The next stop: Making London's buses better
Buses are vital for Londoners who travel around the capital – but we believe more can be done to make them even better
The bus is London’s most accessible, affordable and city-wide form of public transport, helping people get where they need to go – be it for work, study, leisure or errands. It’s the most used type of public transport in the city, with 1.9 billion journeys made by bus last year.
But we believe that more could be done to improve passenger satisfaction and make London buses even better. This is particularly important if bus usage is to rise and help meet the Mayor’s Transport Strategy (MTS) target for 80 percent of all trips in London to be made on foot, by bike or using public transport by 2041.
Our new report, The next stop: Making London’s buses better, explores what passengers really think, and help identify ways to boost the bus. The findings show there is a real opportunity for widespread improvements.
Key findings
Slow journey times were the main issue that stopped people using buses more frequently. Lack of reliability, poor communication and an unpleasant journey environment – such as dirty buses and overcrowding – were also highlighted as problems for passengers.
The top three things that respondents said would encourage them to use the bus more were more regular buses, faster journey times and more bus routes
We are calling on TfL to show how it plans to strengthen its Bus Action Plan in relation to the following recommendations, no later than the time of the next annual update in summer 2025:
Improving bus operations
Enhancing passenger information and communications
Improving the overall experience for bus passengers
Strengthening collaboration between boroughs and Transport for London (TfL)
Continuing to promote innovation
