Here’s the repsonse I sent to Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London) in response to the Central London Bus Services Review Consultation:

“As Chair of TFL I am writing to you to strongly object to TFL’s proposal to scrap the vital and unique RV1 bus service. The service was scandalously reduced from 6 to just 3 buses an hour earlier this year without any consultation with residents or bus users. Alongside Liberal Democrat colleagues I launched a petition calling for residents to have their say which was signed by over 1000 Londoners. I’m disappointed that so many constituents do not feel they have been consulted this time around either or have only just heard about the consultation.

You and TFL are using corrupted data to cut this service which does not accurately reflect the level of demand and support for the service. Over the last few years temporary detours and delays at London Bridge, Waterloo and around Blackfriars Road have had a detrimental impact on the reliability and efficiency of the route and led to a drop off in passengers. Halving the service earlier this year will have only compounded this phenomenon.

Bankside and North Southwark are growing rapidly. Thousands of new residents will be moving into homes in the area (often in car free developments) putting even more strain on existing transport infrastructure and increasing demand for sustainable transport routes like the RV1. North Southwark has one of the highest levels of air pollution in the Capital. It makes no sense to cut the only zero emission bus in London which serves this area.

The RV1 is a unique and vital route that is valued and relied upon by a wide range of demographics such as: residents with limited mobility who find it too difficult to change buses locally; those with limited incomes for whom other options are too expensive; Patients traveling directly between Guys Hospital and St Thomas’ Hospital and students between university campuses at Aldwych (LSE and KCL) and halls along the route (e.g. Bankside House).

There has been no effort to look at promoting the route as a ‘tourist bus’ to boost passengers and help subsidise the service for other users. Despite it serving Covent Garden, South Bank, Tower Bridge and the Tower of London. There is even more scope to extend the route to other tourist areas e.g Strand, Chairing Cross, Trafalgar Sq, Westminster.

There is a widespread view that TFL have let the service run down and not given it a chance to recover from temporary disruptions. There has also been no imaginative thinking about how to revive numbers. We need a greener and more sustainable city with more people using public transport. This plan to cut the RV1 will only make this harder to achieve. Please Save the RV1!”