London Buses route 188
Encyclopedia
London Buses route 188 is a Transport for London
contracted bus route in London
, United Kingdom
. The service is currently contracted to Abellio London
.
. Around 1982, a New Cross allocation was introduced, initially using a mixture of Titans and DMS-class Fleetlines
.
In the mid-1980s the 188 was designated as a 'tourist' route, because it connected central London with Tower Bridge
and Greenwich
. By the time of the first tendering of the 188, New Cross had the route to itself, using just Titans.
The first tender for the 188 was in 1988, and the contract was awarded to Boro'line
, the Maidstone borough operator which was starting up a London operation, from November that year. Initially Leyland Atlantean
s hired from Ipswich Buses
and Daimler Fleetline
s from Nottingham City Transport
were used, until new Alexander
-bodied Volvo Citybuses were delivered in 1989. Boro'line operated from Crayford
, the base used for its other LT routes.
In November 1990, Boro'line surrendered the route, which consequently passed to Selkent
, part of London Buses
at that time. L-class Leyland Olympian
s from Plumstead were used.
In November 1993, the route was tendered again, and awarded this time to London & Country, which used second hand Titans from Walworth garage. Soon after, London & Country was purchased by British Bus, which also owned Kentish Bus, which in turn had in 1992 purchased the remaining London operations of Boro'line.
In 1995 British Bus re-organised its operations in London and the surrounding area. The London operations of London & Country were transferred to a new unit called Londonlinks which was controlled by Kentish Bus. The elderly Titans on the 188 were disposed of to Clydeside 2000 and were replaced by Volvo Citybuses transferred from Kentish Bus.
British Bus was itself purchased by the Cowie Group, which in 1997 rationalised the London operations, leading to the run-down of the Londonlinks operation. The 188 transferred to Cowie South London
at Norwood garage that August. Reshuffling in June 1998 took the Monday-Saturday 188 allocation to Arriva London North. The Sunday allocation soon followed suit, and the route was converted to DLA (DAF DB250/Alexander ALX400
) operation to meet TfL
's requirement for low-floor vehicles to be used on services to the Dome, to which the 188 had been extended. Later, Stamford Hill garage was closed, with its routes, including the 188, and vehicles passing to Arriva London North at the expanded Tottenham garage from March 2000.
The route was re-tendered again in 2000, and the award went to London Central
that December. However, lack of space at its garages has resulted in sister company London General
taking responsibility for the route from the outset, from Stockwell garage, where it conveniently took the place of route 295 which had just been lost. The allocation was moved around a few times in order to suit staffing requirements, which is quite common with this operator, and London Central did indeed get it back with a Camberwell allocation appearing later in the contract, although it reverted to all Stockwell operation from October 2004.
Re-tendering in 2005 resulted in the route being lost to National Express Group
's Travel London
operation. Travel London ran this route from the ex-London Transport Walworth garage (the same place LondonLinks ran the route from). This company became part of Abellio
in 2009.
From Saturday, 28 July 2007, the 188 route between central London and North Greenwich was scheduled to run for 24 hours a day with a half-hourly service running throughout the night, seven days a week, passing through Bermondsey, Canada Water and Greenwich before terminating next to the O2 arena. The timetabling had been amended in order to meet the needs of visitors to the 02 where concerts continued until after the tube had closed.
John Barry, head of network development for London buses, said: "The new 24-hour service on route 188 is another accessible transport connection for late-night travellers in the capital. London's night bus network has expanded dramatically in recent years with passenger numbers more than doubling since 2000." Despite this improvement, the route received 55 compaints from passengers in 2009, the fourth highest number on any route in London.
In 2011 it was announced that hybrid buses
were to be introduced to the route.
From September 2011, route 188 will gain brand new Alexander Dennis Enviro400Hs.
Transport 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 bus route in London
London
London 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...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The service is currently contracted to Abellio London
Abellio (UK bus company)
Abellio London and Abellio Surrey operate buses in London and Surrey. They are part of the Abellio Group owned by the Nederlandse Spoorwegen.-History:...
.
History
Route 188 was introduced in 1951. For many years the route was operated by Camberwell garage, latterly using then-new Leyland TitansLeyland Titan (B15)
The Leyland Titan was a model of double-decker bus produced by the Leyland Truck & Bus division of British Leyland from 1977 until 1984, almost exclusively for London Transport.-Development:...
