Arriva Kent Thameside
Encyclopedia
Arriva Kent Thameside is a bus operator based in North-West Kent, England
, part of the Arriva
group. The company operates services in Dartford
, Northfleet
and Gravesend
, as part of the Arriva Southern Counties
division. The company also operates bus services on behalf of Transport for London
from their Dartford
depot.
Dartford Garage handles TfL routes 126, 160, 233, 286, 428, 492, B12, B13 and B15.
routes A and B.
A part livery was the Bluewater livery. This was allover blue, with a water shimmer effect. The service using this livery were replaced by Fastrack in 2006.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, part of the Arriva
Arriva
Arriva plc is a multinational public transport company owned by Deutsche Bahn and headquartered in Sunderland, United Kingdom. It has bus, coach, train, tram and waterbus operations in 12 countries across Europe, employs more than 47,500 people and services over 1.5 billion passenger journeys each...
group. The company operates services in Dartford
Dartford
Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. It is situated in the northwest corner of Kent, England, east south-east of central London....
, Northfleet
Northfleet
Northfleet is a town in the Borough of Gravesham in Kent, England. Its name is derived from North creek , and the settlement on the shore of the River Thames adjacent to Gravesend was known as Norfluet in the Domesday Book, and Northflet in 1201...
and Gravesend
Gravesend, Kent
Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent, England, on the south bank of the Thames, opposite Tilbury in Essex. It is the administrative town of the Borough of Gravesham and, because of its geographical position, has always had an important role to play in the history and communications of this part of...
, as part of the Arriva Southern Counties
Arriva Southern Counties
Arriva Southern Counties is a bus operator in London, Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex, Kent and Essex in England. It is a regional division of Arriva.- History :...
division. The company also operates bus services on behalf of Transport for London
Transport for London
Transport for London is the local government body responsible for most aspects of the transport system in Greater London in England. Its role is to implement the transport strategy and to manage transport services across London...
from their Dartford
Dartford
Dartford is the principal town in the borough of Dartford. It is situated in the northwest corner of Kent, England, east south-east of central London....
depot.
Dartford
Dartford garage is the only Arriva Kent Thameside depot that does not have commercial services, the depot only handles services contracted by TfL, the other difference between Dartford and Northfleet depot is that the buses in the Dartford fleet are in London red rather than the traditional aquamarine and cream corporate livery Arriva uses.Dartford Garage handles TfL routes 126, 160, 233, 286, 428, 492, B12, B13 and B15.
Bus types in use
- Alexander Dennis Enviro 200 Dart 10.8m for route 286.
- Alexander Dennis Enviro 200 Dart 10.2m for routes 428 and B12.
- Alexander Dennis Enviro 200 Dart 8.9m for route 233.
- DAF DB250 10.2m / Alexander ALX400Alexander ALX400The Alexander ALX400 is a 2-axle double-decker bus body built by Walter Alexander Coachbuilders...
for route 160. - DAF SB200 9.2m / Wright CadetWright CadetThe Wright Cadet was a midibus body built by British coachbuilder Wrightbus, solely on the DAF/VDL SB120; it was sold via VDL dealer Arriva Bus & Coach. For a time, Volvo additionally sold the chassis/body combination, however the body was marketed as the Merit.The Cadet was replaced by the Wright...
for routes B13 and B15. - DAF DB250 10.2m / Wright Pulsar GeminiWright Pulsar GeminiThe Wright Pulsar Gemini is a type of double-decker bus body built for VDL DB250 and used in the United Kingdom since 2003.It has been ordered almost exclusively by Arriva and largely in London, although several batches were ordered for use by Arriva subsidiaries outside London, and by smaller...
for route 492. - Dennis Dart SLF 10.7m / Plaxton Pointer 2 for route 126.
- Alexander Dennis Enviro400 10.1m to be introduced on route 160 from January 2012.
- VDL SB180 10.3m / MCV EvolutionMCV EvolutionThe MCV Evolution is a single-decker bus bodywork built by Manufacturing Commercial Vehicles. It was unveiled in late 2004.This body is based on the frame of the Stirling but has been drastically restyled, incorporating a new roof-dome , and other new mouldings...
for route 233.
