Green Line routes X1 and X10
Encyclopedia
Green Line routes X1 and X10 were limited-stop express coach
services which were operated by Stephensons of Essex
as part of the large Green Line Coaches
network. The services operated between Rochford
, Southend and London
. The original X1 route was introduced in 1980 by Southend Transport
and Reading Transport
, and also served Reading
.
and the X1 service was started the same year. It ran every two hours between Southend and Reading
via Basildon
, Socketts Heath, Rainham, Dagenham
, East Ham
, Canning Town
, Aldgate
, Piccadilly
, Kensington
, Hammersmith
, Heathrow Airport, Slough
, Maidenhead
and Twyford
, and was jointly operated by Southend Transport
and Reading Transport
. Southend Transport used four recently delivered Leyland Leopard
s, and Reading Transport bus seated MCW Metrobus
es and MCW Metropolitans
.
On 16 February 1981, a licence was granted for a Southend to Hammersmith section of route. At around that time, Reading Transport temporarily withdrew from operating their journeys in a dispute with their staff. Southend Transport operated a reduced service to Heathrow only until it was restored from May 23. Reading Transport resumed operations on 29 February. Another strike was staged by Reading Transport for 12 days in June that year. On 16 January 1982, a London Bus Agreement was granted by London Transport
, meaning more local traffic could be carried. This was in time for a series of rail strikes at the end of January and February, which brought many additional passengers; both operators ran duplicate journeys.
There were more rail strikes in June and July, which resulted in 17 double deck duplicates being used by Southend, some of which were provided by Ensignbus
. At the end of July, a Neoplan
double deck coach, was tried on the route for a day, and a Bova single deck coach was similarly used on August 18. However, an order was placed for three Van Hool
Astromega double deck coaches costing £112,000 each.
On November 28, season tickets - called Expresscards - were introduced for the first time, previously only singles, day and period returns were available. Another first time came in December, when the service ran on Christmas Day. In April the next year, the first of the Astromega coaches entered service. It had a seating capacity of 84 seats in a 12m, 3 axle layout.
The first short term hired coach, a Colchester Leopard, was used by Southend on 3 May due to increasing passenger numbers. It was joined by further hired coaches from Leicester from June, Bournemouth and Burnley from October, Fylde in November and Lancaster and Derby from December. In December, there were 13 coaches on hire at the same time. On 9 May, a peak hours only service was introduced, route X21; Shoebury to Green Park via Thorpe Bay, Prittlewell and the A127
. June saw two ex-Midland Red
Willowbrook DP bodied Leopards, enter service on loan from Ensign.
On 15 August 1983 the basic frequency of the route was increased to hourly Mondays to Saturdays and service X21 was enhanced. The end of 1983 and then 1984 saw more increases in passenger numbers, and more frequency increases and vehicle duplications to reflect this. At the beginning to 1984 the short term hired coaches started to be replaced by long term hires. The fleet of coaches reached 20 vehicles, and a parcels service started.
On 15 April there was a major timetable revision, with more peak services bur fewer Heathrow journeys; the Sunday service was increased to hourly. The journeys not via Basildon became numbered X11, and the coach fleet reached 32 vehicles. In the summer of May to September, certain journeys were extended on Sundays to serve attractions such as Thorpe Park
and Windsor
. Similar extensions were operated in 1985.
18 June 1984 saw an X31 service started from Canvey to Green Park, with 4 return journeys. The coach fleet reached 41 vehicles. On 9 October, the X31 was increased to 7 times a day, Monday to Fridays, increasing the coach fleet to 50. The last short term hired coach was returned to Burnley on 14 January 1985. On 25 January, the coach fleet reached 60, with a new delivery and 6 more on order. At the time, the Southend Transport bus fleet was only 63 vehicles.
On April 1 another peak hour variant started, service X41; it was Prittlewell to Green Park via Rochford, Ashingdon and Rayleigh. At the same time, route X31 was again increased to 9 peak hour journeys and a Saturday trip was introduced. Route numbers X10 and X30 were introduced for peak hour journeys which ran fast from Corringham to Purfleet via the newly opened A13 Socketts Heath by-pass on 22 July 1985.
On 12 April 1986 the Heathrow journeys were extended to the newly opened Terminal 4. From 1 June a relaxation in the licensing laws allowed local traffic to be carried between Southend and Basildon for the first time. On 22 September, route X31 was increased to an hourly service Monday to Fridays with two trips on Saturdays. Four days later, a Cardiff Bus
coach-seated Leyland Olympian
was taken on long term hire, with five more following in spring 1987.
