As editor of this site, and a resident of Coney Hall, I contacted the Mayor’s Office for more information about the recent changes to the 654 and 138 busses.
We haven’t had a lot of information about the changes, so I thought it would be useful to hear more about why the decisions were made. I’ve put their reply in full below. It gives some background, and highlights how important it is to get involved when local organisations ask for your feedback.
Route 654 Withdrawal
After a public consultation, we have decided to discontinue route 654. This decision was based on several factors: low passenger usage, with surveys indicating approximately 40 trips in the morning and 60 in the afternoon, many of which were adult passengers; the presence of alternative services such as routes 353, 664, and R1, which offer similar coverage and have enough capacity to accommodate affected passengers; and the opportunity to improve operational efficiency by reallocating resources to areas with higher demand.
We placed posters at 159 bus stops and received 83 responses to the consultation. Although many respondents opposed the withdrawal, the data supported this decision. A full consultation report is available on our website.
Editor’s note: if you are interested in this decision, it’s worth looking at the report to see how often this service was used and who by. For example, 56% of parents who responded said their children did not use the service.
Route 138 Frequency Reduction
The adjustment to route 138’s timetable from every 20 minutes to every 30 minutes was implemented to enhance reliability and better align service levels with demand. Since this was a timetable change rather than a route alteration, it did not require formal public consultation.
We acknowledge the concerns expressed by residents, including a petition signed by over 600 individuals. We are actively monitoring the impact and will continue to evaluate the service’s performance.
Coney Hall Village Residents' Association (CHVRA) 