Bus Stop Siting - Frequently Asking Questions

It is the County Council’s policy to support improvements to public transport to provide a better public transport service for local residents. This includes roadside facilities such as convenient and evenly spaced bus stops that are of benefit to all bus users, but especially people who have mobility difficulties and those with young children.

Q1 Why has a bus stop been located outside my property?

Sites are chosen after taking into account a number of factors. Road safety is considered along with convenience and safety for bus passengers. These are taken alongside the minimising of the impact on residents outside whose property a proposed bus stop is to be located.

It is of course the case that bus stops have to be placed where people live, because they serve residential areas. In these situations a balance has to be drawn between the different needs of residents. Therefore the County Council cannot always find locations that meet the approval of every resident.

Q2 You say you have considered traffic issues what does this include?

Road safety assessments are complex and visual. It is therefore difficult to adequately reflect all the factors taken into account. However, the traffic safety issues considered include: - volume and type of traffic at all times of the day; speed limit; road width; closeness to traffic signals and road junctions; nature of property frontages; parking; stopping distances and sight lines.

The County Council’s traffic management officers are locally based and the bus operator is familiar with road conditions at all times of the day. Comments are also received from local councillors and Leicestershire Constabulary. The location is therefore considered on road conditions throughout the day in the proposed bus stop site area not just at the time of the visit.

Q3 What gives you the right to put a bus stop here?

As all the work is intended to be carried out within the existing public highway and does not require access onto any adjoining private land, Leicestershire County Council as the highway authority has full legal powers to install bus stops. This can be done without giving prior notification or obtaining any consent. Nevertheless, the County Council’s policy is that it is good practice to notify residents immediately adjacent to a proposed bus stop that work is planned and to give an approximate date for commencement.

Q4 Why was I not invited to the site meeting or asked for my views?

When siting bus stops it is not practicable to involve residents before a decision is made because it involves walking along sections of roads discussing possible locations as we do not know before this process where the bus stops will be sited. To assist on the site meetings local councillors are invited to represent views of local residents and provide local knowledge of the area.

After a bus stop site has been agreed, residents directly affected are notified (those outside whose property the bus stop will be placed) before installation takes place. This allows the opportunity for comment to be made before the bus stop is in place. We do not write to every nearby household.

Q5 Why do you need a stop at all? Why not just carry on with hail and ride as before there’s never been a problem?

Under a ‘hail and ride’ type service there is no identified place for passengers to wait which could be confusing to newer passengers and may be more difficult for some disabled people. There is also the possibility that people waiting may be missed if they don’t signal clearly and they may not be waiting in a safe place. Putting bus stops up is therefore safer given that a traffic safety officer and the police approve these locations.

When service use increases on a hail and ride route the bus may have to stop several times in a short distance to pick up and set down. This has a detrimental affect on bus punctuality and reliability. For these reasons bus stops are preferred on many services.

Q6 Passengers will drop litter and I don’t’ want rubbish on my land.

The County Council can request that the local Borough Council attach a bin to the bus stop if this is identified as an issue. Alternatively residents may monitor the situation and if there proves to be a litter problem, request a litter bin.

Q7 People waiting at the bus stop may graffiti/damage my property. Are you going to pay for the repairs?

It is most often the case that anticipated problems associated with bus stops do not materialise. However, if problems of anti social behaviour do arise they should be treated as any other incident or damage to property as a criminal matter and reported to the police.

Contact

For futher information please contact the Passenger Transport Unit

Helpline: 0116 305 8777 or e-mail passengertransport@leics.gov.uk

Further information about who you need to contact click on the link below:

Bus Stops and Shelters