An off peak London service X23 was introduced 24 November, East Beckton to Green Park. It was short lived, and was withdrawn in July 1987. On 1 April 1987 an attempt was made to find work for idle commuter coaches, and Southend Transport acquired the Culturebus London sightseeing service 614 from Ensignbus
, running every 30 minutes. It was run mainly by the double deckers, Astromegas and Olympians, some of which were painted and lettered for the service.
In November 1987 Culturebus was reduced to hourly and then on 19 December was sold back to Ensignbus. The 21 December saw the off peak services on route X31 withdrawn, although the Saturday journeys remained until March 1988, and the Heathrow service reduced to just 2 journeys. In April 1988 the X31 was cut to only four or five peak journeys; the X41 was also reduced and routes X21 and X30 withdrawn altogether. The Heathrow section was withdrawn, with coaches terminating at Green Park. Many of the hired coaches were soon returned, including the Cardiff Olympians. Two Duple
320 bodied DAFs in build were cancelled.
A limited Heathrow service was reintroduced on 2 October, twice daily Monday to Fridays, following a slightly different route. Some other journeys were also rerouted in London. The Sunday service was reduced to every two hours. In October 1989 "London Coachlink" branding was introduced, with the first vehicle being reliveried in the style in February 1990. Around that time the variation to Canvey was withdrawn but Heathrow service increased to three journeys.
On 14 May 1990 the last of the "off route" peak hour variants, service X41, was withdrawn. Throughout 1990 all six of the Astromegas and all but one Leopard were withdrawn and replaced by Plaxton Paramount
bodied Leyland Tiger
s. On 28 October some off peak journeys were diverted into the new Lakeside Shopping Centre
. By the summer, the coach fleet has dropped to 17 vehicles. The routes became branded as Green Line
services, however the Green Line livery was not adopted until 1995.
There was a further increase in the number of off peak journeys extended beyond Hyde Park from 25 August, now four in addition to the three Heathrow trips. From that date, the London terminus at Victoria became the Green Line coach station rather than Semley Place. More journeys were extended to Victoria on 19 April 1992, and more still the following year, until nearly the entire off peak service went there.
Reading Transport's service also faced competition from the recently-privatised Beeline
company. Reading bought the competing route from Beeline in 1991, but passenger numbers continued to fall, and the route continued to lose money despite a number of cost-cutting measures in 1998. In May 2000 the route was withdrawn, replaced at peak times by an Armchair Transport service.
house style appeared. The Sunday service was re-routed to run directly from Embankment to Victoria, omitting Piccadilly. In spring of the same year the fleet was partially upgraded with eight second hand Volvo B10M
s replacing some of the Tigers. They introduced the Green Line livery to the fleet and the Tigers soon followed suit.
In September 1996 some morning peak journeys began to run non-stop via the new Limehouse Link instead of the A13. In May 1997, the Heathrow service was withdrawn again, and this time was not reinstated. On 7 September, route number X4 appeared for two morning journeys ex London which did not serve Basildon.
The Southend Transport name was changed to Arriva Southend
in 1997. The X4 variant disappeared again and the Piccadilly routing was served only between the peaks Mondays to Fridays, not at all weekends, and also the last late evening journey was withdrawn.
Competition ended on 10 October 1999 after seven years. Thamesway and Arriva agreed to co-operate, and began to operate a joint service, still Green Line branded. The basic service was renumbered 721, with peak hour variants 720, 722 and 72. The Piccadilly section of the route was withdrawn. The off peak service ran every 30 minutes on Mondays to Saturdays, and on Sundays every two hours, Arriva operating the service alone. There was no late evening service. Both operators provided eight coaches each, and registered their journeys separately.
In December 1999 more variety was added to the fleet with the acquisition of four second hand Van Hool
bodied Scanias, which were the first air conditioned coaches for the route. On 17 January bringing further variants 709 and 710, to provide faster peak journeys. Two DAF SB300s arrived from Arriva Shires and Essex in August 2000 after their use on Green Line route 757
ceased.
line run by c2c
offered discounted season tickets. A few years later, Arriva decided the service was no longer viable and withdrew it completely.
In 2001 Stephensons of Essex
took over the operation of the service, reintroducing the route numbers X1 and X10. However, Stephensons announced in May 2008 that it was going to withdraw the services on Friday 11 July 2008. The company blamed several factors for its decision, including significant rises in fuel costs and new European Union
drivers' hours regulations, meaning the service would have to be shortened. The introduction of the London low emission zone
also meant that a significant amount of money would have had to be spent on either modifying their existing fleet of coaches to make them comply or on purchasing new vehicles.