Northfleet
Northfleet depot runs commercial services in Dartford, Gravesend and surrounding areas. These Routes are 408, 414, 423, 433, 453, 455, 477, 480, 485, 490, 497, as well as FastrackFastrack
Fastrack is a bus rapid transit scheme operating in the Thames Gateway area of Kent. It currently consists of two routes operated by Arriva Southern Counties on behalf of Kent County Council...
routes A and B.
Bus types in use
- Dennis DartDennis DartThe Dennis Dart is a rear-engined midibus built by Dennis in the United Kingdom. More than 11,000 were built during 18 years of production....
/ East Lancs EL2000East Lancs EL2000The East Lancs EL2000 is a type of single-deck bus body built on a wide variety of chassis by East Lancashire Coachbuilders.-Chassis:Many different chassis types, both new and secondhand, were fitted with EL2000 bodywork... - Dennis DartDennis DartThe Dennis Dart is a rear-engined midibus built by Dennis in the United Kingdom. More than 11,000 were built during 18 years of production....
/ Plaxton PointerPlaxton PointerThe Plaxton Pointer is a successful single-decker bus body manufactured during the 1990s by Plaxton and latterly built by Alexander Dennis.With the launch of the Dennis Dart in 1989, Plaxton's subsidiary Reeve Burgess made the Pointer body on the short 8.5 m...
(standard floor) - Dennis Dart SLF / Plaxton Pointer 2
- Dennis Dart SLF / Alexander Dennis Pointer
- Optare MetroRiderOptare MetroRiderThe Optare MetroRider was a midibus built by Optare between 1989 and 2000. Optare based the original design on the MCW Metrorider after Optare bought the rights following a decision by MCW to end bus production. This model also replaced the less successful StarRider.The MetroRider was an integral...
due for withdrawal - Optare Solo SR
- VDL SB200VDL SB200The VDL SB200 is a light-weight 12m citybus produced from 2001 by VDL Bus International...
/ Wright PulsarWright PulsarThe Wright Pulsar is a bus body built by Wrightbus for the VDL SB200 lightweight bus chassis. It is the replacement for the "Classic" style Commander, Merit and Cadet....
(for routes 480 and 490) - Volvo B7RLEVolvo B7RLEVolvo B7RLE is a low-floor single-deck citybus launched initially in Australia in 2001, and then in the United Kingdom in 2003 to supplement the B7L single-decker, which was unsuccessful in both countries. It is similar to the B7L's predecessor, the B10BLE...
/ Wright Eclipse Urban (for FastrackFastrackFastrack is a bus rapid transit scheme operating in the Thames Gateway area of Kent. It currently consists of two routes operated by Arriva Southern Counties on behalf of Kent County Council...
) - Volvo OlympianVolvo OlympianThe Volvo Olympian was a rear-engine double decker bus built by Volvo at Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland. It was first built in 1992 and entered production in March 1993, replacing the Leyland Olympian....
/ Northern Counties Countybus Palatine 1 - Volvo OlympianVolvo OlympianThe Volvo Olympian was a rear-engine double decker bus built by Volvo at Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland. It was first built in 1992 and entered production in March 1993, replacing the Leyland Olympian....
/ Northern Counties Countybus Palatine 2
Livery
The main Arriva livery is aquamarine blue, with champagne cream and white separator line. Fastrack buses at Northfleet use a special livery of light blue at the front and grey at the rear, broken with a navy blue band and thin white lines in the middle of the bus. As Dartford operates TfL routes the Arriva London livery is used at this depot. The original London livery was red, with champagne “cow-horns” (a thined version of the aquamarine swoop) and thin yellow line at skirt level. The Arriva “circles” logo is orange, not blue, as the corporate one. The new London livery is completely red, with the thin yellow line at skirt level and the Arriva “circles” in plain white.A part livery was the Bluewater livery. This was allover blue, with a water shimmer effect. The service using this livery were replaced by Fastrack in 2006.