. Around 1982, a New Cross allocation was introduced, initially using a mixture of Titans and DMS-class Fleetlines
Daimler Fleetline
The Daimler Fleetline is a rear-engined double-decker bus chassis built between 1960 and 1973 in Coventry, Warwickshire, England, and from 1973 until 1980 in Farington, Lancashire, England. However, the last complete vehicle did not enter service until 1983...
.
In the mid-1980s the 188 was designated as a 'tourist' route, because it connected central London with Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, England, over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, from which it takes its name...
and Greenwich
Greenwich
Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
. By the time of the first tendering of the 188, New Cross had the route to itself, using just Titans.
The first tender for the 188 was in 1988, and the contract was awarded to Boro'line
Boro'line (London)
Boro'line describes the London operations of the former municipal bus company Boro'line Maidstone. Boro'line Maidstone was the arms length bus company of Maidstone Borough Council...
, the Maidstone borough operator which was starting up a London operation, from November that year. Initially Leyland Atlantean
Leyland Atlantean
The Leyland Atlantean is a model of double-decker bus built by Leyland in the United Kingdom from 1958 to 1986....
s hired from Ipswich Buses
Ipswich Buses
Ipswich Buses Ltd is a bus company that operates in Ipswich, Suffolk, UK and has been doing so for over 100 years. Its depot is situated in Constantine Road, near Ipswich Town's football ground...
and Daimler Fleetline
Daimler Fleetline
The Daimler Fleetline is a rear-engined double-decker bus chassis built between 1960 and 1973 in Coventry, Warwickshire, England, and from 1973 until 1980 in Farington, Lancashire, England. However, the last complete vehicle did not enter service until 1983...
s from Nottingham City Transport
Nottingham City Transport
Nottingham City Transport is the major bus operator of the English city of Nottingham, running a comprehensive network of services in the Greater Nottingham area, with some services continuing to Southwell, Loughborough, and East Midlands Airport. There are over 80 routes across the City, giving...
were used, until new Alexander
Walter Alexander Coachbuilders
Walter Alexander Coachbuilders was a Scottish bus coachbuilder and operater based in Falkirk.-History:Walter Alexander, notice a lack expasion by the Falkirk and District Tramways Company's especially in to Grangemouth which never hdd a tram line. In 1913 Alexander's Motor Service was created to...
-bodied Volvo Citybuses were delivered in 1989. Boro'line operated from Crayford
Crayford
Crayford is a town and electoral ward in the London Borough of Bexley that was an important bridging point in Roman times across the River Cray, a tributary of the River Darent, which is itself a tributary of the River Thames.-History:...
, the base used for its other LT routes.
In November 1990, Boro'line surrendered the route, which consequently passed to Selkent
Selkent
Selkent, or the South East London & Kent Bus Company Ltd, is one of many operators of bus services contracted to Transport for London. It is currently owned by Stagecoach Group, as part of Stagecoach London....
, part of London Buses
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...
at that time. L-class Leyland Olympian
Leyland Olympian
The Leyland Olympian was a double-decker bus built by British Leyland/Leyland Bus in the United Kingdom from 1980 to 1993. It was the last Leyland bus model in production before the demise of Leyland Bus.-Construction:...
s from Plumstead were used.
In November 1993, the route was tendered again, and awarded this time to London & Country, which used second hand Titans from Walworth garage. Soon after, London & Country was purchased by British Bus, which also owned Kentish Bus, which in turn had in 1992 purchased the remaining London operations of Boro'line.
In 1995 British Bus re-organised its operations in London and the surrounding area. The London operations of London & Country were transferred to a new unit called Londonlinks which was controlled by Kentish Bus. The elderly Titans on the 188 were disposed of to Clydeside 2000 and were replaced by Volvo Citybuses transferred from Kentish Bus.
British Bus was itself purchased by the Cowie Group, which in 1997 rationalised the London operations, leading to the run-down of the Londonlinks operation. The 188 transferred to Cowie South London
Arriva London
Arriva London is a division of Arriva which operates bus services in London, UK. It is made up of many previous bus operators including previously independent Grey Green...
at Norwood garage that August. Reshuffling in June 1998 took the Monday-Saturday 188 allocation to Arriva London North. The Sunday allocation soon followed suit, and the route was converted to DLA (DAF DB250/Alexander ALX400
Alexander ALX400
The Alexander ALX400 is a 2-axle double-decker bus body built by Walter Alexander Coachbuilders...
) operation to meet TfL
TFL
TFL may refer to:* Tasmanian Football League, an Australian rules football competition* Tensor fasciae latae muscle, a thigh/hip muscle* Transport for London, a public transport organisation in the London area* The Flaming Lips, an American rock band...
