Arriva London facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Arriva London

A New Routemaster bus on route 254 at Aldgate bus station in April 2024
Parent	Arriva UK Bus
Founded	1998
Headquarters	Wood Green
Service area	Greater London
Service type	Bus operator
Routes	91 (March 2024)
Depot(s)	14
Fleet	1,515 (March 2023)
Web site	www.arrivalondon.com

Arriva London is a big bus company in Greater London. It's part of Arriva UK Bus. They run bus services for Transport for London. The company started in 1998. It was formed by joining several smaller Arriva bus companies. These included Grey-Green, Leaside Buses, Kentish Bus, London & Country, and South London Transport. Arriva London is split into two main parts: Arriva London North Limited and Arriva London South Limited.

History of Arriva London

The Arriva London logo on an old Routemaster bus.

The story of Arriva London began in 1980. That's when the Cowie Group bought a coach business called Grey-Green in London. In 1987, Grey-Green started running bus routes in North and East London. They had contracts with London Regional Transport.

Later, in 1989, London Buses was split into 11 separate companies. Two of these were Leaside Buses and South London Transport. The Cowie Group bought these companies in 1994 and 1995. They renamed them Cowie Leaside and Cowie South London in 1996.

In 1996, the Cowie Group also bought British Bus. This company owned Kentish Bus and London & Country. These companies also ran bus services in London. In 1997, the Cowie Group changed its name to Arriva. This is how Arriva London came to be.

Bus Garages

Arriva London has many bus garages. These are places where buses are parked, cleaned, and repaired. They are split between the North and South parts of the company.

Arriva London North Garages

Arriva London North Limited runs nine bus garages.

Barking Garage (DX)

An Alexander Dennis Enviro400 bus on route 150 near Ilford station.

As of March 2024, Barking garage operates routes 150, 175, and SL2. This garage opened in 1992. It was built by Grey-Green to help with their growing services.

Clapton Garage (CT)

A Wright Gemini 2 bus on route 242.

As of February 2024, Clapton garage operates routes 38, 73, 253, N38, N73, and N253.

Edmonton Garage (EC)

As of January 2024, Edmonton garage operates routes 158, 259, and N279. This garage reopened in 2014. It took over operations from the Lee Valley garage.

Enfield Garage (E)

An MCW Metrobus on route 121.

As of January 2024, Enfield garage operates routes 121, 191, 192, 279, 307, 313, 349, and 377. This garage was built in 1927. It was modernized in the 1980s. It also has a repair center for buses.

Palmers Green Garage (AD)

An Alexander Dennis Enviro400 bus for route 102.

As of January 2024, Palmers Green garage operates routes 34, 102, 141, 675, and SL1. This garage opened in 1912. It has been updated many times over the years.

Stamford Hill Garage (SF)

A New Routemaster bus on route 254 at Aldgate bus station.

As of March 2024, Stamford Hill garage operates routes 76 and 254. This garage first opened in 1907 for trams. It was converted for buses in 1961. It reopened in February 2024.

Tottenham Garage (AR)

A Wright Gemini 3 bus on route 243 at London Waterloo station.

As of January 2024, Tottenham garage operates routes 19, 41, 123, 149, 243, 318, 341, N19, and N41. This garage was built in 1913. It has housed many different types of buses over the years.

Wood Green Garage (WN)

A Wright Eclipse Gemini bus on route 221.

As of January 2024, Wood Green garage operates routes 29, 141 (AM peak), 144, 221, 329, W3, W4, W6, and N29. This garage started as a horse tram depot. It was later updated for trolleybuses and then for buses.

Arriva London South Garages

Arriva London South Limited operates five bus garages.

Brixton Garage (BN)

An Alexander ALX400 bus on route 159.

As of January 2024, Brixton garage operates routes 50, 59, 137, 319, 417, and N137. This garage was first built for cable trams in 1892. It was rebuilt for electric trams and later for buses. Brixton was one of the last depots to use the old Routemaster buses.

Croydon Garage (TC)

An Alexander Dennis Enviro400 bus on route 466.

As of February 2024, Croydon garage operates routes 60, 166, 194, 312, 405, 412, 466, 627, 645, 685, and SL5. This garage was built in 1915. It was destroyed in an air raid in 1941 and rebuilt later.

Dartford Garage (DT)

As of January 2024, Dartford garage operates routes 99, 229, 269, 301, 335, 401, 428, 492, and B15. This garage joined Arriva London in 2016.

Norwood Garage (N)

As of January 2024, Norwood garage operates routes 2, 202, 249, 432, 468, and N2. This garage opened in 1909. It was completely rebuilt in the early 1980s.

Thornton Heath Garage (TH)

As of January 2024, Thornton Heath garage operates routes 64, 198, 250, 255, 289, 410, 612, 689, and N250. This garage started as a horse tram depot in 1879. It was later rebuilt for electric trams and then for buses.

Former Garages

Arriva London used to operate from other garages that are now closed.

• Ash Grove (AE)
• Battersea (BA)
• Beddington Farm (CN)
• Garston (GR)
• Heathrow (HE)
• Lee Valley (LV)

Bus Fleet

As of March 2023, Arriva London had a fleet of 1,515 buses.

The Heritage Fleet

The logo for The Heritage Fleet.

A Routemaster bus (RML901) at a bus rally.

A Routemaster bus (RM6) in a special gold color for the Queen's Golden Jubilee.

The Heritage Fleet was a special collection of old AEC Routemaster buses. Arriva operated them from 2006 to 2022. These buses were used for private events like weddings. They were also shown at bus events. This fleet was created after Routemasters stopped running on regular London bus routes in December 2005.

Heritage Fleet History

Arriva London took over four Routemaster bus routes when it bought other bus companies. These routes were 19, 38, 73, and 159. Over time, these routes changed to use newer buses. Route 159 was the very last London route to use Routemasters. This happened on December 9, 2005. This marked the end of 50 years of Routemaster buses in regular service.

After this, Arriva London gathered some of their most important Routemaster buses. They started The Heritage Fleet in early 2006. In November 2022, Arriva London announced they would sell all the buses from the Heritage Fleet. This ended 17 years of this special service.

Heritage Fleet Operations

The Heritage Fleet offered their old buses for private hire. People could rent them for parties, weddings, or other special events. The buses also appeared at public events and bus shows.

Heritage Fleet Buses

The Heritage Fleet had nine AEC Routemaster buses. Arriva was the biggest operator of Routemasters before they stopped regular service. So, they had some very special ones. These included:

• RM5: This was the lowest numbered Routemaster bus ever made.
• RM6: In 2002, this bus was painted gold. This was to celebrate the Queen's Golden Jubilee. It still has this special paint.
• RML901: This was one of the first longer Routemaster buses (RMLs) to start service.
• RM1124: This bus was kept because it had a special engine. This engine met new pollution rules for London.
• RMC1453: This was the first Routemaster bus made for the Green Line coach service.
• RMC1464: This bus was an open-top bus. It was very popular for private hires.
• RM2217: This was the very last standard-length Routemaster bus ever built. It ran the final regular Routemaster service in December 2005.
• RML2355: This bus was kept in its original condition. It was waiting to be restored.
• RML2360: This bus is looked after for the London Transport Museum. Its inside has been changed for exhibitions.

See Also

• Arriva UK Bus
• Transport for London

Images for kids

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  A Wright Cadet bus on route 268.