63 Bus route extension to Honor Oak Park Station

[rn22]

I'd be really keen to see the 63 bus extended to Honor Oak. I live that side of E Dulwich, and work up near where the new Shoreditch station will be (in fact, I can see the building work from my desk) so being able to get to Honor Oak easily to use the Overgound line would be great as far as I'm concerned.

[Amelie]

Dear Laurie

I would like to see TfL reinstate the original #63 bus route, i.e. the one that ran from Crystal Palace to King's Cross. TfL knew perfectly well that the Eurostar terminal was moving to St Pancras and yet still it split the route between the new #363 and the now #63. In effect they cut off the residents of South London from the Eurostar. This is unacceptable, TfL should be made to explain their stupidity, apologise, and give an undertaking to reinstate the direct connection as soon as possible.

On the subject of TfL recommending 2 or 3 bus routes on its website when in fact only 1 is required, surely this is misleading advertising and TfL should be reported to OfCom and/or the ASA. A stiff fine should concentrate TfL's collective mind wonderfully.

[ontheedge]

Exactly Beaver not outside my window to be precise! I would fully support a single decker but don't think the hill will support endless double deckers and there is a reason flats off the bus routes were a bit cheaper to buy !

[dbboy]

Perhaps splitting the route had something to do with Ken Livingstone being able to show London, as an exampme has more bus routes.

It is funny though how the buses at the stand on Forest Hill road, wait for the 363 from Crystal Palace to go by and then two 63's follow behind, just an observation but very annoying.

[Polmoche]

the thing is that route over the hill is a nightmare in the morning because of the school run for Fairlawn and the Catholic school--the name escapes me right now. Traffic always gets blocked up because of the kids crossing with the lollipop lady. You are almost better off walking! Plus, there are three buses that actually stop out there, the P4 goes there too.

[Jojnr]

I would support this request 100% simply because it represents an improvement to the current service so what's not to support. I appreciate that there may be alternative routes which remain useful but if we can secure another option to call upon why wouldn't we all support this, we?re not losing anything and even if it won?t directly benefit us all it will help many others? I happily walk the distance of the current "missing" stops but I'm fortunate to be able to do so but not everyone is in this position. Also the bus would actually pass my house as well and I certainly could do without the noise of passing buses but it's undoubtedly for the benefit of the wider community. Finally I don't see this request as being detrimental to any existing campaigns (especially as it is a relatively minor change in the transport scheme of things)and as I see it we have a fair way to go before the investment in public transport in South London is on a par with that afforded in the North so we need to push at every opportunity!

[trinity]

I too would support this extension. It seems like a sensible, quick and relatively low-cost solution to what is a problem for those of us who live on this side of ED. ED station is 2 bus rides away from me, P bus is too infrequent to be useful for commuting and walking takes 12 mins from half way up the hill over the top then to the station. Not a huge amount but it makes the commute to Canary wharf 1 hour long.

It will be a big help for when the ELL comes to Honor Oak and may reduce the problems of traffic around the schools at the top of Forest Hill Road.

There was another thread on this topic earlier this year and I seem to remember there was a fair amount of support for the idea there.

[toast]

Thanks Laurie for raising the issue, extending the 63 would make mine and my families lives much easier.

[Jimmybob]

this is why I pulled out of the over priced house i was about to buy in ED and bought a bigger house 2 minutes from Honor Oak station lol

[Laurie Eggleston]

Just to let everyone know that there's an article about this campaign in the Dulwich and Herne Hill edition of this week's Southwark News.

We're still waiting for a response from TfL regarding whether or not they took into account the soon to be finished Overground Line extension when they looked at extending the bus route before, and to look at their numbers again if not.

Our next residents survey in that end of the ward will also ask residents their views about the campaign.

Thanks again for all the comments.

Can I also take the opportunity to remind anyone who has any issues with the rail network to check out the Southwark Rail Users Group site here: www.peckhamvision.org/brg/srug . This is a group supported by all the political parties in Southwark, and has all the details of the campaign to reverse the rail cuts. Also www.peckhamvision.org/wiki/Main_Page has loads of information about the development plans for Peckham's town centre.

[TJ]

Laurie - have TFL also noted it would provide a link from the Peckham Rye hub to Honor oak and include the new boys school which is currently impossible to get to from south of Forest hill rd except by foot.

I have been after this extension for ages - lets get this thing sorted out.

[James]

Do we know whether double-deckers would be able to negotiate the sharp uphill bend next to Cabrini school

?

[Pippo Inzaghi]

They seemed to be able to when the double-deckers were on diversion a few weeks back. Saw a couple go up and down the hill without too many problems.

[reetpetite]

If the bus terminated at Honour Oak Station where would it be able to turn around.?

