The problem with the 384 bus route in the area behind Barnet High Street (Bus route safety is an "embarrassament"', Times Series, April 3) is what happens when remote local government meets centrally driven Transport for London (TfL) targets.

While this problem could be improved if Strafford and Carnarvon Roads were made one way, apart from access to the library car park, such a solution will not come quickly from a council based in far away Hendon.

However, this is a result of TfL having an inflexible target that most residential areas must be within 400m of a bus route. While distance is important for those living in this area in outlying roads, once you get up to Alston Road all the bus routes along the High Street and Wood Street are easy to get to on level ground.

Also, frequency of services and cost is far more important for most users if we are ever going to get people to stop using their cars for most short journeys.

Another example is the recent wave of proposed post office closures which is underpinned by an arbitrary target that most urban residents must live within a mile of their nearest branch. This straight line distance does not take into account the routes that people normally take while they are out and about on day to day business.

Though the post office network is partly subsidised by the taxpayer, we are not allowed to know the turnover of different branches, which makes it much harder for councils to offer any additional support to keep post offices open.

Even worse, for all we know, they may be closing popular branches with a higher turnover than others that will remain open because they happen to be in the right place to provide this centrally imposed coverage.

David Nowell, president, Chipping Barnet Liberal Democrats