Passenger numbers were also in decline, as the parallel rail line service increased in reliability. Free travel reduced revenue further, as for every pensioner travelling free under the government's national scheme, Stephensons were only reimbursed 50% of the fare.
into London as a partial replacement for the X1 and X10 on August 4, 2008. Route X1 ran from Southend to Victoria Coach Station via Canary Wharf, the X3 linked Canvey to Victoria via Canary Wharf, while the X10 ran non-stop from Benfleet to Southend, Canary Wharf and Victoria Coach Station. Each route had one return journey with three vehicles required. They worked on a shift system which enabled them to cover some of the company's other work in London. The new services initially operated for a three month trial, which was extended due to sufficient demand for the services. The services ran as an unlicensed express, and were no longer part of the Green Line network. However, the services were withdrawn on 29 May 2009, bringing an end to 29 years of the service.
Then continued with X1
Then continued with X10
Coach (vehicle)
A coach is a large motor vehicle, a type of bus, used for conveying passengers on excursions and on longer distance express coach scheduled transport between cities - or even between countries...
services which were operated by Stephensons of Essex
Stephensons of Essex
Stephensons of Essex is a privately owned bus company based in south Essex, in England, operating local bus and contract services in the same areas as Arriva Southend, Ensignbus, First Essex, NIBS, and Regal Busways. It also runs private hire coaches, and has a bus and coach dealership and sales...
as part of the large Green Line Coaches
Green Line Coaches
Green Line is a commuter coach brand in the Home Counties of England. It is owned by the Arriva group.Green Line has its origin in the network of coach services established by the London General Omnibus Company in the 1920s and 1930s...
network. The services operated between Rochford
Rochford
Rochford is a small town in the Rochford district of Essex in the East of England. It is sited about 43 miles from Central London and approximately 21 miles from the Essex county town, Chelmsford...
, Southend and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The original X1 route was introduced in 1980 by Southend Transport
Arriva Southend
Arriva Southend is a division of Arriva Southern Counties, a subsidiary of transport group Arriva which operates bus services in and around the Southend-on-Sea, Rochford, Rayleigh, Basildon, and Thurrock areas of Essex...
and Reading Transport
Reading Transport
Reading Transport Ltd is a bus operator serving the towns of Reading, Newbury and the surrounding area in the English county of Berkshire. The company is wholly owned by Reading Borough Council and operates under the brands Reading Buses, Newbury Buses and Goldline Travel...
, and also served Reading
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
.
The beginning
The UK coach market was deregulated in 1980 under the Transport Act 1980Transport Act 1980
The Transport Act 1980 was a Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom. It introduced deregulation of coach services in the United Kingdom and allow authorities to deregulate bus services on a trial basis. It was introduced by the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher. The later Transport Act...
and the X1 service was started the same year. It ran every two hours between Southend and Reading
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
via Basildon
Basildon
Basildon is a town located in the Basildon District of the county of Essex, England.It lies east of Central London and south of the county town of Chelmsford...
, Socketts Heath, Rainham, Dagenham
Dagenham
Dagenham is a large suburb in East London, forming the eastern part of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham and located east of Charing Cross. It was historically an agrarian village in the county of Essex and remained mostly undeveloped until 1921 when the London County Council began...
, East Ham
East Ham
East Ham is a suburban district of London, England, and part of the London Borough of Newham. It is a built-up district located 8 miles east-northeast of Charing Cross...
, Canning Town
Canning Town
Canning Town is an area of east London, England. It is part of the London Borough of Newham and is situated in the area of the former London docks on the north side of the River Thames. It is the location of Rathbone Market...
, Aldgate
Aldgate
Aldgate was the eastern most gateway through London Wall leading from the City of London to Whitechapel and the east end of London. Aldgate gives its name to a ward of the City...
, Piccadilly
Piccadilly
Piccadilly is a major street in central London, running from Hyde Park Corner in the west to Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is completely within the city of Westminster. The street is part of the A4 road, London's second most important western artery. St...
, Kensington
Kensington
Kensington is a district of west and central London, England within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. An affluent and densely-populated area, its commercial heart is Kensington High Street, and it contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington.To the north, Kensington is...
, Hammersmith
Hammersmith
Hammersmith is an urban centre in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London, England, in the United Kingdom, approximately five miles west of Charing Cross on the north bank of the River Thames...
, Heathrow Airport, Slough
Slough
Slough is a borough and unitary authority within the ceremonial county of Royal Berkshire, England. The town straddles the A4 Bath Road and the Great Western Main Line, west of central London...
, Maidenhead
Maidenhead
Maidenhead is a town and unparished area within the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, in Berkshire, England. It lies on the River Thames and is situated west of Charing Cross in London.-History:...
and Twyford
Twyford, Berkshire
For other places of the same name, see Twyford.Twyford is a village and civil parish in the English Royal county of Berkshire. It is situated, at , in the heart of the Thames Valley on the A4 between Reading and Maidenhead, close to Henley-on-Thames and Wokingham.-History:The town's name is...
