Thu, 21 June 2012
Transport for London (TfL) has today issued contingency travel advice if the strike called by the leadership of the Unite union goes ahead on Friday 22 June 2012.
The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has provided an additional £8.3 million to allow the bus operators to reach settlements with the union. The two parties are now at the conciliation services ACAS discussing the issue.
If some drivers do still choose to go on strike, then evidently there will be less buses in service and some routes are likely to be disrupted. In those circumstances TfL urges passengers to use other transport options, or to walk or cycle where possible. The average bus journey is around 2.2 miles so many of these journeys could be made in this way. Passengers should check for the latest information at www.tfl.gov.uk/buses.
TfL has put in place a number of measures to help people get around and to manage disruption should the strike go ahead. These include:
London Buses staff and volunteers from across TfL will be on the streets and at key transport hubs across London to provide travel advice and distribute walking maps.
TfL will operate a full service across the Tube network, with extra staff on hand to assist passengers.
Full services will also be operated on the Docklands Light Railway, London Tramlink and London Overground networks with additional staff deployed to assist passengers.
Marshalled taxi ranks will operate at a number of key rail hubs including Victoria, St Pancras, Waterloo, Liverpool Street and London Bridge.
A full service will also be operated by London River Services, which includes River Bus services that operate high frequency services between various key piers.
During the course of the strike bus passes will be accepted on reasonable alternative routes on Tube, DLR, and London Overground – affected passengers should seek assistance from staff at the gate lines.
TfL has also emailed around 1.5 million registered bus users advising them of the likely disruption and urging them to check before they travel.
Additional distribution staff will work throughout Friday to ensure Barclays Cycle Hire Scheme docking stations are able to meet demand at key locations.