengers to, from or through Chamberlayne Road. The busiest point is Notting Hill Gate. It runs every 5-6 minutes (every 8 in the evenings and every 10 on Sundays). Peak hour frequency was reduced in April 2011 by one bus per hour. Route 187 Orbital service using single-deck buses between Central Middlesex Hospital and Finchley Road via Harlesden and Warwick Avenue. Approximately 8700 passengers per day, with 32% (about 2800 per day) across the Chamberlayne Road section. Runs every ten minutes. Route 302 Suburban link from Mill Hill to Kensal Rise via Burnt Oak, Neasden and Willesden. Approximately 15,600 passengers per day use it in total of which about 19% (3000 per day) use it along this section. It runs every 8 minutes during the day. If it only ran between Mill Hill and Willesden this would mean around 2000 passengers per day (13% of all trips on the route) would need two buses to complete their trips. 4. There are two routes which terminate at Kensal Rise Station from the south. Route 28 Orbital inner London service between Wandsworth and Kensal Rise via Fulham, Kensington and Notting Hill. Approximately 21,100 passengers per day use it in total of which about 9% (2,000 per day) use it along the section north of Harrow Road. Runs every 7-8 minutes. It was extended from Harrow Road (Prince of Wales) to Kensal Rise in 2006 to give extra capacity along the Harrow Road. 2
Route 452 Trunk service between Wandsworth Road and Kensal Rise with links to Ladbroke Grove, Kensington, Knightsbridge and Sloane Square. There are 17,000 passengers per day in total of which about 15% (2500 per day) use it along the section north of Harrow Road. It runs every 8 minutes. It was introduced in 2006 to give additional capacity in inner west London, in particular alongside route 52 between Kensal Rise and Notting Hill and route 137 between Sloane Square and Battersea. Kensal Rise bus stands 5. For the three services which terminate at Kensal Rise Station (routes 28, 302 and 452) the bus stands are in Station Terrace and are in two sections, with space for six buses. One stand for four buses is on the east side. Another, for two buses, is on the north side. 6. Each route is limited to two buses standing at any time and the operators are aware of this requirement. Bus routes in and around Chamberlayne Road 3
CHANGES SINCE 2000 FOR CHAMBERLAYNE ROAD BUSES 7. The table below shows Monday-Saturday daytime frequencies in buses per hour (bph) in 2000 and 2012, and the percentage change over the period. Route 2000 Current change 6* 4 (at irregular 10 + 150% intervals) 52* 10 10-187 5 6 + 20% 302 ** 5 7.5 + 50% Total 24 33.5 + 40% Excluding route 6 20 23.5 + 18% * There are some extra journeys in the peak hour on routes 6 and 52. **Single-deck vehicles in 2000, double deck in 2012. 8. For route 6, in 2000 the service north of Kensal Rise Station was irregular as it consisted only of buses needing to run to and from the garage. There was no service southbound in the morning peak nor northbound in the evening peak. However there was a higher service early in the morning and at certain other times. In 2012 this section is served throughout the day. 9. The table shows that the total frequency during Monday-Saturday daytimes has grown by 40% since 2000. (Total evening and Sunday frequencies have grown by 25% and 24% respectively). The total patronage on these routes has grown by about 42% over the same period. 10. The most significant element in the increase is the provision of a full service on route 6 between Kensal Rise and Willesden. Previously most buses only ran between Kensal Rise Station and Aldwych. Monday to Saturday daytime frequency across the other routes has increased by 18%. 11. Thus, the increase in service levels since 2000 is of the same order as the growth in total usage of these routes. The most significant change has been conversion of the irregular service on route 6 to a through service at all times. 4
PASSENGER LOADING PROFILES 12. We set the level of frequencies of each bus route to give sufficient capacity at the busiest points at the busiest times. Loadings profiles for the six routes through Kensal Rise Station are attached in Appendix B. These show the average loads at each stop. 13. It will be seen that the busiest points for most of the routes are not at Chamberlayne Road but elsewhere. (The bus stops with a red spot). The busiest point on route 6 is Shirland Road. On route 52 the busiest points are Ladbroke Grove in the morning and through Kensington in the evening. The busiest points on route 187 are east of Harlesden in the morning and through Chamberlayne Road in the evening. On route 302 the busiest point in both peaks is at Neasden. Route 452 is busiest in the morning at Chelsea Bridge and in Kensington Park Road and in the evening at Notting Hill Gate. 14. In general the capacity on these routes matches demand at their busiest points. On route 28 the busiest points are North Kensington in the morning and Kensington in the evening. For this route loads have recently decreased, possibly due to the improved service on parallel London Overground services. We are therefore reviewing the level of service. GENERAL TRAFFIC IN CHAMBERLAYNE ROAD 15. The road itself is fairly busy. Traffic counts across the railway bridge show that buses form about 8% of the total traffic across the peaks. Details are in the table below, with graphs in Appendix A. All Motor Vehicles Buses % Buses AM Peak 3 hours 2714 232 9% PM Peak 3 Hours 3161 212 7% All Day 16266 1345 8% 16. The average occupancy in a private vehicle is about 1.4 people including the driver. In the AM peak hour there are 973 motor vehicles crossing the bridge in both directions of which 82 are buses or coaches. This means that in the AM peak hour there are about 1250 people in cars, vans or HGVs across the bridge and about 1470 passengers in buses. Hence buses are around 8% of the traffic flow in the peak but they carry over 50% of the people flow across the bridge. 5