, and was jointly operated by Southend Transport
Arriva Southend
Arriva Southend is a division of Arriva Southern Counties, a subsidiary of transport group Arriva which operates bus services in and around the Southend-on-Sea, Rochford, Rayleigh, Basildon, and Thurrock areas of Essex...
and Reading Transport
Reading Transport
Reading Transport Ltd is a bus operator serving the towns of Reading, Newbury and the surrounding area in the English county of Berkshire. The company is wholly owned by Reading Borough Council and operates under the brands Reading Buses, Newbury Buses and Goldline Travel...
. Southend Transport used four recently delivered Leyland Leopard
Leyland Leopard
The Leyland Leopard was a mid-engined single-deck bus and coach chassis built by Leyland between 1959 and 1982. It was popular with bus and coach operators throughout the British Isles...
s, and Reading Transport bus seated MCW Metrobus
MCW Metrobus
The MCW Metrobus is a double decker bus model manufactured by MCW from 1977 until 1989, with over 4,000 examples built. The original MkI model was superseded by the MkII model in 1981/1982, although production of the original MkI continued for London Transport until 1985...
es and MCW Metropolitans
Scania Metropolitan
The Scania Metropolitan was the first double decker bus model built jointly by MCW and Scania division of Saab-Scania. It was built between 1973 and 1978.It was also the second bus model jointly built by these two companies...
.
London Regional Transport
London Regional Transport was the organisation responsible for the public transport network in Greater London, UK from 1984-2000. In common with all London transport authorities from 1933 to 2000, the public name and operational brand of the organisation was London Transport.The organisation was...
, meaning more local traffic could be carried. This was in time for a series of rail strikes at the end of January and February, which brought many additional passengers; both operators ran duplicate journeys.
Joint operation ended
May 16 was a key point in the history of the route, with joint operation ending. Differences in opinion over revenue allocation and the development of the service caused the operators to split up. Reading Transport then operated from Reading to Aldgate, and Southend Transport from Southend to Heathrow, with both routes still numbered X1.There were more rail strikes in June and July, which resulted in 17 double deck duplicates being used by Southend, some of which were provided by Ensignbus
Ensignbus
Ensignbus is a Purfleet-based bus and coach dealer, open top bus tour operator and bus service operator. Ensignbus has amassed 20 ex-London vehicles of various ages and conditions in a ....
. At the end of July, a Neoplan
Neoplan
NEOPLAN Bus GmbH is a German automotive company that manufactures buses, trolleybuses and coaches. NEOPLAN is now a subsidiary of NEOMAN Bus GmbH, which itself is a part of MAN SE.-Foundations:...
double deck coach, was tried on the route for a day, and a Bova single deck coach was similarly used on August 18. However, an order was placed for three Van Hool
Van Hool
Van Hool NV is a Belgian coachbuilder and manufacturer of buses, coaches, trolleybuses, and trailers.The company was founded in 1947 by Bernard van Hool in Koningshooikt, nearby Lier, Belgium. In the early years, the company introduced serial production and exported their products all over Europe...
Astromega double deck coaches costing £112,000 each.
On November 28, season tickets - called Expresscards - were introduced for the first time, previously only singles, day and period returns were available. Another first time came in December, when the service ran on Christmas Day. In April the next year, the first of the Astromega coaches entered service. It had a seating capacity of 84 seats in a 12m, 3 axle layout.
The first short term hired coach, a Colchester Leopard, was used by Southend on 3 May due to increasing passenger numbers. It was joined by further hired coaches from Leicester from June, Bournemouth and Burnley from October, Fylde in November and Lancaster and Derby from December. In December, there were 13 coaches on hire at the same time. On 9 May, a peak hours only service was introduced, route X21; Shoebury to Green Park via Thorpe Bay, Prittlewell and the A127
A127 road
The A127, also known as the Southend Arterial Road, is one of the trunk roads in England linking London with Southend-on-Sea, the other being the A13. It is a dual carriageway for its entire length, rare on a trunk road since the only others are the A14 and the A282, and is known as the Southend...
. June saw two ex-Midland Red
Midland Red
Midland Red was a bus company which operated in the English Midlands from 1905 to 1981. It was the trading name used by the Birmingham and Midland Motor Omnibus Company , which was renamed Midland Red Omnibus Company in 1974...
Willowbrook DP bodied Leopards, enter service on loan from Ensign.
On 15 August 1983 the basic frequency of the route was increased to hourly Mondays to Saturdays and service X21 was enhanced. The end of 1983 and then 1984 saw more increases in passenger numbers, and more frequency increases and vehicle duplications to reflect this. At the beginning to 1984 the short term hired coaches started to be replaced by long term hires. The fleet of coaches reached 20 vehicles, and a parcels service started.