's requirement for low-floor vehicles to be used on services to the Dome, to which the 188 had been extended. Later, Stamford Hill garage was closed, with its routes, including the 188, and vehicles passing to Arriva London North at the expanded Tottenham garage from March 2000.
The route was re-tendered again in 2000, and the award went to London Central
London Central
London Central is one of many operators of London Buses. It was established in late 1988 as one of 12 operating subsidiaries of London Buses Limited , and was privatised to the Go-Ahead Group in September 1994...
that December. However, lack of space at its garages has resulted in sister company London General
London General
London General is a bus company operating in Surrey ang Greater London. It is owned by the Go-Ahead Group and operates most buses under contract to London Buses...
taking responsibility for the route from the outset, from Stockwell garage, where it conveniently took the place of route 295 which had just been lost. The allocation was moved around a few times in order to suit staffing requirements, which is quite common with this operator, and London Central did indeed get it back with a Camberwell allocation appearing later in the contract, although it reverted to all Stockwell operation from October 2004.
Re-tendering in 2005 resulted in the route being lost 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...
's Travel London
Travel London
Travel London was a bus operator in London which was originally a subsidiary of the National Express Group. In May 2009 the company was sold to NedRailways, now called Abellio...
operation. Travel London ran this route from the ex-London Transport Walworth garage (the same place LondonLinks ran the route from). This company became part of Abellio
Abellio (UK bus company)
Abellio London and Abellio Surrey operate buses in London and Surrey. They are part of the Abellio Group owned by the Nederlandse Spoorwegen.-History:...
in 2009.
From Saturday, 28 July 2007, the 188 route between central London and North Greenwich was scheduled to run for 24 hours a day with a half-hourly service running throughout the night, seven days a week, passing through Bermondsey, Canada Water and Greenwich before terminating next to the O2 arena. The timetabling had been amended in order to meet the needs of visitors to the 02 where concerts continued until after the tube had closed.
John Barry, head of network development for London buses, said: "The new 24-hour service on route 188 is another accessible transport connection for late-night travellers in the capital. London's night bus network has expanded dramatically in recent years with passenger numbers more than doubling since 2000." Despite this improvement, the route received 55 compaints from passengers in 2009, the fourth highest number on any route in London.
In 2011 it was announced that hybrid buses
Hybrid buses in London
Hybrid buses are operated on a small number of bus services in London. The first were introduced in March 2006, and 56 are now used. Transport for London has stated that it intends to make all new buses delivered for use in London hybrids from 2012....
were to be introduced to the route.
From September 2011, route 188 will gain brand new Alexander Dennis Enviro400Hs.
Incidents
On 20 May 2008, one person was killed and 18 injured after a northbound 188 bus hit a low branch on a tree on the route. The woman killed was a passer-by, and the other injured passengers. The bus driver fainted shortly after the accident.Current route
- North Greenwich Bus StationNorth Greenwich bus stationNorth Greenwich Bus Station serves the area of North Greenwich in the London Borough of Greenwich, Greater London, England. The station is owned and maintained by Transport for London....
for North Greenwich StationNorth Greenwich tube stationNorth Greenwich is a station on London Underground's Jubilee Line, opened on 14 May 1999.Despite its name, North Greenwich is not in the area historically known as North Greenwich, on the Isle of Dogs, north of the river; an entirely different station used to be there, between 1872 and 1926...
- Millennium Way
- Blackwall Lane
- East GreenwichGreenwichGreenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
- Trafalgar Road
- Romney Road
- GreenwichGreenwichGreenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
- Nelson Road
- Greenwich Church Street for Cutty Sark StationCutty Sark DLR stationCutty Sark is a light metro station on the Docklands Light Railway system in central Greenwich, London. One of three DLR stations in the London Borough of Greenwich, it is also known as Cutty Sark for Maritime Greenwich for its location within the aforementioned district.-Location:The northernmost...
- Creek Road
- Creek Bridge
- Creek Road
- Evelyn Street
- Bestwood Street
- Bush Road
- Rotherhithe New Road
- Rotherhithe Old Road
- Surrey Quays StationSurrey Quays tube stationSurrey Quays railway station is a railway station in Rotherhithe near Southwark Park. It is in Zone 2, on the East London Line. The next station to the north is , and to the south it splits into branches to and...
