Commuters, hospital workers and patients in Harrow are set to benefit from improved transport links as bus route 324 extends from Stanmore station to Centennial Park this Saturday (28 August).
The new bus route will stop at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital along the way.
The route extension will provide new links to the hospital and business park from areas of Colindale, Hendon and Stanmore, and customers will also be able to interchange with the Jubilee line at Stanmore Station.
The move is strongly backed by the local community. Responses to a recent consultation about the proposed extension were overwhelmingly positive, with feedback received from local residents, hospital staff and patients, Centennial Park business owners and employees, and local elected representatives in Harrow, Brent and Barnet and neighbouring authorities.
From this Saturday (28 August), route 324 will continue along London Road beyond its current terminus at Stanmore Station to Canons Corner, before turning left onto Brockley Hill.
The route will serve the western entrance of the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital before crossing the A41 and turning left into Centennial Avenue and terminating within Centennial Park. In the direction of Brent Cross, buses will begin their route within Centennial Park and follow the same route in reverse.
The route will continue to run at its current frequencies, with a service running every 20 minutes during the day and every 30 minutes in the evenings, every day of the week.
Commuters, hospital workers and patients in #Harrow are set to benefit from improved transport links as bus route 324 extends from #Stanmore station to Centennial Park this Saturday 28 August!
📷 @TfL pic.twitter.com/zOxobp8cDp
— Harrow Online (@harrowonline) August 26, 2021
Route 107, which runs along part of the forthcoming 324 extension, will continue to run as normal between Edgware and New Barnet, stopping at the RNOH at Brockley Hill.
Customers can take advantage of the Hopper fare, which permits multiple bus journeys within the hour for the price of a single fare.
Deputy Mayor for Transport Heidi Alexander said: “The local community were overwhelmingly positive about the proposed extension to bus route 324, so it’s great to see it launch this weekend. The extension will hugely improve transport links for patients and staff at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, and benefit commuters including those who work at Centennial Business Park.”
A Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Trust spokesperson said: “The RNOH Trust are delighted to have worked collaboratively with TfL, to help improve the 324 bus service (Brent Cross – Stanmore tube station), whose route has been extended to the hospital and Centennial Park.
“Access is a critical issue for our patients, whether they live locally or are travelling to us from further afield. The extended bus service also supports our staff to be able to get to and from work more easily, and to make the shift to public transport at a time when we are considering as an organisation how we can further reduce our carbon footprint.”
Anthony Wood, Chair of the Harrow Public Transport Users Association, said: “The extension will provide an important link to the RNOH and Centennial Park and the Harrow Public Transport Users Association are grateful for this improvement”.
