Traffic chaos across town discussed at first meeting of Harlow Bus Users Group
General / Mon 3rd Feb 2025 at 03:40pm
LAST week, the Harlow Bus Users Group met for the first time in several year reports Charlotte Pedroz.
Chair of the group, councillor Matthew Saggers hoped that this first meeting will kick start a healthy dialogue between all interested parties.
One of the many concerns expressed by residents was, the traffic chaos across town.
Other Subjects: Harlow Bus Station
The planning of the Harlow Bus Station regeneration began at the end of 2024, final plans are expected to be drawn up by this March.
The funders of this project (UK government and The Sustainable Transport Hub) intend to have the station open and fully operational by November 2026 presenting Harlow with a “welcoming, vibrant and well connected space” that “decreases levels of crime and antisocial behaviour” that has been often seen in the current “dark and unwelcoming environment,” with a 14 bay stretch that features waiting areas, electronic timetable and information boards, toilets and a dedicated cycle hub.
However, whilst this will be an asset to the town centre once its complete, currently, as one of the busiest transport stations in the UK outside a major city, Harlow Bus Station facilities cannot adapt to changes in public transport and future capacity-including increased traffic all over the town-due to a sustained lack of investment over the last 25 years hence the great need for this development.
Answering the public’s Q&A concerning numerous different station that are experiencing troubles with punctuality.
A key part of the meeting was where bus operators expressed their frustration at the impact the ongoing roadworks were having on punctuality.
All these topics can be seen in film of meeting below.
Seamus
2025-02-03 17:09:41
The town's traffic is gridlocked most of the time and even a standstill at peak times which are no longer 8-9am and 5-6pm. Why? It's quite obvious to most Harlow residents apart from those in the council chamber. A town with an infrastructure that was designed to have a maximum of 68,000 residents now has 93,300 and over13,500 homes being built on our borders. It's no good saying use the bus as the buses are getting caught up in the same traffic chaos. As to the bus station, if there are to be toilets there, can we at least get some level of security there as the last ones were always broken, junkies shooting up or homeless sleeping in them
Resident
2025-02-03 17:54:39
So the bus stop has been moved and at tye busiest time of year, christmas, and the coldest with limited shelter, but planning for the new bus station isn't complete ? Are they for real ? And what on earth is going on with the chaos of the new flooring ? Did they choose the slowest people they could find, and what has been laid doesn't look to be any improvement on what was already there. It's like monopoly money is being spent by kids. It's very depressing
Simon
2025-02-03 20:35:27
Gridlock now on some roundabouts. I've got an idea to stop some of it, keep clear on the roads. Pretty simple, swimming pool roundabout and our lasy Fatima church roundabout. This stops people queueing and blocking other road users. You're welcome.
Mazzy
2025-02-03 20:37:37
I wanted to attend that meeting, but not at 6pm. I watched it online, but could not participate. Less than 20 people were in the audience and I couldn't hear what they were saying at all. I wanted to ask why no work has started on the old bus station despite it closing at the end of November and why the Staple Tye buses are no longer going to the town station. To get a much bigger attendance, the next meeting needs to be in the daytime.
David Forman
2025-02-03 20:37:50
I hope the new bus station waiting areas have some heating in winter and not full of gaps for the wind to whistle through. The seating needs to be warm to the touch, not like the disgusting metal seats in the old bus station that froze your balls off and gave you piles.
James Gamble
2025-02-03 21:37:34
This council had the opportunity to solve the majority of the traffic issues in Harlow by a byepass through Gilston directly on to the M11.
Godfrey the great
2025-02-03 22:11:27
Harlow the commuter town you simply cannot commute across due to near on every single road having road works or temporary traffic lights with literally no one working on the road works .. a town that's run by people so incapable a cardboard cut out could do no worse a job or to simply say it .a town that had so much thats been run into the ground to the point it's on danger of popping up somewhere in Australia
TonyB
2025-02-03 23:25:23
This meeting was a joke, shown live and repeated on Your Harlow. The officials and bus company representatives sat and conducted the meeting as though they were running a council meeting. There were 16 members of the public; none had access to a microphone. They could have all sat around the table and used the microphone. The gridlocked town of Harlow, caused by roadworks blocking the main East-West roads, will continue for years and years to come as Essex Highways will construct many more roundabouts with traffic lights. Bus timetables will continue to be a work of fiction for years. Currently, work is only on the first two roundabouts. Harlow still has the next two roundabouts to come, one at the Eastwick roundabout, which will impact all the traffic on the Burnt Mill roundabout. Plans are also to build another bridge next to the existing bridge, all of which will impact the buses trying to reach Harlow Town Station and probably back up to the town centre. The other roundabout is the one by the Police station / Water Gardens. This will block another East-West Road, Second Avenue, impacting shoppers, staff and patients for the hospital, The Leisure Zone, and the schools.