On 15 April there was a major timetable revision, with more peak services bur fewer Heathrow journeys; the Sunday service was increased to hourly. The journeys not via Basildon became numbered X11, and the coach fleet reached 32 vehicles. In the summer of May to September, certain journeys were extended on Sundays to serve attractions such as Thorpe Park
Thorpe Park
Thorpe Park is a theme park located in Chertsey, Surrey, England, UK. It was built in 1979 on the site of a gravel pit which was partially flooded, the intention of creating a water based theme for the park. The park's first large roller coaster, Colossus, was added in 2002...
and Windsor
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
. Similar extensions were operated in 1985.
18 June 1984 saw an X31 service started from Canvey to Green Park, with 4 return journeys. The coach fleet reached 41 vehicles. On 9 October, the X31 was increased to 7 times a day, Monday to Fridays, increasing the coach fleet to 50. The last short term hired coach was returned to Burnley on 14 January 1985. On 25 January, the coach fleet reached 60, with a new delivery and 6 more on order. At the time, the Southend Transport bus fleet was only 63 vehicles.
On April 1 another peak hour variant started, service X41; it was Prittlewell to Green Park via Rochford, Ashingdon and Rayleigh. At the same time, route X31 was again increased to 9 peak hour journeys and a Saturday trip was introduced. Route numbers X10 and X30 were introduced for peak hour journeys which ran fast from Corringham to Purfleet via the newly opened A13 Socketts Heath by-pass on 22 July 1985.
On 12 April 1986 the Heathrow journeys were extended to the newly opened Terminal 4. From 1 June a relaxation in the licensing laws allowed local traffic to be carried between Southend and Basildon for the first time. On 22 September, route X31 was increased to an hourly service Monday to Fridays with two trips on Saturdays. Four days later, a Cardiff Bus
Cardiff Bus
Cardiff Bus is the dominant operator of bus services in Cardiff, Wales and the surrounding area, including Barry and Penarth. Its hub is Cardiff central bus station...
coach-seated Leyland Olympian
Leyland Olympian
The Leyland Olympian was a double-decker bus built by British Leyland/Leyland Bus in the United Kingdom from 1980 to 1993. It was the last Leyland bus model in production before the demise of Leyland Bus.-Construction:...
was taken on long term hire, with five more following in spring 1987.
The service at its peak
Bus deregulation on 26 October 1986 saw the lifting of the remaining travel restrictions outside London. The service reaches its peak in winter 1986/7, with all services X1, X10, X11, X21, X30, X31 and X41 providing a total of 64 journeys a day, Mondays to Fridays. In the peak, coaches ran every 2½ minutes on average. Six journeys serve Heathrow. The Saturday service provided 20 journeys, with 18 on Sundays and Bank Holidays. The coach fleet stood at 66, exceeding the size of the bus fleet.An off peak London service X23 was introduced 24 November, East Beckton to Green Park. It was short lived, and was withdrawn in July 1987. On 1 April 1987 an attempt was made to find work for idle commuter coaches, and Southend Transport acquired the Culturebus London sightseeing service 614 from Ensignbus
Ensignbus
Ensignbus is a Purfleet-based bus and coach dealer, open top bus tour operator and bus service operator. Ensignbus has amassed 20 ex-London vehicles of various ages and conditions in a ....
, running every 30 minutes. It was run mainly by the double deckers, Astromegas and Olympians, some of which were painted and lettered for the service.
Financial trouble
In summer 1987 Southend Transport was hit by a financial crisis, and had heavy losses. The over-expansion of the coach services was blamed, because they carried too many commuter passengers at fares which didn't cover the costs involved. Drastic action was taken to avoid bankruptcy.In November 1987 Culturebus was reduced to hourly and then on 19 December was sold back to Ensignbus. The 21 December saw the off peak services on route X31 withdrawn, although the Saturday journeys remained until March 1988, and the Heathrow service reduced to just 2 journeys. In April 1988 the X31 was cut to only four or five peak journeys; the X41 was also reduced and routes X21 and X30 withdrawn altogether. The Heathrow section was withdrawn, with coaches terminating at Green Park. Many of the hired coaches were soon returned, including the Cardiff Olympians. Two Duple
Duple Coachbuilders
Duple was best known as a British manufacturer of coach and bus bodywork from 1919 until 1989.-History:Duple Bodies & Motors Ltd was formed in 1919 by Herbert White in Hornsey, London...
320 bodied DAFs in build were cancelled.
A limited Heathrow service was reintroduced on 2 October, twice daily Monday to Fridays, following a slightly different route. Some other journeys were also rerouted in London. The Sunday service was reduced to every two hours. In October 1989 "London Coachlink" branding was introduced, with the first vehicle being reliveried in the style in February 1990. Around that time the variation to Canvey was withdrawn but Heathrow service increased to three journeys.