[SimonM]

>>If the bus terminated at Honour Oak Station where would it be able to turn around.?<<

Go round the one-way system at the lights at the bottom of the road?

[Laurie Eggleston]

If the bus carried on to Honor Oak Park station, it would turn around at Brockley Rise. It could then terminate here, or loop round and terminate where it currently does by the Forest Hill Tavern.

Thanks for all the messages supporting this - it would really help if everyone who supports this emails TfL and requests the extension! They decided against it last time they looked at the proposal without even consulting residents. If they receive plenty of emails supporting the extension they'll have to think about it again (don't expect anything more than a standard response from them, but the more emails they get the better!). Email them at [email protected].

We're currently working on a dedicated resident's survey for the people living around the Honor Oak/Forest Hill part of Peckham Rye. Doe's anyone have any other issues they'd like us to look at?

[Nero]

I tried to email them, but my mail told me that the address is not valid.

[Laurie Eggleston]

Nero - that's odd. That's definitely the email I've been using ([email protected]). You can also go on the TfL website though and there's an online form you can submit questions with.

[TJ]

I would also suggest including our local councilors in this as i am sure they have a way of accessing the TFL hierarchy much more quickly.

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

[Peckwich]

I have a couple of questions:

1. I would like to know how these 4 extra buses would be distributed on the timetable. On some mornings the bus can get full as early on in the route as The Gardens. I used to live further along the route in Peckham. Needless to say it was impossible to get on the 63 bus half of the time. I used to think that if I walked back a few stops I would have a better chance of getting on but now having moved to ED and taken the bus from here I realise it wouldn't have made a difference most mornings.

2. Unless I am missing the obvious, I still don't understand the idea of the bus terminating at Honor Oak Park Station then looping round Brockley Rise to come back to station at the Forest Hill Tavern. That appears to mean there would be no northbound service from Honor Oak Park to FHT (I think someone else has pointed this out as well).

[TJ]

Peckwich Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I have a couple of questions:

>

> 1. I would like to know how these 4 extra buses

> would be distributed on the timetable. On some

> mornings the bus can get full as early on in the

> route as The Gardens. I used to live further along

> the route in Peckham. Needless to say it was

> impossible to get on the 63 bus half of the time.

> I used to think that if I walked back a few stops

> I would have a better chance of getting on but now

> having moved to ED and taken the bus from here I

> realise it wouldn't have made a difference most

> mornings.

>

> 2. Unless I am missing the obvious, I still don't

> understand the idea of the bus terminating at

> Honor Oak Park Station then looping round Brockley

> Rise to come back to station at the Forest Hill

> Tavern. That appears to mean there would be no

> northbound service from Honor Oak Park to FHT (I

> think someone else has pointed this out as well).

i don't think this is what the general idea was. the main idea is simply to request the 63 is extended to Brockley Rd where it can either terminate or turn round. More busses on this route can't be sniffed at if you found the existing ones packed? The requirement is for them to go the other way from ED to HOP, not the other way round (so much anyway!).

[Peckwich]

TJ, thank you for responding to my questions. I read Laurie's first post when she first, erm, posted it so somewhere along the way I missed her original point. I am all for it if it makes it easier for those who need to get from FHT to HOP.

I was merely pondering what the knock on effect (if any) would be to those further down the route if there were more passengers to pick up northbound but if the emphasis is on getting people to and from FHT and HOP and not from HOP to the stops betweeb E&C and KC then I guess it is a moot point.

[Laurie Eggleston]

Peckwich - it's he, not she! But TJ's right - the emphasis is on bringing HOP and Peckham Rye/ E Dulwich closer together. Despite being so close they're not particularly easy to get between, due to the big hill in-between.

[Peckwich]

Ooops! Sorry, Laurie.

[TJ]

Just received this - a bloody joke.

Dear Mr

Re: Bus Route 63

Thank you for your email dated 1 September, regarding bus route 63. Please rest assured that we routinely monitor the bus network with an aim of ensuring that the best possible service is provided.

Suggestions to extend bus route 63 to Honor Oak Station have been reviewed and assessed by Transport for London's (TfL) transport planners. All planned network developments, such as the introduction of Overground services at Honor Oak Park Station, were been taken into consideration in respect of the route 63 service request.

Subsequently, I can confirm that it became apparent that such a service change would be very expensive to implement due to the additional resources which would be required. The comparative benefit in terms of additional incoming revenue mean that an extension of the route could not be financially justified. Therefore, suggestions to extend route 63 to Honor Oak Park Station have not been pursued.

While we have no plans to amend route 63 in the manner suggested, we will continue to monitor services in the area. We also regularly review the bus network to identify whether service changes are required and suggestions made by bus users are taken into consideration.

Thank you for your correspondence on this subject. Please feel free to contact me if I can be of further assistance.

Yours sincerely

Paul Lawley

Customer Services