Local Lib Dems have expressed their extreme disappointment that London Buses will not be expanding the trial service of the popular Muswell Hill to Swiss Cottage bus service following a review of the service released to Lib Dems and key campaigners at a meeting on Wednesday.The trial route has been running since January and the review was set up to consider its operation and to look at a full service, thus far refused by Labour Mayor Ken Livingstone.

While the Lib Dems have expressed relief that the existing service, which runs in the early morning and was secured following their campaigning earlier this year, will be continued, there is to be no expansion to the fifteen minute, all-day service that local campaigners had been pressing for.

In its report on the trial service, London Buses states that: “There is no evidence from the outcome of the current trial which would point to a change in the original conclusion. The gross annual cost of operating such a route is currently estimated to be £1,500,000. This is based on existing scheduled running times and thus a peak vehicle requirement of seven buses (consistent with the original evaluation). Revenue from passenger fares is estimated to be £270,000, leaving a net deficit of over £1 million each year.”

Lynne Featherstone comments:

“I’m very disappointed that after such a successful trial, the route is not be expanded at this stage – but we will continue to fight for it, as the trial service has shown that it is sorely needed. I believe that an all dayservice would result in a whole new group of passengers using the route – the only way to establish this is to give it a trial, and that is what we will pressing for.”

Lib Dem Group Leader Neil Cllr Neil Williams, who represents Highgate and sits on the TfL steering group dealing with the bus, adds:

“After a successful trial, this is not the right outcome. The morning service has been a success, and local groups in Highgate, especially the Highgate Society, have put in an immense amount of hard work on the details of the route. A trial of an all-day service is the only logical way to assess overall demand.”