Angry Resident
2025-02-04 00:16:42
Why is there so many different construction projects going on at the same time, that are uncoordinated and under resourced? There are several parts of Broadwalk half dug up with no people working on them, several complex road projects again not all resourced with people, and a bus station that has moved and no work started yet on the replacement. Busses are late because of the complete chaos of multiple under resourced projects running concurrently and we now have to pay increased bus fairs from January for a far worse service.
Suzanne Floyd
2025-02-04 09:00:38
The ongoing roadworks in Harlow are also impacting the surrounding villages. I live in Sawbridgeworth and work in Bishop's Stortford. I am only 4 miles away from work; and yet whatever time I have tried getting there is taking me a frustratingly longer time. Grid lock traffic from all the new builds all around us. Temporary roadworks every day. I have tried different routes, but this has the sane issue and impact. Our roads are the original roads that have existed since at least the 50's. Our traffic level, due to the huge older and newer developments are not able to cope. More potholes, queueing and gridlocked traffic. Heavy goods vehicles creating even more damage. Big plans and money spent for the development of a new hospital, that by the way, is now not going to build in the proposed site near Gilsten Park. The new and painful development by Harlow Mill for dedicated lorries; was built at huge cost to the tax payers, but can't be used because Harlow Council did not own the land? Who on earth are running these councils and wasting £££££'s. Meanwhile, I see nothing happening with our comments here, no one that is important will read these. As we are only seen as a number!!
ratboy
2025-02-04 09:47:56
Yes we all need our cars and of course the disabled even more so but there are too many people moaning about gridlock travelling a couple of miles into the town centre when they could easily walk or cycle.Its not always possible when you have a large shop or you have to carry a large item and of course in the winter the weather is not too good but the cycling option works for me plus I get a workout at the same time.If I was sat in my car now in the rush hour slowly crawling up to the town taking up the same space as four cyclists I would seriously be thinking of less frustrating alternatives.And yes the seemingly uncoordinated road works dont exactly help.
gary roberts
2025-02-04 11:10:05
I submitted a question to this meeting but was unable to attend. My question asked about the lack of a local bus service in Potter Street. The director from Central Connect who provide out of town bus services that go through Potter Street acknowledged the lack of providing the north area of Potter Street and said it couldn't provide the service on the grounds people wanted to get to Epping quickly. If I had been able to attend I would have suggested that either the bus 20 or 21 could turn left at the hamburger roundabout down to the Clock Tower and enter Potter Street that way to provide the service needed by Potter Street residents. It wouldn't delay the service to Epping: would it? Essex and Harlow council representatives kicked my question down the road sadly.
Richard
2025-02-04 12:40:16
I am more interested why there is no integrated bus ticketing in harlow , if you buy a weekly monthly ticket on say Arriva , on the way home from work and on Sundays you have to pay again , as Essex county council have contracted another operator for evenings and weekends , travelling home from work in the evenings its almost doubled my travel costs in a stroke from £55 a month to £110 just to get around Harlow .
Dexter E
2025-02-04 16:56:08
In answer to Richard ( and I'm not 100% sure), I understood that arriva could no longer provide the evening and weekend service which is why the council had to source another company. Also, as people have mentioned previously the speed of the roadworks is laughable, whenever I'm walking alongside modt of the workman are standing around and/ or looking in holes ?
Barbara Knight
2025-02-04 18:28:11
I would be very interested to know that if, following the extensive alterations to Harlow Transport system, particularly the bus station, Harlow Council has been in any discussions at all with Highways Department and bus operators, as well as residents groups to consider thst there are no buses that run along Edinburgh Way. There are many shops and retail parks but not everyone has access to a private vehicle there are no frequent bus routes that would enable those without private transport to visit this area. It seems such a shame that a large portion of the population doesn’t have a decent bus service, particularly as such a huge amount is being g spent on a large project.
Frustrated
2025-02-04 19:24:27
The workmen on the Edinburgh Way roundabout seem to pack up and go home at around 4pm. Nobody from the council cares apparently. There's simultaneous roadworks in every direction. Utter shambles.
Richard
2025-02-05 11:16:04
Dexter E yes your are right about arriva not wanting to run evening and weekend services , which is why Essex county council contracted Central connect , however it must be possible to offer some kind of integrated bis ticketing why cant Essex have its own version of an oyster card i wonder.?
Mr Grumpy
2025-02-05 14:38:26
All this work being undertaken for a shoddy bus service. There are so many areas in Harlow where a bus simply does not go meaning the elderly or infirm have to walk some distance to get to a bus stop. An example of this is The Stow. There are a couple of care homes nearby and the only bus stop is on Howards Way (No 8). If someone has difficulty walking, how on earth can they use a bus with the stop being so far away. The bus stop near The Stow Library needs to be put back in use.
Tony Rapley
2025-02-05 16:30:05
Why on earth is there no bus service to Newhall. This is now becoming a major town ( bigger than Church Langley). It's rediculous for people to walk so far to use any recognised service
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