On 14 May 1990 the last of the "off route" peak hour variants, service X41, was withdrawn. Throughout 1990 all six of the Astromegas and all but one Leopard were withdrawn and replaced by Plaxton Paramount
Plaxton Paramount
The Plaxton Paramount was a design of coach bodywork built by Plaxton. It first appeared at the 1982 British Motor Show and was built until 1991....
bodied Leyland Tiger
Leyland Tiger
The Leyland Tiger, also known as the B43, was a mid-engined bus and coach chassis which was built between 1981 and 1993. This name had previously been used for a front-engined bus built between 1920s and 1950s. It replaced the Leyland Leopard, which had been in production for over 20 years...
s. On 28 October some off peak journeys were diverted into the new Lakeside Shopping Centre
Lakeside Shopping Centre
The Lakeside Shopping Centre is a large out-of-town shopping centre located in West Thurrock, in the borough of Thurrock, Essex just beyond the eastern boundary of Greater London...
. By the summer, the coach fleet has dropped to 17 vehicles. The routes became branded as Green Line
Green Line Coaches
Green Line is a commuter coach brand in the Home Counties of England. It is owned by the Arriva group.Green Line has its origin in the network of coach services established by the London General Omnibus Company in the 1920s and 1930s...
services, however the Green Line livery was not adopted until 1995.
There was a further increase in the number of off peak journeys extended beyond Hyde Park from 25 August, now four in addition to the three Heathrow trips. From that date, the London terminus at Victoria became the Green Line coach station rather than Semley Place. More journeys were extended to Victoria on 19 April 1992, and more still the following year, until nearly the entire off peak service went there.
Competition
On 5 July 1992 Thamesway started up a competing “CitySaver” service, which was mostly timetabled to run just in front of the X1 and with much cheaper season tickets. Competition continued for several years, and in winter 1994 more journeys started to run non stop numbered X10 or X11; more off peak journeys also diverted into Lakeside Shopping Centre, including on Sundays for the first time. The number X3 was introduced for journeys which served both Homesteads and Lakeside. The evening peak journeys started to avoid Aldgate Bus Station, stopping in Mansell Street instead to avoid the congestion.Reading Transport's service also faced competition from the recently-privatised Beeline
First Berkshire & The Thames Valley
First Berkshire & The Thames Valley is a bus operator serving Bracknell, Slough and Wokingham, in England. It is part of First Group, a major bus and train operator with a turnover of nearly £2.5 billion a year and 62,000 employees across the UK and North America...
company. Reading bought the competing route from Beeline in 1991, but passenger numbers continued to fall, and the route continued to lose money despite a number of cost-cutting measures in 1998. In May 2000 the route was withdrawn, replaced at peak times by an Armchair Transport service.
Green Line
On 1 April 1995 the first X1 leaflet in Green LineGreen Line Coaches
Green Line is a commuter coach brand in the Home Counties of England. It is owned by the Arriva group.Green Line has its origin in the network of coach services established by the London General Omnibus Company in the 1920s and 1930s...
house style appeared. The Sunday service was re-routed to run directly from Embankment to Victoria, omitting Piccadilly. In spring of the same year the fleet was partially upgraded with eight second hand Volvo B10M
Volvo B10M
The Volvo B10M is a popular mid-engined bus and coach chassis built by Volvo between 1978 and 2001. It was built as the successor of the B58 and was equipped with a 9.6-litre horizontally-mounted Volvo THD100/THD101/THD102/THD103/THD104/DH10A diesel engine mounted under the floor, near the middle...
s replacing some of the Tigers. They introduced the Green Line livery to the fleet and the Tigers soon followed suit.
In September 1996 some morning peak journeys began to run non-stop via the new Limehouse Link instead of the A13. In May 1997, the Heathrow service was withdrawn again, and this time was not reinstated. On 7 September, route number X4 appeared for two morning journeys ex London which did not serve Basildon.
The Southend Transport name was changed to Arriva Southend
Arriva Southend
Arriva Southend is a division of Arriva Southern Counties, a subsidiary of transport group Arriva which operates bus services in and around the Southend-on-Sea, Rochford, Rayleigh, Basildon, and Thurrock areas of Essex...
in 1997. The X4 variant disappeared again and the Piccadilly routing was served only between the peaks Mondays to Fridays, not at all weekends, and also the last late evening journey was withdrawn.
Competition ended on 10 October 1999 after seven years. Thamesway and Arriva agreed to co-operate, and began to operate a joint service, still Green Line branded. The basic service was renumbered 721, with peak hour variants 720, 722 and 72. The Piccadilly section of the route was withdrawn. The off peak service ran every 30 minutes on Mondays to Saturdays, and on Sundays every two hours, Arriva operating the service alone. There was no late evening service. Both operators provided eight coaches each, and registered their journeys separately.
