London Buses route A10
Encyclopedia
London Buses Airbus routes describes the dedicated routes run by London Buses
and its successors to Heathrow Airport. The routes have the prefix letter A. Currently only one route exists, the A10, with four others having been withdrawn.
contracted route. The service is currently contracted to First Centrewest
.
The new contract tender in 2008 specified standard (red) London buses to be introduced with First opting for Alexander Dennis Enviro200 Darts.
and route A2 to Kings Cross
via Marble Arch
. An attempt was made to launch a route A3, running from central London to Stansted Airport, but this was quickly abandoned, as was a second attempt in 1992. The routes were operated by 16 new MCW Metrobus
es, later increasing to 24. They were taken over by London United
when London Buses was split into subsidiaries in 1991. London United were reportedly unhappy with their profitability, and considered transferring the routes to the London Coaches operation which was then up for sale, but this did not take place. In 1995 the 36 Metrobuses were partially replaced by 12 new Volvo Olympian
s fitted with air conditioning.
Also in 1995, a new route called Airbus Direct was launched. This linked Heathrow to nearby hotels, operating on request to a hotel on any reasonable route using 16 early Dennis Dart
s displaced from other routes.
Following the introduction of the Heathrow Express
train service in 1999 the routes' popularity fell, and route A1 was withdrawn. The surviving routes A2 and Airbus Direct were sold to National Express Group
in the same year. The A2 was rebranded as a National Express Airport service in 2002, but withdrawn in late 2004 as passenger numbers fell once more. Airbus Direct continued, and was rebranded Hotelink and later Dot2Dot, but was sold to Corot PLC in early 2009 and finally withdrawn later in the year.
London Buses
London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London that manages bus services within Greater London, UK. Buses are required to carry similar red colour schemes and conform to the same fare scheme...
and its successors to Heathrow Airport. The routes have the prefix letter A. Currently only one route exists, the A10, with four others having been withdrawn.
Route A10
Route A10 is a Transport for LondonTransport 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 route. The service is currently contracted to First Centrewest
First London
.First London is one of many operators of London Buses and owned by First Group. They did also run the Tramlink network, in a partnership with Tramtrack Croydon before June 2008. Their registered office is at Paddington station in London...
.
History
The route was inaugurated in 1996 to link Uxbridge and Heathrow Airport, halving the time it took to travel between them. It also serves the Stockley Park business estate. London Buslines had in fact won the original contract for the route, but was absorbed by Centrewest between this time and the start of operations. Centrewest thus inherited Plaxton-bodied Darts, among the first low-floor Darts in London, which sported a blue and yellow livery, with a diagonal red stripe. The buses, numbered simply L1-L7, bore the slogan "Heathrow fast...and it is". Centrewest was bought out by First Group, and as a result their logo was added to the livery.The new contract tender in 2008 specified standard (red) London buses to be introduced with First opting for Alexander Dennis Enviro200 Darts.
Current route
- Uxbridge StationUxbridge tube stationUxbridge is a London Underground station in Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, north-west London. The station is the terminus of the Uxbridge branches of both the Metropolitan Line and the Piccadilly Line. The next station towards London is Hillingdon. The station is 15.5 miles west of...
- Bakers Road
- Belmont Road
- York Road
- Chippendale Way
- Park Road
- Hillingdon Road
- Hillingdon Hill
- Harlington Road
- Dawley Road
- Bolingbroke Way
- The Square
- Furzeground Way
- Longwalk Road
- Stockley Park
- Bennets Field Road
- Horton Road
- Stockley Road
- M4 Spur Road
- Tunnel Road East
- Vehicle Tunnel
- Inner Ring East
- Heathrow Airport Central Bus Station
Former routes
In 1981 two Airbus routes, routes A1 and A2, were introduced. Route A1 ran to VictoriaVictoria, London
Victoria is a commercial and residential area of inner city London, lying wholly within the City of Westminster, and named after Queen Victoria....
and route A2 to Kings Cross
Kings Cross, London
King's Cross is an area of London partly in the London Borough of Camden and partly in the London Borough of Islington. It is an inner-city district located 2.5 miles north of Charing Cross. The area formerly had a reputation for being a red light district and run-down. However, rapid regeneration...
via Marble Arch
Marble Arch
Marble 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...
. An attempt was made to launch a route A3, running from central London to Stansted Airport, but this was quickly abandoned, as was a second attempt in 1992. The routes were operated by 16 new 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, later increasing to 24. They were taken over by London United
Transdev London
London United is one of many operators of London Buses and is owned by the RATP Group, an international public transport operator owned by the government of France...
when London Buses was split into subsidiaries in 1991. London United were reportedly unhappy with their profitability, and considered transferring the routes to the London Coaches operation which was then up for sale, but this did not take place. In 1995 the 36 Metrobuses were partially replaced by 12 new Volvo Olympian
Volvo Olympian
The 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....
s fitted with air conditioning.
Also in 1995, a new route called Airbus Direct was launched. This linked Heathrow to nearby hotels, operating on request to a hotel on any reasonable route using 16 early Dennis Dart
Dennis Dart
The 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....
s displaced from other routes.
Following the introduction of the Heathrow Express
Heathrow Express
Heathrow Express is an airport rail link from London Heathrow Airport to London Paddington station in London operated by the Heathrow Express Operating Authority, a wholly owned subsidiary of BAA. It was opened by the then Prime Minister Tony Blair in 1998...
train service in 1999 the routes' popularity fell, and route A1 was withdrawn. The surviving routes A2 and Airbus Direct were sold to National Express Group
National Express Group
National Express Group plc is a British transport group headquartered in Birmingham that operates bus, coach, rail and tram services in the UK, the US and Canada, Spain, Portugal and Morocco and long-distance coach routes across Europe...
in the same year. The A2 was rebranded as a National Express Airport service in 2002, but withdrawn in late 2004 as passenger numbers fell once more. Airbus Direct continued, and was rebranded Hotelink and later Dot2Dot, but was sold to Corot PLC in early 2009 and finally withdrawn later in the year.
See also
- List of bus routes in London
- First CentrewestFirst London.First London is one of many operators of London Buses and owned by First Group. They did also run the Tramlink network, in a partnership with Tramtrack Croydon before June 2008. Their registered office is at Paddington station in London...
- Heathrow Airport