27 Bus Chiswick Service To End Despite Significant Opposition

Over 70% of respondents to consultation against proposal

Transport for London (TfL) have announced that they intend to proceed with the truncation of the 27 bus route meaning it will no longer serve Chiswick.

This is despite 72% of the 604 public responses to the proposal saying they were against the plan and only 9% supporting it.

GLA member Tony Arbour said: “I have tabled questions to the Mayor, in his role as Chairman of Transport for London, asking him to justify how, in the face of almost universal opposition, TfL can justify ignoring the recent public consultation on changes to this popular route. Chiswick is getting a raw deal from TfL, they have ignored the result of the consultation on CS9 and this decision adds insult to injury. It does the Mayor no good to say that he listens to the people of London and then to snub them, particularly if they live in W4.”

The only change that TfL are planning to make as a result of the consultation is an alteration to the termination of the route which will now be at a bus stand on Glenthorne Road currently used by rail replacement buses. The last and first stops would be at this location instead of at Hammersmith Grove. This is because the Hammersmith Grove stand has been removed as part of a local urban realm scheme.

TfL said during the consultation that they believed a maximum number of 16 buses per hour are needed on Chiswick High Road by Turnham Green and the removal of the 27 would take the number of buses per hour down from 22 which they describe as ‘more than enough to serve the demand along this corridor.”

They have denied the suggestion that they are reducing bus provision on Chiswick High Road in advance of the Low Emission Bus Zone which would require them to use more expensive buses on this road.

The extension of the route to the Chiswick Business Park office development was only introduced four years ago after a lengthy campaign including a sum of over £537,000 to London United to pay for an extra vehicle for the route. The idea was to serve the thousands of workers who commute to the Park and relieve pressure on the tube station at Gunnersbury. Hounslow Council, which part funded the extension opposed TfL’s plan.

Route 27 currently runs between Chiswick Business Park and Chalk Farm, every 7 to 8 minutes Monday to Saturday daily and every 12 minutes during Sundays shopping hours and late evenings.

For the proposed changes to route 440, 14 per cent supported or strongly supported the proposals, 15 per cent neither supported nor opposed them, 14 per cent opposed or strongly opposed them, 43 per cent did not use the route and 14 per cent did not answer.

TfL now intend to proceed with the schemes as proposed in early 2019.

Local GLA Assembly Member, Tony Arbour said, "“I have tabled questions to the Mayor, in his role as Chairman of Transport for London, asking him to justify how, in the face of almost universal opposition, TfL can justify ignoring the recent public consultation on changes to this popular route.

"Chiswick is getting a raw deal from TfL, they have ignored the result of the consultation on CS9 and this decision adds insult to injury.

"It does the Mayor no good to say that he listens to the people of London and then to snub them, particularly if they live in W4.”

More details including a full consultation report and TfL’s response to issues raised have been published online.

November 15, 2018