Green Line Coaches
Encyclopedia
Home Counties
The home counties is a term which refers to the counties of South East England and the East of England which border London, but do not include the capital city itself...
of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is owned by the Arriva
Arriva
Arriva plc is a multinational public transport company owned by Deutsche Bahn and headquartered in Sunderland, United Kingdom. It has bus, coach, train, tram and waterbus operations in 12 countries across Europe, employs more than 47,500 people and services over 1.5 billion passenger journeys each...
group.
Green Line has its origin in the network of coach services established by the London General Omnibus Company
London General Omnibus Company
The London General Omnibus Company or LGOC, was the principal bus operator in London between 1855 and 1933. It was also, for a short period between 1909 and 1912, a motor bus manufacturer.- Overview :...
in the 1920s and 1930s. After the war, the network was part of London Transport Executive
London Transport Executive
The London Transport Executive was the organisation responsible for public transport in the Greater London area, UK, between 1948-1962. In common with all London transport authorities from 1933 to 2000, the public name and operational brand of the organisation was London Transport.-Creation:On 1...
/London Transport Board
London Transport Board
The London Transport Board was the organisation responsible for public transport in London, UK, and its environs from 1963-1969. In common with all London transport authorities from 1933 to 2000, the public name and operational brand of the organisation was London Transport.-History:The...
, and from 1970 to 1986, it was operated by London Country Bus Services
London Country Bus Services
London Country Bus Services was a bus company that operated in South East England from 1969 until split up and sold in 1986 under Margaret Thatcher's government's bus deregulation scheme.-Creation:...
.
Early history
Green Line Coaches Limited was formed on 9 July 1930 by the London General Omnibus CompanyLondon General Omnibus Company
The London General Omnibus Company or LGOC, was the principal bus operator in London between 1855 and 1933. It was also, for a short period between 1909 and 1912, a motor bus manufacturer.- Overview :...
(LGOC). From 1927 the LGOC had built up a network of coach services from London to towns up to 30 miles away, comprising 60 vehicles on 8 routes. These services were largely started in response to the emergence of numerous small independent operators, often running single routes. As well as express services operated by LGOC itself, some were run by subsidiary companies East Surrey Traction and Autocar Services and some on LGOC's behalf by the National Omnibus and Transport Company. The Green Line livery and fleetname was rapidly rolled out across the existing express services, with the first rebranded route starting on 18 July.
New services rapidly followed, with the number of routes increasing to 27 by October 1931 and the number of coaches to 275. Green Line also began to acquire some of its indpendent competitors. The laying over of coaches in central London began to create congestion. In order to relieve this, some routes were linked to form cross-London services, and a short-lived coach station was opened in Poland Street at the end of 1930.
On 1 July 1933 Green Line passed to the new London Passenger Transport Board
London Passenger Transport Board
The London Passenger Transport Board was the organisation responsible for public transport in London, UK, and its environs from 1933 to 1948...
(LPTB), and competing services within the London Passenger Transport Area were absorbed into the network. The LPTB inherited vehicles of numerous different types, and much effort was made in replacing these with a standardised fleet of vehicles from late 1936. Poland Street coach station was closed, and almost all routes were linked to cross London.
Post-war era
Services were suspended in the Second World War, and resumed in 1946. More services were started, and the routes were given numbers in the 700 series. Ridership increased to a peak of 36 million passenger journeys a year between 1957 and 1960. In the 1960s, RoutemasterRoutemaster
The AEC Routemaster is a model of double-decker bus that was built by Associated Equipment Company in 1954 and produced until 1968. Primarily front-engined, rear open-platform buses, a small number of variants were produced with doors and/or front entrances...
double deck coaches were introduced on some routes, notably route 721 which ran every 12 mins at peak times, and on route 704 conveying tourists to Windsor and Tunbridge Wells. Orbital coach routes were also started: the 724 from High Wycombe around the north of London to Romford, the 725 from Windsor around the south of London to Gravesend and the 727 from Crawley around the west of London to Luton.
In 1970, control of Green Line passed from London Transport to London Country Bus Services
London Country Bus Services
London Country Bus Services was a bus company that operated in South East England from 1969 until split up and sold in 1986 under Margaret Thatcher's government's bus deregulation scheme.-Creation:...
, part of the state-owned National Bus Company. Patronage continued to decline, partly as a result of increasing car use and quicker parallel rail services, and the last cross-London routes ceased in 1979.
In 1980, the market for coach services was deregulated, and Green Line was able to expand services beyond its traditional area, to Cambridge (route 797), Oxford (routes 290 and 790, in conjunction with the Oxford Bus Company
Oxford Bus Company
Oxford Bus Company is a bus operator serving the city and surrounding area of Oxford, England and is the trading name of City of Oxford Motor Services Ltd. It is now a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group...
), Northampton and Brighton. New airport services were started, between Heathrow and Gatwick (route 747) and from London to Luton Airport (route 757), Heathrow (route 767) and Gatwick (route 777). By this time the orbital services 724 and 726 (a variant of the 725) had also been revised to serve Heathrow. Green Line also became a National Express
National Express
National Express Coaches, more commonly known as National Express, is a brand and company, owned by the National Express Group, under which the majority of long distance bus and coach services in Great Britain are operated,...
operator.
