"Walter Briscoe" wrote in message
...
In message of Thu, 3 Aug 2006
12:34:40 in uk.transport.london, Nick writes

[snip]

No, I didn't disagree it was value for money necessarily. My point was
anyone with wads of cash to spend on TfL bus services was bound to provide
more of them and probably improve their reliability. Ken Livingstone
doesn't have magic-like qualities to improve bus services, he just got
given
lots of money by central government and spent it.

And I maintain the quality of the bus environment in Bexley (in terms of
broken bus shelters, vandalised and dirty buses) is very, very poor - way
below expectations, particularly given the amounts TfL have spent on the
network overall. Maybe someone other than Ken Livingstone would've
directed
TfL and those who have appropriate power to improve the dreadful situation
in Bexley; presumably, therefore, he hasn't and doesn't care very much.

Please complain - you might start at
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/buses/contact_home.asp - rather than moan - I view
your comments here as moaning.

What makes you think I haven't complained? And complained and complained and
complained. Along with friends and neighbours, nothing seems to change.
We've got Operation BusTag that's supposed to be cutting down graffiti,
vandalism and crime on buses in particular but the dire state of Bexley's
buses seems as bad as ever. I am chair of the local residents' panel that
prioritises the work of the local community policing team, a memeber of the
Bexley Police Community Consultative Group etc, so I expend energy and
effort on this and don't just post to newsgroups about it. What can I tell
you - we are all fed up with bus vandalism in Bexley but can't get TfL to
enage in a dialogue with us - we get fobbed off to talk to their contractors
or Adshell etc for the neglected bus shelters, and they pass us back to TfL
or ignore us. All absolutely crazy. Still waiting for a reply to my letter
on this to Emperor Livingstone about 4 weeks ago.

I can't comment about buses in Bexley. The service for EC2 has improved a
lot since Mayor Ken has influenced it. I now complain a lot. The service
is good enough to justify complain about its deficiencies. Buses are slow
compared with cycling, taxis, tubes, cars, etc. People-watching on buses
is one of the pleasures of living in London, IMHO.

Buses in central London are in pristine condition compared to Bexley's, and
I suspect that's why TfL couldn't really give a damn about the problem.

Nick