In December 1999 more variety was added to the fleet with the acquisition of four second hand Van Hool
Van Hool
Van Hool NV is a Belgian coachbuilder and manufacturer of buses, coaches, trolleybuses, and trailers.The company was founded in 1947 by Bernard van Hool in Koningshooikt, nearby Lier, Belgium. In the early years, the company introduced serial production and exported their products all over Europe...
bodied Scanias, which were the first air conditioned coaches for the route. On 17 January bringing further variants 709 and 710, to provide faster peak journeys. Two DAF SB300s arrived from Arriva Shires and Essex in August 2000 after their use on Green Line route 757
Green Line route 757
Green Line route 757 is a limited-stop express coach service, currently operated by Arriva Shires & Essex as part of the large Green Line Coaches network. It operates between Luton and London. Additionally, the route 755 variation also serves some Luton housing estates...
ceased.
Change of operator and withdrawal
Passenger numbers began to drop, traffic congestion worsened and the parallel London, Tilbury and Southend RailwayLondon, Tilbury and Southend Railway
The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway is an English railway line linking Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London with northeast London and the entire length of the northern Thames Gateway area of southern Essex. It is currently known as the Essex Thameside Route by Network Rail...
line run by c2c
C2c
c2c is a British train operating company that is part of the National Express Group. It provides passenger rail services on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line from Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London to east London and the entire length of the northern Thames Gateway...
offered discounted season tickets. A few years later, Arriva decided the service was no longer viable and withdrew it completely.
In 2001 Stephensons of Essex
Stephensons of Essex
Stephensons of Essex is a privately owned bus company based in south Essex, in England, operating local bus and contract services in the same areas as Arriva Southend, Ensignbus, First Essex, NIBS, and Regal Busways. It also runs private hire coaches, and has a bus and coach dealership and sales...
took over the operation of the service, reintroducing the route numbers X1 and X10. However, Stephensons announced in May 2008 that it was going to withdraw the services on Friday 11 July 2008. The company blamed several factors for its decision, including significant rises in fuel costs and new European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
drivers' hours regulations, meaning the service would have to be shortened. The introduction of the London low emission zone
London low emission zone
The London Low Emission Zone is a charging scheme with the aim of reducing the pollution emissions of diesel-powered commercial vehicles in London, England. Vehicles are defined by their emissions and those that exceed pre-determined levels are charged to enter Greater London. The low emission...
also meant that a significant amount of money would have had to be spent on either modifying their existing fleet of coaches to make them comply or on purchasing new vehicles.
Passenger numbers were also in decline, as the parallel rail line service increased in reliability. Free travel reduced revenue further, as for every pensioner travelling free under the government's national scheme, Stephensons were only reimbursed 50% of the fare.
Replacement
Rainham based Swallow Coach Company introduced three express services from east EssexEssex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
into London as a partial replacement for the X1 and X10 on August 4, 2008. Route X1 ran from Southend to Victoria Coach Station via Canary Wharf, the X3 linked Canvey to Victoria via Canary Wharf, while the X10 ran non-stop from Benfleet to Southend, Canary Wharf and Victoria Coach Station. Each route had one return journey with three vehicles required. They worked on a shift system which enabled them to cover some of the company's other work in London. The new services initially operated for a three month trial, which was extended due to sufficient demand for the services. The services ran as an unlicensed express, and were no longer part of the Green Line network. However, the services were withdrawn on 29 May 2009, bringing an end to 29 years of the service.
Route
This was the route of the service until its withdrawral in July 2008.X10
- RochfordRochfordRochford is a small town in the Rochford district of Essex in the East of England. It is sited about 43 miles from Central London and approximately 21 miles from the Essex county town, Chelmsford...
South Street Fire Station - Manners Way Shops
- Southend Central Bus Station, Stand F
- Southend Victoria Circus, Queensway
- Westcliff Plough
- LeighLeigh-on-SeaLeigh-on-Sea , sometimes called Leigh, is a civil parish in Essex, England. It is part of Southend-on-Sea for administrative purposes. It became a civil parish in 1996. The council tax was increased to support it. A town council was formed. Leigh is the only parish in Southend...
Elms - Highlands Thames Drive
- HadleighHadleigh, EssexHadleigh is a town in southeast Essex, England, on the A13 between Benfleet and Leigh-on-Sea with a population of about 18,300.-History:Hadleigh is known for its castle, and the country park that surrounds it. The castle has been a romantic ruin for a few hundred years, but parts of two towers are...
Church - ThundersleyThundersleyThundersley is a district in the north west of the Castle Point Borough, in south east Essex, England, about 35 miles east of London.-Toponymy:...
