London Buses route 257
Encyclopedia
London Buses route 257 is a Transport for London
contracted bus route in London
, England
. The service is currently contracted to Stagecoach London
.
The 257 was created on 19 November 1988 by taking over the northern part of trolleybus replacement route 262, between Stratford and Walthamstow, with a daytime extension to Chingford Mount. It was initially run by London Buses using Titans from West Ham garage, and was transferred to Leyton the following year, but Capital Citybus took over in October 1992. Operation was initially from Northumberland Park, although expansion resulted in a new base in Hackney (Waterden Road) opening in 1996.
A batch of newish Dennis Dominators was acquired second-hand from Southampton for the route, although the enhancement the following year saw them diluted somewhat by a medley of other types. The last couple of years, they were replaced by the more capacious Dennis Arrows, these having been displaced from route D6 by new Darts.
A new contract starting in October 2000 followed a trend that had been fashionable at the time of increasing the frequency by about 30% but converting the route to single deck, although the new Marshall Darts were not ready for a few months. However, someone somewhere along the line appears to have done some decidedly duff calculations. The Arrows had a nominal capacity of 99 and the Darts 55, which is barely half; it is even worse if you consider the reduction in seating, from 77 to 28 – which, even taking into account the frequency increase, is still a reduction of 52%!
Popularity of the service was such that, prior to the conversion, most departures in the peak hours and late afternoon from both Walthamstow and Stratford would be well laden, and huge numbers of passengers were getting left behind once the Darts arrived. And that is before we consider the crush loading conditions – when passengers complain about peak hour overcrowding on commuter trains the conditions are rarely anywhere near as bad as those that were being experienced on route 257. Indeed, the conversion was so disastrous that it proved to be the last, and after just 10 months the route reverted to double deck operation, initially achieved by deferring conversion of route 123 to low floor.
The 257 had already had one frequency enhancement, back in September 1993 when the route was improved from 4 buses per hour to 6. This coincided with the withdrawal of route 108 between Stratford, Leytonstone and Wanstead, so there was still an overall reduction from 8 to 6 per hour between Stratford and Leytonstone, while at that time route 230 still ran to Leytonstone providing a total of 7 buses per hour over that section. But it did provide a more regular service, and fully double deck — the 108 had Lynx.
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...
, 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...
. The service is currently contracted to Stagecoach London
Stagecoach London
Stagecoach London , is a bus company which principally operates services in the UK capital city of London, under contract to the London Buses arm of Transport for London. It was formed in 1989 as a subsidiary of London Buses. The company privatised in 1994 and acquired by the Stagecoach Group, but...
.
History
Following several years of operation by First Capital (formerly Capital Citybus) the 257 was taken over by Stagecoach/East London Bus, with all the buses now running from the new West Ham Garage (Leyton and Stratford beforehand). Standard long wheelbase Dennis Tridents are used.The 257 was created on 19 November 1988 by taking over the northern part of trolleybus replacement route 262, between Stratford and Walthamstow, with a daytime extension to Chingford Mount. It was initially run by London Buses using Titans from West Ham garage, and was transferred to Leyton the following year, but Capital Citybus took over in October 1992. Operation was initially from Northumberland Park, although expansion resulted in a new base in Hackney (Waterden Road) opening in 1996.
A batch of newish Dennis Dominators was acquired second-hand from Southampton for the route, although the enhancement the following year saw them diluted somewhat by a medley of other types. The last couple of years, they were replaced by the more capacious Dennis Arrows, these having been displaced from route D6 by new Darts.
A new contract starting in October 2000 followed a trend that had been fashionable at the time of increasing the frequency by about 30% but converting the route to single deck, although the new Marshall Darts were not ready for a few months. However, someone somewhere along the line appears to have done some decidedly duff calculations. The Arrows had a nominal capacity of 99 and the Darts 55, which is barely half; it is even worse if you consider the reduction in seating, from 77 to 28 – which, even taking into account the frequency increase, is still a reduction of 52%!
Popularity of the service was such that, prior to the conversion, most departures in the peak hours and late afternoon from both Walthamstow and Stratford would be well laden, and huge numbers of passengers were getting left behind once the Darts arrived. And that is before we consider the crush loading conditions – when passengers complain about peak hour overcrowding on commuter trains the conditions are rarely anywhere near as bad as those that were being experienced on route 257. Indeed, the conversion was so disastrous that it proved to be the last, and after just 10 months the route reverted to double deck operation, initially achieved by deferring conversion of route 123 to low floor.
The 257 had already had one frequency enhancement, back in September 1993 when the route was improved from 4 buses per hour to 6. This coincided with the withdrawal of route 108 between Stratford, Leytonstone and Wanstead, so there was still an overall reduction from 8 to 6 per hour between Stratford and Leytonstone, while at that time route 230 still ran to Leytonstone providing a total of 7 buses per hour over that section. But it did provide a more regular service, and fully double deck — the 108 had Lynx.
Current route
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- Leytonstone High Road StationLeytonstone High Road railway stationLeytonstone High Road station is a railway station in Leytonstone, London in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, on the Gospel Oak to Barking Line, between and . It has two platforms that are elevated approximately 20 feet above ground level, each of which contains a metal shelter, covered but...
- Leytonstone Green Man Roundabout
- Whipps CrossWhipps CrossWhipps Cross is an area of the London Borough of Waltham Forest in London, England. It is most famous for Whipps Cross University Hospital.-The environs:...
- LeytonLeytonLeyton is an area of north-east London and part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest, located north east of Charing Cross. It borders Walthamstow and Leytonstone; Stratford in Newham; and Homerton and Lower Clapton in the London Borough of Hackney....
- Walthamstow Central StationWalthamstow Central stationWalthamstow Central is a London Underground and commuter rail station. It is the terminus of the Victoria line, and is on the branch of the London commuter rail network operated by National Express East Anglia...
Bus Station