- Lower Road
- Surrey Quays Shopping Centre
- Redriff Road
- Surrey Quays Road
- Canada Water Bus StationCanada Water bus stationCanada Water bus station serves the Surrey Quays area of the London Borough of Southwark, London, England. The station is owned and maintained by Transport for London....
for Canada Water station - Surrey Quays Road
- Lower Road
- RotherhitheRotherhitheRotherhithe is a residential district in inner southeast London, England and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is located on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping and the Isle of Dogs on the north bank, and is a part of the Docklands area...
- Jamaica RoadBermondseyBermondsey is an area in London on the south bank of the river Thames, and is part of the London Borough of Southwark. To the west lies Southwark, to the east Rotherhithe, and to the south, Walworth and Peckham.-Toponomy:...
- Bermondsey StationBermondsey tube stationBermondsey tube station is a London Underground station. It is situated in the eastern part of Bermondsey in the London Borough of Southwark, and so also serves the western part of Rotherhithe....
- Jamaica Road
- Tower Bridge Road
- Bricklayers Arms
- New Kent RoadNew Kent RoadNew Kent Road is a road in the London Borough of Southwark. The road was created in 1751 when the Turnpike Trust upgraded a local footpath. This was done as part of the general road improvements associated with the creation of Westminster Bridge; in effect it was possible to travel from the West...
- Elephant & Castle StationElephant & Castle stationElephant & Castle station may refer to one of two stations located in Elephant and Castle, London:* Elephant & Castle railway station - a National Rail station* Elephant & Castle tube station - a London Underground station...
- London RoadLondon Road, SouthwarkLondon Road is a road in Southwark, southeast London, England, which connects St George's Circus and the Elephant and Castle roundabout . To the east is the campus of London South Bank University including the Technopark building and the London Road Building, in a triangle formed by London Road,...
- St George's CircusSt George's CircusSt George's Circus is a road junction in Southwark, London, England. At its centre, which is now a traffic roundabout, is a historic obelisk, designed by Robert Mylne , in his role as surveyor and architect of Blackfriars Bridge.-History:...
- Waterloo RoadWaterloo Road, LondonWaterloo Road is a road straddling Lambeth and Southwark, London, England. It runs between Westminster Bridge Road close to St George's Circus at the south-east end and Waterloo Bridge across the River Thames towards London's West End district at the north-west end.At the northern end near the...
- Waterloo StationWaterloo stationWaterloo station, also known as London Waterloo, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex. The station is owned and operated by Network Rail and is close to the South Bank of the River Thames, and in Travelcard Zone 1....
Interchange - Tenison Way
- Waterloo RoadWaterloo Road, LondonWaterloo Road is a road straddling Lambeth and Southwark, London, England. It runs between Westminster Bridge Road close to St George's Circus at the south-east end and Waterloo Bridge across the River Thames towards London's West End district at the north-west end.At the northern end near the...
- Waterloo BridgeWaterloo BridgeWaterloo Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge crossing the River Thames in London, England between Blackfriars Bridge and Hungerford Bridge. The name of the bridge is in memory of the British victory at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815...
- Lancaster PlaceLancaster PlaceLancaster Place is a short section of road in central London, which connects Waterloo Bridge to the major junction with the Aldwych and Strand. It is completely bisected by the northbound-only Strand Underpass which dives below the Aldwych enabling Kingsway-bound traffic to skip the "fiveways"...
- AldwychAldwychAldwych is a place and road in the City of Westminster in London, England.-Description:Aldwych, the road, is a crescent, connected to the Strand at both ends. At its centre, it meets the Kingsway...
- KingswayKingsway-Canada:*Burnaby—Kingsway, a federal electoral district in British Columbia between 1988 and 1997*Kingsway , a road in Edmonton, Alberta *Kingsway , a road in Vancouver, British Columbia...
- Holborn StationHolborn tube stationHolborn is a station of the London Underground in Holborn in London, located at the junction of High Holborn and Kingsway. Situated on the Piccadilly Line and on the Central Line , it is the only station common to the two lines, although the two lines cross each other three times elsewhere...
- Southampton RowSouthampton RowSouthampton Row is major thoroughfare running northwest-southeast in Bloomsbury, Camden, central London, England. The road is designated as part of the A4200.- Location :To the north, Southampton Row adjoins the southeast corner of Russell Square...
- Russell SquareRussell SquareRussell Square is a large garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden. It is near the University of London's main buildings and the British Museum. To the north is Woburn Place and to the south-east is Southampton Row...
for Russell Square StationRussell Square tube stationRussell Square is a London Underground station on Bernard Street, Bloomsbury in the London Borough of Camden. It is a small but busy station, often used by office workers and by tourists who are staying in Bloomsbury's numerous hotels. The station is a Grade II listed building.-History:The station...