Kenneth Road - BenfleetBenfleetSouth Benfleet is a town in the Castle Point district of Essex, 30 miles east of London. The Benfleet post town includes South Benfleet, Thundersley and Hadleigh. The Battle of Benfleet took place here between the Vikings and Saxons in 894....
Tarpots Corner - PitseaPitseaPitsea is a small town in the east of the Basildon district of south Essex, England. It comprises five sub-districts: Eversley, Northlands Park Neighbourhood , Chalvedon, Pitsea Mount and Burnt Mills. Vange is located to the west of Pitsea, Bowers Gifford and North Benfleet to the east and Nevendon...
Broadway East - VangeVangeVange is a former village now subsumed within the urban area of the Basildon District of Essex. As it is much smaller than Basildon, Laindon and Pitsea, it does not have its own town centre or railway station...
Five Bells
Then continued with X1
X1
- Homesteads Gable Hall School
- Stanford-le-HopeStanford-le-HopeStanford-le-Hope is a town and Church of England parish situated in the county of Essex, England. The town is within the unitary authority of Thurrock and located 23.8 miles east of Charing Cross in London...
Rookery Corner - OrsettOrsettOrsett is a village and ecclesiastical parish located within Thurrock unitary district in Essex, England, situated around 5 km north-east of Grays...
The Cock - Socketts Heath The Oak
- GraysGraysGrays is the largest town in the borough and unitary authority of Thurrock in Essex and one of the Thurrock's traditional parishes...
Treacle Mine RoundaboutTreacle Mine RoundaboutTreacle Mine Roundabout is a suburban roundabout between Grays and Stifford Clays, Essex, England.It is named, as is the adjacent public house for the local legend of Treacle mines in the valley of the river Mardyke....
Then continued with X10
Both routes continue together
- DagenhamDagenhamDagenham is a large suburb in East London, forming the eastern part of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham and located east of Charing Cross. It was historically an agrarian village in the county of Essex and remained mostly undeveloped until 1921 when the London County Council began...
Goresbrook Leisure Centre - BarkingBarkingBarking is a suburban town in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, in East London, England. A retail and commercial centre situated in the west of the borough, it lies east of Charing Cross. Barking was in the historic county of Essex until it was absorbed by Greater London. The area is...
Ship & Shovel - Canary WharfCanary WharfCanary Wharf is a major business district located in London, United Kingdom. It is one of London's two main financial centres, alongside the traditional City of London, and contains many of the UK's tallest buildings, including the second-tallest , One Canada Square...
Canada SquareCanada SquareCanada Square is a public square at Canary Wharf, on the Isle of Dogs in London's Docklands. It is in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the eastern end of Central London along the River Thames. Canada Square is surrounded by three of the tallest buildings in the United Kingdom, including One... - LimehouseLimehouseLimehouse is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is on the northern bank of the River Thames opposite Rotherhithe and between Ratcliff to the west and Millwall to the east....
Stepney Methodist Church - AldgateAldgateAldgate was the eastern most gateway through London Wall leading from the City of London to Whitechapel and the east end of London. Aldgate gives its name to a ward of the City...
High Street - Cannon Street tube station
- Embankment tube stationEmbankment tube stationEmbankment is a London Underground station in the City of Westminster, known by various names during its history. It is served by the Circle, District, Northern and Bakerloo lines. On the Northern and Bakerloo lines, the station is between Waterloo and Charing Cross stations; on the Circle and...
- WestminsterWestminsterWestminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
Parliament StreetParliament StreetParliament Street is the name of several places including:*Parliament Street, Exeter, one of the world's narrowest streets in Exeter, England...
, Stop F - London Victoria Buckingham Palace Road
See also
- Green Line CoachesGreen Line CoachesGreen Line is a commuter coach brand in the Home Counties of England. It is owned by the Arriva group.Green Line has its origin in the network of coach services established by the London General Omnibus Company in the 1920s and 1930s...
- Arriva SouthendArriva SouthendArriva Southend is a division of Arriva Southern Counties, a subsidiary of transport group Arriva which operates bus services in and around the Southend-on-Sea, Rochford, Rayleigh, Basildon, and Thurrock areas of Essex...
- Stephensons of EssexStephensons of EssexStephensons of Essex is a privately owned bus company based in south Essex, in England, operating local bus and contract services in the same areas as Arriva Southend, Ensignbus, First Essex, NIBS, and Regal Busways. It also runs private hire coaches, and has a bus and coach dealership and sales...
- Reading TransportReading TransportReading Transport Ltd is a bus operator serving the towns of Reading, Newbury and the surrounding area in the English county of Berkshire. The company is wholly owned by Reading Borough Council and operates under the brands Reading Buses, Newbury Buses and Goldline Travel...