Clearly in this context a reduction in the number of buses would not significantly alter the general level of peak traffic at Kensal Rise Station. EXAMINATION OF ALTERNATIVE ROUTEINGS Possible use of parallel roads 17. We have looked at the suitability of running buses along roads parallel to Chamberlayne Road, such as College Road, Brondesbury Park and Salusbury Road, and the impacts on passengers have been examined. Route 302 via Brondesbury Park and Salusbury Road Route 302 could be diverted to run via Brondesbury Park and Salusbury Road to terminate at Queen s Park. This would mean that around 2000 passengers per day (13% of all trips on the route) would need two buses to complete their journey to Kensal Rise or intermediate stops on Chamberlayne Road. However the diversion would provide new links for Brondesbury Park. Connections with London Overground would be maintained at Brondesbury Park Station. There would also be connections with the Bakerloo Line and London Overground at Queen s Park Station. A section of road new to buses would be used, just south of Willesden High Road. College Road College Road is narrow with residential parking on both sides; in effect there is just one lane for moving traffic. Without removal of parking on one or preferably both sides it would not be possible to have two-way bus operation. It would be difficult to site bus stops because of parking. There is also a width restriction on Mortimer Road near its junction with College Road. Diversions Route 28 or 452 to Queen s Park via Kilburn Lane 18. Diverting route 28 via Kilburn Lane would mean that about 800 passengers would need to change to complete their journeys and diverting route 452 would mean around 200 having to change. They would still operate on the southern end of Chamberlayne Road, but not serve Kensal Rise Station. 6
Route 28 or 452 to Kensal Green Station via Harrow Road 19. The most suitable route to Kensal Green would be via the Harrow Road. Approximately 1,200 passengers per day on route 28 would have to change to complete their journey (though 500 of these would still be within 400m walk of Harrow Road). Alternatively, approximately 250 passengers would need to change if route 452 were diverted. (A proportion of these would still be within 400m walk of Harrow Road). 20. In practice, turning at Kensal Green Station would not be possible. The next available turn is at College Park which is short of Harlesden town centre and involves intensified use of residential roads. Extending to Harlesden town centre would require an additional two peak buses which would cost approximately 0.5 million per year extra. There would be additional revenue from new passengers to offset this though we believe that the benefits would not be sufficient to justify a change. Cutting route 452 back to Ladbroke Grove Sainsbury s 21. If route 452 ran only between Wandsworth Road and Ladbroke Grove Sainsbury s it would mean that around 300 passengers per day would need two buses to complete their journey and approximately two extra busloads of capacity would be needed on route 52 north of the Harrow Road in the peaks. CONCLUSIONS 22. We are aware of the concerns about the impact of buses along Chamberlayne Road. This note shows how the level of service provided has been decided. This is regularly reviewed and, for example, we are currently considering a reduction on route 28. 23. Of the alternatives reviewed, the option of diverting route 302 via Brondesbury Park and Salusbury Road may be possible and we will carry out a full review, starting after the Olympic and Paralympic Games. This will include detailed examination of the roads, including options for a terminus at Queen s Park and consideration of the impact on passenger journeys. 24. In the longer-term there are proposals to redevelop the Kensal Gas Works site and we are discussing options for serving this with the Royal Borough of 7
Kensington and Chelsea. This could give opportunities for changes to the local network, for example a diversion of route 452 into the site. However this development is unlikely to come forward until 2018 or so. 25. We are currently introducing hybrid buses, which are powered by a mix of an ordinary diesel engine and an electric motor, on a number of routes in London. Hybrid buses are quieter, cleaner and more fuel-efficient than standard diesel buses. We will soon be introducing twelve hybrids on route 52, about half of the fleet of buses allocated to the route. The remainder will be new diesel vehicles, to the latest environmental standards. 26. We will also continue to ensure that the bus operators comply with the limits we set on occupancy of the bus stands at Kensal Rise Station, to avoid unnecessary bus congestion. 27. We expect to provide a further report on our review of the Queen s Park option by November 2012. If feasible we would then be in a position to commence a formal consultation with passengers, councils and other stakeholders. TfL May 2012 8
Appendix A: vehicle counts 700 600 Classified vehicle count at Chamberlayne Road (Kensal Rise Station bridge) Southbound, 2010 500 Buses and Coaches Count 400 300 Heavy Goods Medium Goods 200 Light Goods Motorcycles 100 Taxis 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Hour Private Cars 9
800 700 Classified vehicle count at Chamberlayne Road (Kensal Rise Station bridge) Northbound, 2010 600 500 Buses and Coaches Count 400 Heavy Goods Medium Goods 300 Light Goods Motorcycles 200 Taxis 100 Private Cars 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Hour 10
Appendix B: loading profiles Please refer to paragraphs 12-14 above for background information on the profiles. 11