Privatisation
In 1986 London Country was divided into four operating companies to prepare for privatisation. The four companies were sold separately, and ownership of the Green Line network was therefore fragmented. Only a few routes survived. The orbital route 726 was taken over by London Regional TransportLondon Regional Transport
London Regional Transport was the organisation responsible for the public transport network in Greater London, UK from 1984-2000. In common with all London transport authorities from 1933 to 2000, the public name and operational brand of the organisation was London Transport.The organisation was...
in a reduced form and eventually became London Buses route X26
London Buses route X26
London Buses route X26 is a Transport for London contracted bus route from Heathrow Airport to West Croydon. The service is currently contracted to Metrobus.The route is the longest London Buses route in London.-History:...
. Arriva, which after a few years became the owner of most of the London Country successor companies, became the owner of the Green Line brand. Arriva also licensed the brand to several other operators, First Berkshire & Thames Valley (routes 700, 701 and 702), New Enterprise Coaches
New Enterprise Coaches
New Enterprise Coaches is an English bus and coach company, based in Tonbridge, Kent. It is an arm of Arriva Southern Counties Ltd, itself a subsidiary of Deutsche Bahn of Germany.-History:...
(routes 781 and 784 from 2005 to 2009) and Stephensons of Essex
Stephensons of Essex
Stephensons of Essex is a privately owned bus company based in south Essex, in England, operating local bus and contract services in the same areas as Arriva Southend, Ensignbus, First Essex, NIBS, and Regal Busways. It also runs private hire coaches, and has a bus and coach dealership and sales...
(routes X1, X10
Green Line routes X1 and X10
Green Line routes X1 and X10 were limited-stop express coach services which were operated by Stephensons of Essex as part of the large Green Line Coaches network. The services operated between Rochford, Southend and London...
from 2002 to 2008).
Current services
- 700, 701, 702Green Line routes 700, 701 and 702Green Line routes 701 and 702 and former route 700 are limited-stop express coach services, currently operated by First Berkshire & The Thames Valley as part of the large Green Line Coaches network. It operates between Bracknell and London. Green Line routes 701 and 702 are operated by First Group...
: BracknellBracknellBracknell is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Bracknell Forest in Berkshire, England. It lies to the south-east of Reading, southwest of Windsor and west of central London...
, WindsorWindsor, BerkshireWindsor is an affluent suburban town and unparished area in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is widely known as the site of Windsor Castle, one of the official residences of the British Royal Family....
and SloughSloughSlough is a borough and unitary authority within the ceremonial county of Royal Berkshire, England. The town straddles the A4 Bath Road and the Great Western Main Line, west of central London...
- LondonLondonLondon 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...
- Run by First Berkshire & The Thames ValleyFirst Berkshire & The Thames ValleyFirst Berkshire & The Thames Valley is a bus operator serving Bracknell, Slough and Wokingham, in England. It is part of First Group, a major bus and train operator with a turnover of nearly £2.5 billion a year and 62,000 employees across the UK and North America... - 712 / 714: St AlbansSt AlbansSt Albans is a city in southern Hertfordshire, England, around north of central London, which forms the main urban area of the City and District of St Albans. It is a historic market town, and is now a sought-after dormitory town within the London commuter belt...
- London - Now run by Uno Buses and Greenline as there is a bus from London at 9:30 and departing St Albans at 15:30 (part of University of Hertfordshire). - 724Green Line route 724Green Line route 724 is a high-profile limited-stop express bus service, currently operated by Arriva Shires & Essex as part of the large Green Line Coaches network. It operates between Harlow and Heathrow Airport, and is partly funded by airport operator BAA...
: Heathrow Airport - St AlbansSt AlbansSt Albans is a city in southern Hertfordshire, England, around north of central London, which forms the main urban area of the City and District of St Albans. It is a historic market town, and is now a sought-after dormitory town within the London commuter belt...
- HarlowHarlowHarlow is a new town and local government district in Essex, England. It is located in the west of the county and on the border with Hertfordshire, on the Stort Valley, The town is near the M11 motorway and forms part of the London commuter belt.The district has a current population of 78,889... - 757Green Line route 757Green Line route 757 is a limited-stop express coach service, currently operated by Arriva Shires & Essex as part of the large Green Line Coaches network. It operates between Luton and London. Additionally, the route 755 variation also serves some Luton housing estates...
: LutonLutonLuton is a large town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 30 miles north of London. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 250,000....
and Luton AirportLondon Luton AirportLondon Luton Airport is an international airport located east of the town centre in the Borough of Luton in Bedfordshire, England and is north of Central London. The airport is from Junction 10a of the M1 motorway...
- London - 748 / 758: Hemel HempsteadHemel HempsteadHemel Hempstead is a town in Hertfordshire in the East of England, to the north west of London and part of the Greater London Urban Area. The population at the 2001 Census was 81,143 ....
- London - 797Green Line route 797Green Line route 797 is a limited-stop express coach service, currently operated by Arriva Shires & Essex as part of the large Green Line Coaches network...
: HatfieldHatfield, HertfordshireHatfield is a town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England in the borough of Welwyn Hatfield. It has a population of 29,616, and is of Saxon origin. Hatfield House, the home of the Marquess of Salisbury, is the nucleus of the old town...
and StevenageStevenageStevenage is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England. It is situated to the east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1, and is between Letchworth Garden City to the north, and Welwyn Garden City to the south....
- London
Many services have variations with different route numbers of local services linking to the main terminus of a route.