London Buses route 113
Encyclopedia
London Buses route 113 is a Transport for London
contracted bus route in London
, United Kingdom
. This service is currently contracted to Metroline
.
Prior to the introduction of the current routeing in the late 1930s, the route ran over some of today's northern end of the route, from Hendon to Canons Park, via the Watford Way to Apex Corner, and then via Selvage Lane and Hale Lane into Edgware. The Hendon Central to Central London section was at that time covered by route 121 (and ran on to Peckham Rye).
Despite its very long and uninterrupted existence, there were some minor changes in service levels. In July 1969, the Sunday service was withdrawn between Oxford Circus and Swiss Cottage, only for it to be reinstated in January 1975. Between January 1976 and November 1985, the route also ran additional short journeys between Edgware Station
and Brent Cross shopping centre; these short journeys were subsequently incorporated into an extension of route 186. At the same time in November 1985, the service between Mill Hill Apex Corner and Edgware was restricted, for a brief period, to weekday peaks evenings, Saturday evenings and Sundays only.
Various types of double deck bus have operated over the route throughout its long history, including STDs, RTs, RMs and RMLs. The route was converted to one person operation in October 1986 using Metrobuses
. The route was run from Hendon Garage, until its closure on 6 June 1987, when the allocation transferred to Edgware. In March 1993, the route was run from Cricklewood Garage, using single deck Dennis Lance
s until it reverted back to Metrobuses in 1997, followed by a transfer to Edgware garage in December 1998. The route became low floor in 2001, using Plaxton President
bodied Volvo B7TL
VPLs, and it is now quite common to see Enviro 400s on the route.
After 70 years of operation between Edgware and Oxford Circus, the route was controversially withdrawn between Oxford Circus and Orchard Street, and diverted to Marble Arch (returning from Portman Street) on 7 November 2009 as part of the Mayor for London's
pledge to reduce the number of buses using Oxford Street
, breaking some 2,100 daily passenger journeys on the route between Oxford Street and Hendon, Mill Hill and Edgware. The route was also planned for simultaneous conversion to 24-hour operation in 2009, along with improvements to evening and Sunday frequencies, and a possible diversion in Mill Hill via The Broadway, Hale Lane and Selvage Lane. Such a diversion would return the route to Selvage Lane after a gap of over 70 years. However, these improvement plans did not come to fruition at the same time as the curtailment to Marble Arch, and appeared to have been postponed until the route was re-tendered for 2012. In the October 2011 re-tendering of the route to start 31st March 2012, the intention was confirmed to finally introduce a night-bus service along the route for the first time. TfL have now published their proposals which are to create an N113 running along the normal daytime route from Edgware to Oxford Street, but additionally serving Oxford Circus, Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square.
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...
contracted bus route in 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...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. This service is currently contracted to Metroline
Metroline
Metroline, owned by ComfortDelGro Corporation of Singapore, is one of many companies operating bus services in London under the management of London Buses.-Company history:...
.
History
Route 113 is a particularly notable route as it ran over exactly the same routeing between Edgware and Oxford Circus for over 70 years, from before the Second World War until 6 November 2009, and was thus until that date one of the very longest-running wholly unamended bus routes running anywhere in Greater London. It continues to remain notable today as it is now rare for a London bus daytime route to run between the West End and almost the boundary of Greater London.Prior to the introduction of the current routeing in the late 1930s, the route ran over some of today's northern end of the route, from Hendon to Canons Park, via the Watford Way to Apex Corner, and then via Selvage Lane and Hale Lane into Edgware. The Hendon Central to Central London section was at that time covered by route 121 (and ran on to Peckham Rye).
Despite its very long and uninterrupted existence, there were some minor changes in service levels. In July 1969, the Sunday service was withdrawn between Oxford Circus and Swiss Cottage, only for it to be reinstated in January 1975. Between January 1976 and November 1985, the route also ran additional short journeys between Edgware Station
Edgware tube station
Edgware tube station is a London Underground station in Edgware, in the London Borough of Barnet, in North London. The station is the terminus of the Edgware branch of the Northern Line and the next station towards central London is . Edgware is in Travelcard Zone 5.-Location:The station is in...
and Brent Cross shopping centre; these short journeys were subsequently incorporated into an extension of route 186. At the same time in November 1985, the service between Mill Hill Apex Corner and Edgware was restricted, for a brief period, to weekday peaks evenings, Saturday evenings and Sundays only.
Various types of double deck bus have operated over the route throughout its long history, including STDs, RTs, RMs and RMLs. The route was converted to one person operation in October 1986 using Metrobuses
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...
