please empty your brain below
Sadly none of this surprises me.
No one at TfL takes information about buses seriously …. but Crossrail/Elizabeth Line - no expense spared.

Sadly couldn’t see your much anticipated map.

Roger French | Homepage | 22.05.22 - 7:19 a.m. | #

Ignore last comment; now I can see what you’ve done. Excellent. Well done DG.

Roger French | 22.05.22 - 7:20 a.m. | #

The bus routes have been updated on OpenStreetMap by user MacLondon as well. They're visible on the "Transport" layer. I haven't checked them all, but the 304 route has definitely been created.
e.g. "London Buses route 304 → Custom House"

Rob | 22.05.22 - 7:34 a.m. | #

Depressing, thanks for the map, something TfL is unable to do. Even if not printing the maps anymore, what was stopping them keeping and updating the website versions, something you with far less resources is capable of doing.

As someone with both digital and paper versions of the Mike Harris map, the paper version gives a better overview than zooming in and out on a screen.

TfL took the decision long ago that 'everyone has a smartphone', perhaps because they all have smartphones themselves, Joe and Joanne Public is left to stumble around finding out what happened.

I don't know if announcements were made on the buses in the lead up to the changes, back in 'London Buses' days they used to have notices in the buses as well.

First anorak point, the 330 took over the Canning Town end of the 58 when it was introduced in 1993, the extension to Pontoon Dock covers more of the former 58 route as it used to run to North Woolwich via Silvertown.

Second anorak point, will the 304 be the last new double deck route to operated with diesel buses?

Still Anon | 22.05.22 - 8:08 a.m. | #

There were no special announcements on the buses, nor any scrolling messages saying 'this bus is about to go a completely different route to what you're expecting'.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 22.05.22 - 8:29 a.m. | #

Its as if TfL never fitted i-bus back in 2008 as they make no effort to use it to distribute information, I have heard & seen it used in the past for dedicated messages, how is a visually impaired or illiterate person supposed to know what's happening.

Still Anon | 22.05.22 - 9:06 a.m. | #

Andy Burnham keeps promising us a 'London style' transport network for Greater Manchester. If this is what we're going to get, Dog help us all.

D9000 | 22.05.22 - 9:28 a.m. | #

MacLondon's Twitter account also documents cycle route upgrades/changes in remarkable detail. Mac, if you're reading this, thanks

This whole thing is terribly executed - perhaps there's a sense at TfL that "no one reads what we make anyway" with regards to updated bus routes. But if that's the case it hardly resolves them of responsibility to notify people anyway. Commenters who point out the difference between this and the no-expense-spared crossrail launch are right on the money.

Ted | 22.05.22 - 9:31 a.m. | #

London Transport were once a byword in clarity of information, what they have become in TfL (on the bus side of the business at least) must be making Frank Pick spin in his grave. That the likes of yourself and Mike Harris do a far better job of providing such information speaks volumes.

Phil | 22.05.22 - 9:33 a.m. | #

These changes seem significantly more than a "tweak" - but I imagine that is your point...!

cau1khead | 22.05.22 - 10:25 a.m. | #

Google Maps has been updated with the new routes, complete with the TfL change narratives at each stop.

Strabismus | 22.05.22 - 10:25 a.m. | #

Right now, someone senior at TfL is thinking of that meme: “Oh no, not again” and asking their staff when will they do the right thing and employ DG to plan all operational communications.

deltic | 22.05.22 - 10:36 a.m. | #

Do TfL give a damn? It's probably "Everyone has a smartphone and is tech-savvy enough to magically find the relevant (poorly labelled) information on our website without any proper directions. Those who don't are a tiny minority of pensioners who don't pay us anyway."

Anonymous | 22.05.22 - 5:15 p.m. | #

The Bus Changes webpage now links to maps of each of the relevant routes, e.g. tfl.gov.uk/bus/route/300

...but unfortunately the maps still haven't yet been updated, so still show the old routes, so that's actually more unhelpful.

diamond geezer | Homepage | 23.05.22 - 3:59 p.m. | #

I've found an up to date spider map at the northbound bus stop F for Leslie Road/Custom House Station at the end of Freemasons Road. So it does exist and can be delivered given the will.

And more yellow notices covering up unchanged services whilst leaving out of date timetables visible. Sigh.

Tim Roll-Pickering | 24.05.22 - 3:30 p.m. | #

It's an extremely niche case, but last week there were two possible connections to go in a straight line fom Barking to the general Beckton/Gallions Reach area, one by changing at Beckton Sainsbury's. The shortening of the 262 means only the 366 is an option now.

Quizzical Eyebrow | Homepage | 27.05.22 - 9:00 a.m. | #

Unfortunately this downward spiral of quality where printed infographics are concerned was long planned and is deliberate. Those involved in the design, and/or study thereof, of such things, have been saying for many years now, "enjoy the printed posters while you can, they won't be around for much longer". They would love you to believe it's because using less paper is environmentally more friendly, and would also lead you to believe it's not necessary when you have so many online travel tools to fall back on, but really it's purely and simply to save money and sadly because also the pool of talent able to pull off decent informational materials is dwindling exponentially (well, logarithmically). Not only that, those who are still paid to produce any kind of visual materials are only ever given marketing jobs to do, plus sidelines like the "Women who work for TfL" and "LGBTQ+ who work for TfL" series of posters/stickers on the wall, (alongside those aggressively slandering the majority of those who don't occupy any of the aforementioned categories), Art On The Underground, etc. I think unfortunately, there has to be a 'cause' attached to printed or other visual materials that either go up in physical print or appear on computer displays, as ideological repositioning is considered more important than informing people on how to go about their logistical repositioning. More of "Transport for Society: Every bit of re-education matters" than "Transport for the Public: Clarifying things matters".

Em Bee You Kay | 12.06.22 - 10:18 p.m. | #











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