§ Mr. CarringtonTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement about quality of service objectives for London Transport's bus services.
§ Mr. NorrisMy right hon. Friend has today written to the chairman of London Transport, setting new quality of service objectives for LT's bus services, including tendered routes, to be attained by the end of March 1994, with interim targets for March 1993. LT has made excellent progress in improving its bus service for passengers since the objectives were last set, in 1989. The new targets will build on this achievement and keep up momentum to improve performance still further in anticipation of deregulation.
The new targets are as follows, with current targets also given for comparison.
389W
Per cent. Target 1992–93 1993–94 (Present) Percentage of scheduled mileage operated (excluding miles lost through traffic congestion) >98.5 >98.5 (98) On high frequency route Excess waiting time—difference between scheduled waiting time and actual waiting time <1.75 mins <1.6 mins (New target) On low frequency routes Percentage of buses arriving on time—not more than 2 mins early or 5 mins late >67.0 >68.0 (65) On low frequency routes Percentage of buses arriving more than 2 mins early <5.5 <4.5 (6) Internal and external cleanliness of vehicles, quality of passenger information and condition of bus stops LT to draw up customer satisfaction surveys to assess performance in these areas LT telephone enquiry service Percentage of calls to be answered within 30 secs >76.0 >78.0 (75) Percentage of calls to receive engaged tone <10.0 <10.0 (10)
§ Dr. Liam FoxTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what support his Department has given for the greater use of buses in urban areas.
§ Mr. FreemanWe strongly support measures to enable buses to provide a better service and are funding a £10 million programme of demonstration projects over this year and next.
§ Mr. Matthew BanksTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information he has on the average speed of buses in London; and what steps are being taken to accord more priority to buses in London.
§ Mr. NorrisBus speeds in London vary considerably by route and time of day. An analysis of scheduled journey times for selected routes indicates that, on a week day, average speeds range between 6 and 13 miles mph. The schedules allow time for passengers to board and alight.
London Transport's bus priority steering group was set up in October 1990 to encourage all London boroughs to put forward positive proposals to help buses in traffic-congested areas. A number of promising schemes are now coming forward.
As part of a Government initiative to promote bus priority, announced in December 1991, schemes in Camden, Ealing, Haringey, Newham and Tower Hamlets have, in total, been allocated £700,000 in supplementary credit approvals—SCA. A bid for SCA to assist in implementing a comprehensive bus priority proposal in six boroughs in the south and west of London is currently being considered.
In December 1991, the Government also issued local transport note 1/91, "Keeping Buses Moving", which contains comprehensive advice to encourage local authorities to introduce more bus priority measures.