I tried the service out yesterday, between Barnet and Potters Bar. The service was busy, with almost every seat taken on the single deck journey from New Barnet (most people getting on in Barnet). However, the journey before it was cancelled meaning there hadn’t been a bus for an hour.
A few Oyster users used the service for local trips within Barnet, but they were just waved on. There were also quite a few elderly pass holders who were waved on too - is this to do with London passes not valid on the non-London ticket machine?
Anyway, if this is a regular occurance, than passenger data can’t be accurate. I realise passes can be manually recorded, but I’m not sure if they were.