Bus Route Changes Have 'Isolated' Elderly Residents

Rerouting the 440 from Bollo Lane leaves locals with no service to shops and GPs

440 bus. Picture: Aubrey Morandarte

Elderly residents living off Bollo Lane have been left isolated by the lack of a bus service on the road since the 440 service was rerouted away from their area, a local campaigner has claimed.

Transport for London (TfL) changed the 27 and 440 bus services several months ago. The 440 no longer travels from Acton Town along Bollo Lane taking passengers to Chiswick.

Local resident Tara Mulcahy, who has mobility difficulties, says elderly people now have no way of going on public transport to Sainsbury's or to the GPs surgery in Fisher's Lane.

Tara, who has been writing to TfL, Rupa Huq and Mayor Sadiq Khan, to complain, said she has seen elderly people in tears because they have no way of getting to the shops.

Route 440 used to run between Stonebridge Park station and Gunnersbury, Power Road serving Chiswick High Road, Acton Green, South Acton, Acton High Street, West Acton, North Acton, Park Royal and Stonebridge Park station.

TfL advised Tara that local people could take an alternative route.

"From Stanhope Way / Acton Works stop P, on Bollo Lane, you can take a 440 bus to Turnham green church stop TT and then walk to Fishers Lane, which takes around 10 minutes. Or you can disembark the 440 at Marlborough Road stop W and then walk up Sutton Lane North to stop XX, which is around 5 minutes walk away on the same side of the road, and then catch the 272 and get off at Dolman road bus stop Q.

"The return journey can be made by taking the 272 from Fishers Lane bus stop ZZ to the next stop Turnham Green Church stop UU. From the same stop, UU, you can catch a 440 back to Stanhope Way / Acton Works stop Q."

However Tara Mulcahy says that route is not practical for local residents if they are infirm or elderly.

"Lots of people are on walkers, or on mobility scooters like myself. They have health problems or heart problems. You cannot cross over the two railway crossings, which also means going in the other direction, in order to catch the bus."

The 440 bus stop outside the Bollo Pub was where residents walked to catch the bus - that stop has now been removed.

Apart from retired people living independently off Bollo Lane - which is soon set to have a major influx of residents from flats and office redevelopments, there are dozens of people living in sheltered accommodation. Tara estimates there are hundreds of elderly people now left stranded with no bus service.

The entire community between Chiswick Business Park, down past Chiswick Park Station to Sainsburys and the doctors' surgery - a very essential link - is not served in any way by any public transport, she says.

TfL said they held a consultation last year on the proposal to run route 440 through Chiswick Business Park and continue along Oxford Road North / Wellesley Road / Heathfield Terrace before terminating at Turnham Green Church on Town Hall Avenue.

According to the survey, 604 people were contacted of which 14% supported or strongly supported the change of route, while 15% neither supported nor opposed it. Another 14% opposed or strongly opposed it, while 43% said the change was not applicable to them.
Following the survey, TfL decided to go on with the plan on the grounds that people would be served better by more direct link into the business park.

But the residents complain that the survey was conducted on a small sample and that not everyone was aware of the plan to change the route as TfL had failed to publicise the consultation properly.

TfL said at the time that rerouting the 440 would also improve bus links into Chiswick Business Park from South Acton Estate and provide a direct link between stops at the northern end of Chiswick Business Park and Gunnersbury station.

A similar consultation into truncation of the 27 bus route was carried out. Despite a majority of residents opposing the changes, TfL went ahead with the proposal, stating that its figures for bus use showed that the service was not being used enough to merit keeping the route to the Business Park.

December 6, 2019