London Bus Tender Awards: Arriva Loses Route 78 To Go-Ahead London And New Routemasters To Continue On Route 189

The recent London Bus Tender Awards have announced route 78 have been awarded to Go-Ahead London with existing hybrid buses.

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

Route	Current Operator	New Operator	PVR	Vehicles
72/N72	London United	London United	10	Existing diesel single deck
78	Arriva London	London Central	16	Existing hybrid double deck
189 (24h)	Metroline	Metroline	15	Existing New Routemaster
653	Sullivan Buses	Uno	3	Existing diesel double deck
683	Sullivan Buses	Uno	4	Existing diesel double deck

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

• Route 72/N72 - new contract starts on 2^nd December 2023 and ends on 29^th November 2030.
• Route 78 - new contract starts on 2^nd December 2023 and ends on 29^th November 2030.
• Route 189 - new contract starts on 7^th October 2023 and ends on 6^th October 2028.
• Route 653 - new contract starts on 26^th August 2023 and ends on 27^th August 2027.
• Route 683 - new contract starts on 26^th August 2023 and ends on 27^th August 2027.

This means the first New Routemaster-style Enviro400H City’s manufactured by Alexander Dennis which had been in service for 7 years, will be moved to another bus route operated by Arriva London; they are expected to appear on route W3, which runs from Northumberland Park to Finsbury Park.

Route 78 was proposed to be withdrawn as part of the Central London Bus Review, for which Transport for London (TfL) held a consultation last year.

Route 189 will continue to be served by three-door, two-staircase hybrid New Routemasters as Metroline retains the route contract.

My thoughts on the award

Despite TfL’s policy on purchasing new zero-emission buses as part of new route contracts, they have continued to award routes with existing Euro VI buses.

I prefer to see the new zero-emission Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV appear on London Bus routes 72, 78 and 189, with new high-specification interiors as seen on routes 63, 111 and U5, which are part of TfL’s Bus Action Plan and the Government’s National Bus Strategy and Bus Service Improvement Plan.

Hopefully, we will see more developments involving zero-emission buses in due course.

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