. The route was run from Hendon Garage, until its closure on 6 June 1987, when the allocation transferred to Edgware. In March 1993, the route was run from Cricklewood Garage, using single deck Dennis Lance
Dennis Lance
The Dennis Lance is a single-decker bus built by Dennis between 1991 and 2000, replacing the Dennis Falcon. Its low-floor variant, the Dennis Lance SLF, was built between 1993 and 1996...
s until it reverted back to Metrobuses in 1997, followed by a transfer to Edgware garage in December 1998. The route became low floor in 2001, using Plaxton President
Plaxton President
The Plaxton President was a double-decker bus body built at Northern Counties plant in Wigan, England and branded as a Plaxton product for its main production run. It was unveiled in 1997 and built between 1999 and 2005. When Plaxton became part of TransBus International, the body was sold under...
bodied Volvo B7TL
Volvo B7TL
Volvo B7TL is a low-floor double-decker bus which was launched in 1999 and replaced the 2-axle version of Volvo Olympian...
VPLs, and it is now quite common to see Enviro 400s on the route.
After 70 years of operation between Edgware and Oxford Circus, the route was controversially withdrawn between Oxford Circus and Orchard Street, and diverted to Marble Arch (returning from Portman Street) on 7 November 2009 as part of the Mayor for London's
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson is a British journalist and Conservative Party politician, who has been the elected Mayor of London since 2008...
pledge to reduce the number of buses using Oxford Street
Oxford Street
Oxford Street is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, United Kingdom. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, as well as its most dense, and currently has approximately 300 shops. The street was formerly part of the London-Oxford road which began at Newgate,...
, breaking some 2,100 daily passenger journeys on the route between Oxford Street and Hendon, Mill Hill and Edgware. The route was also planned for simultaneous conversion to 24-hour operation in 2009, along with improvements to evening and Sunday frequencies, and a possible diversion in Mill Hill via The Broadway, Hale Lane and Selvage Lane. Such a diversion would return the route to Selvage Lane after a gap of over 70 years. However, these improvement plans did not come to fruition at the same time as the curtailment to Marble Arch, and appeared to have been postponed until the route was re-tendered for 2012. In the October 2011 re-tendering of the route to start 31st March 2012, the intention was confirmed to finally introduce a night-bus service along the route for the first time. TfL have now published their proposals which are to create an N113 running along the normal daytime route from Edgware to Oxford Street, but additionally serving Oxford Circus, Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square.
Current route
- Edgware StationEdgware tube stationEdgware tube station is a London Underground station in Edgware, in the London Borough of Barnet, in North London. The station is the terminus of the Edgware branch of the Northern Line and the next station towards central London is . Edgware is in Travelcard Zone 5.-Location:The station is in...
Bus Station - Mill Hill CircusMill HillMill Hill is a place in the London Borough of Barnet. It is a suburb situated 9 miles north west of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until it was absorbed by London...
- Hendon Central StationHendon Central tube stationHendon Central tube station is a London Underground station in North West London on the A41.The station is on the Edgware branch of the Northern Line, between Colindale and Brent Cross stations, and is on the boundary between Travelcard Zone 3 and Zone 4. Its postcode is NW4 2TE...
- Brent CrossBrent CrossBrent Cross is an area of north London, in the London Borough of Barnet. It is located near the A41 Brent Cross Flyover over the A406 North Circular Road. Brent Cross is best known for its shopping centre and the proposed Brent Cross Cricklewood development....
for Shopping Centre - Finchley Road & Frognal StationFinchley Road & Frognal railway stationFinchley Road & Frognal railway station is on Finchley Road in the London Borough of Camden in North London. It is on the North London Line, and the station and all trains serving it are operated by London Overground. It is in Travelcard Zone 2...
- Finchley Road StationFinchley Road tube stationFinchley Road tube station is a London Underground station at the corner of Finchley Road and Canfield Gardens in the London Borough of Camden, North London. It is on the Jubilee Line, between West Hampstead and Swiss Cottage and on the Metropolitan Line between Baker Street and Wembley Park. It is...
- Swiss Cottage StationSwiss Cottage tube stationSwiss Cottage tube station is a London Underground station at Swiss Cottage. It is on the Jubilee Line, between and . It is in Travelcard Zone 2 and on the Finchley Road.-History:...
- St John's Wood StationSt John's Wood tube stationSt John's Wood tube station is a London Underground station at St John's Wood. It is on the Jubilee Line, between Swiss Cottage and Baker Street. It is in Travelcard Zone 2...
- Lord's Cricket GroundLord's Cricket GroundLord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
- Baker Street StationBaker Street tube stationBaker Street tube station is a station on the London Underground at the junction of Baker Street and the Marylebone Road. The station lies in Travelcard Zone 1 and is served by five different lines...
- Marble ArchMarble ArchMarble Arch is a white Carrara marble monument that now stands on a large traffic island at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane, and Edgware Road, almost directly opposite Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park in London, England...
Oxford Street