Friday 2 September 2022

London Bus Tender Awards: Routes 40, 64, 83/N83, 213, 251, 265, 366, 377, 612, E5 & E7 to be served using new electric buses


After a long hiatus, the Transport for London (TfL) board has finally achieved a funding deal with the Government, which means the London Bus tender awards have resumed!

 

The awards show a whopping 11 routes will be expected to convert to zero-emission electric buses; the routes are: 40, 64, 83/N83, 213, 251, 265, 366, 377, 612, E5 & E7.

 

LBSL intends to enter into new contracts for the following routes with the operators listed below:

Route

Current Operator

New Operator

PVR

Vehicles

35/N35

London Central

London Central

24

Existing hybrid double deck

40

London Central

London Central

16

New electric double deck

62

Stagecoach East London

Stagecoach East London

14

Existing diesel double deck

64*

Arriva London South

Arriva London South

17

New electric double deck

83/N83

Metroline

Metroline

19

New electric double deck

114**

Metroline West

Metroline West

17

Existing hybrid double deck

145**

Stagecoach East London

Stagecoach East London

17

Existing diesel & hybrid double deck

147

Blue Triangle

Blue Triangle

20

Existing hybrid double deck

213*

London General

London General

14

New electric double deck

251

London Sovereign

Metroline

12

New electric single deck

265

London United

London General

12

New electric single deck

288

London Sovereign

London Sovereign

7

Existing diesel single deck

294

Stagecoach East London

Stagecoach East London

12

Existing diesel double deck

303

London Sovereign

London Sovereign

8

Existing diesel single deck

340

Arriva London North

London Sovereign

9

Existing hybrid double deck

345*

Abellio London

Abellio London

24

Existing hybrid double deck

366

Stagecoach East London

Blue Triangle

18

New electric single deck

368

Arriva London North

Blue Triangle

8

Existing hybrid double deck

377

Arriva London North

Arriva London North

3

New electric single deck

483

Metroline

Metroline

20

Existing hybrid double deck

533

Metroline

London General

5

Existing diesel single deck

612

Arriva London South

Arriva London South

2

New electric double deck

685***

Arriva London South

Arriva London South

0

Existing diesel double deck

E5

Abellio West London

Abellio West London

12

New electric single deck

E7

Abellio West London

Abellio West London

11

New electric single deck

H11

London Sovereign

London Sovereign

7

Existing diesel single deck

H14

London Sovereign

London Sovereign

7

Existing hybrid double deck

H17

London United

Metroline

7

Existing diesel single deck

H18/H19

London Sovereign

London Sovereign

8

Existing diesel single deck

K4

London United

London United

4

Existing diesel single deck

 

* 24 hour route on all days.

** 24 hour route at weekends (operation currently suspended).

*** PM only route using bus crosslinked from route 412.

 

All the diesel & hybrid vehicles detailed above will meet Euro VI emissions standards.

 

New electric vehicles may enter service after the contract start date dependent on infrastructure and/ or vehicle delivery timescales.

 

The start and end dates for the above contracts are detailed in the following table:

 

Route

Contract Start Date

Contract End Date

35/N35

29th April 2023

26th April 2030

40

29th April 2023

26th April 2030

62

29th April 2023

26th April 2030

64

26th August 2023

23rd August 2030

83/N83

9th September 2023

6th September 2030

114

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

145

29th April 2023

26th April 2030

147

6th May 2023

3rd May 2030

213

1st July 2023

28th June 2030

251

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

265

1st July 2023

28th June 2030

288

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

294

29th April 2023

26th April 2030

303

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

340

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

345

29th April 2023

26th April 2030

366

29th April 2023

26th April 2030

368

29th April 2023

26th April 2030

377

8th July 2023

5th July 2030

483

9th September 2023

6th September 2030

533

15th October 2022

16th August 2024*

612

26th August 2023

23rd August 2030

685

2nd September 2023

29th August 2025

E5

27th May 2023

24th May 2030

E7

27th May 2023

24th May 2030

H11

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

H14

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

H17

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

H18/H19

2nd September 2023

30th August 2030

K4

1st July 2023

28th June 2030

 

* Potentially extendable by two years.


Soon we'll be able to see which make and model of new electric buses will be chosen by bus operators for their new route contracts.

I can’t say if the upcoming new electric buses will have the high-spec interiors that are already seen on London Bus routes 63, 322 and U5. Although, as I mentioned in my previous article, not everyone liked the new ‘high-spec interiors’ inside the new electric buses. I did give solutions on how to make the bus service more attractive with the help of localised and route branding.

 

Improvements for London Buses

The Department for Transport (DfT) have published a settlement letter to Transport for London which the TfL board agreed to on 30th August 2022.

 

Below are the extracts from the letter in relation to bus priority improvements for London.

 

3. This funding settlement will ensure the delivery of key capital renewals and investment in London worth £3.6bn until March 2024.This settlement will enable delivery of, amongst other things, completion of a number of major projects, new road schemes and increased bus priority

 

21. In accordance with its own Bus Action Plan, TfL will deliver at least 25 lane km of new bus lanes by 2024/5. It will, by July 2023, complete holistic and granular studies of at least five major bus corridors to ensure that road space is used more efficiently, including but not limited to parking and loading.

 

You can read the rest of the settlement letter on the Government website.

 

This shows the Government support TfL’s Bus Action Plan in relation to bus priority measures which is mentioned as part of the Government’s Bus Back Better policy paper and the National Bus Strategy.

 

Bus Back Better

 

Chapter 2 – The buses we want 

That means making them: 

Faster and more reliable: Buses must have greater priority on urban roads. LTAs will be given new powers to enforce traffc regulations. They will be expected to promote bus reliability, and to implement ambitious bus priority schemes, to receive new funding. These must be planned to complement walking and cycling schemes. We will consult shortly on increasing Metro Mayors’ powers over key roads in their areas, where they are not already the highway authority. 

 

We expect Bus Service Improvement Plans to: 

Identify where bus priority measures are needed, including consideration of Bus Rapid Transit routes to transform key corridors and how traffc management can be improved to beneft buses. 

 

National Bus Strategy: Bus Service

Improvement Plans

Guidance to local authorities and bus operators

 

Why Bus Service Improvement Plans?

1. The National Bus Strategy (‘the Strategy’) sets out an ambitious vision to dramatically improve bus services in England outside London through greater local leadership, to reverse the recent shift in journeys away from public transport and encourage passengers back to bus. Local Transport Authorities (LTAs) and local bus operators must work at pace with local communities to plan and deliver a fully integrated service with simple, multi-modal tickets, more bus priority measures, the same highquality information for all passengers in more places, and better turn-up-and-go frequencies that keep running into the evenings and at weekends.

 

You can also read the full document regarding the Bus Back Better policy and the National Bus Strategy on the Government website, and TfL’s Bus Action Plan.

 

You can read my previous article responding to TfL’s Bus Action Plan including bus priority measures, Bus Rapid Transit schemes, and more.

 

I invite you to follow me on Twitter by searching for @CLondoner92 or by clicking on the direct link to my Twitter page here.

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