Buses in London

Buses have been an important way for people to travel in London since 1829. That year, a man named George Shillibeer began using horse-drawn vehicles called omnibuses to carry passengers from Paddington to the City of London. Over time, these red buses became a well-known symbol of the city.

Today, London has many bus routes, with more than 8,700 buses helping people get around. Most of these buses are run by private companies, but they follow rules set by London Buses, which is part of Transport for London. Many of the buses are now powered by batteries or hydrogen, making them cleaner for the environment. In fact, London has one of the largest fleets of these zero-emission buses in Europe, second only to Moscow. Since 2005, London has also made sure that most of its buses have low floors, making it easier for everyone, including people using wheelchairs, to get on and off.

History

Buses have been a part of London's streets since 1829, when George Shillibeer began using horse-drawn omnibuses to travel from Paddington to the City. In 1850, Thomas Tilling started his own horse bus services, and in 1855, the London General Omnibus Company was created to organize these services.

The London General Omnibus Company started using motor buses in 1902 and made them themselves from 1909. In 1904, Thomas Tilling also began using motor buses. The last horse-drawn bus from the company ran on October 25, 1911, though some independent operators kept using them until 1914.

In 1912, the Underground Electric Railways Company of London, which owned most of the London Underground, bought the bus company. By 1933, it became part of the new London Passenger Transport Board, and the name changed to London Transport, which many people still use for the red buses today.

London buses have seen many changes over the years. In the 1980s, the government decided to let private companies run bus services. This brought new bus colors, but later rules asked buses to be mostly red again. Today, the Mayor of London helps plan and improve bus services, making them more frequent and adding bus lanes to help traffic. Because of these changes, more people now use buses in London than before. In 2019, buses were used for 11% of all trips in the city.

Vehicles

Main article: List of bus types used in London

As of March 2025, London has a fleet of 8,797 buses. This includes 3,776 hybrid buses, 1,951 battery electric buses, and 20 hydrogen fuel cell buses. All buses have been accessible and low floor since 2006, making London one of the first major cities to achieve this.

London buses are mostly red, a tradition that started in 1997. Each bus route has specific requirements set by London Buses, such as having separate exit doors and straight staircases on double-decker buses.

History

From the early 1900s until the 1960s, London designed its own special buses instead of using standard designs from other places. The last bus specially made for London was the AEC Routemaster, built between 1956 and 1968. After that, London buses were versions of buses made for other places, but adjusted to meet London’s needs.

London was one of the first cities to use low-floor buses, starting in 1993. By the end of 2005, all buses in London were fully accessible, 10 years ahead of the national requirement.

New Routemaster and bendy bus withdrawal

See also: New Routemaster and Articulated buses in London

In 2008, during the London mayoral election, Boris Johnson promised to introduce a new Routemaster and remove bendy buses. After becoming mayor, he started this plan. The bendy buses began to be taken out of service in 2009, with the last ones leaving in 2011.

In 2010, Mayor Boris Johnson showed the design of the New Routemaster. These buses started operating in 2012. They have two staircases, three doors, and an open platform where passengers can get on and off.

Transition to zero emission bus fleet

See also: Low emission buses in London

Since the early 1990s, London has worked to reduce bus emissions. This included replacing older buses and adding filters to exhausts. In the 2000s, hybrid and hydrogen buses were tested, with the first hybrid buses starting in 2006.

Battery electric buses began service in 2013, and hydrogen double-decker buses arrived in 2021. London now has the second largest zero-emission bus fleet in Europe, with over 2,000 electric and hydrogen buses. The mayor aims for a fully zero-emission bus fleet by 2037. Since 2021, all new buses are either electric or hydrogen zero-emission buses. In June 2025, over 2,000 zero-emission buses were in service on 107 routes.

Operation

Main article: List of bus routes in London

Most local buses in London are part of a network managed by London Buses, which is part of Transport for London. These buses are run by different companies that work under contracts with London Buses. Because of the London congestion charge and busy times on the Underground, many bus services have improved, and buses are becoming more popular again.

While the old double-decker AEC Routemaster buses are famous, they were stopped from regular use in the early 2000s because they could not meet modern accessibility rules or fit wheelchairs and pushchairs. Today, most buses are modern, low-floor buses that can be used by everyone, including those who need wheelchairs.

After bus services were changed in the 1990s, many different companies now run bus routes across London. Some of these companies include Arriva, ComfortDelGro, FirstGroup, Go-Ahead Group, and Stagecoach.

Some special bus routes, like BL1, SL1, SL2, and others, run long distances with few stops. These are part of the London Superloop express bus network.

Some bus routes go outside London. Buses from London use red colors and London tickets, while buses coming into London may look different and use their own tickets.

Private bus services, like school buses or shuttle buses, need permission from Transport for London to operate.

Night buses

Night buses have been running since 1913. They used to have numbers from 280 to 299, but now they start with N. For example, while route 9 goes from Aldwych to Hammersmith, route N9 goes further to Heathrow Terminal 5. There are also buses that run all day and night without special numbers.

Heritage routes

After the old double-decker AEC Routemaster buses stopped regular service in 2005, a few were kept for special tourist routes. These buses could not be used by people in wheelchairs, so they shared routes with regular buses to make sure everyone could still travel.

In 2022, a new tourist route called 'Route A' started between Piccadilly Circus and London Waterloo using these old buses, but it charges a higher fare.

Tour buses

See also: Open top buses in the United Kingdom

In central London, you can see many tour buses, most of which have open tops. These buses let tourists get on and off at different stops and often have live or recorded information about the city. These services are not part of the regular London bus network and use their own tickets.

Long distance coaches

Long-distance coaches connect London to places in the United Kingdom and other cities in Europe. Many of these are run by National Express Coaches, and some international trips are done by FlixBus. In 2006, Megabus, part of Stagecoach, started offering cheap trips for students that need to be booked online.

Some coach services go to places not too far from London and act like local buses for trips under 15 miles. Examples include the Green Line to the Home Counties and the Oxford Tube service to Oxford.

Airport buses

See also: Airport bus

National Express also runs buses to airports like Heathrow, Gatwick, and Stansted. These buses stop all over central London and do not just go to Victoria Coach Station.

Bus priority and bus lanes

London has more than 304 kilometres (189 miles) of bus lanes. These special lanes are for buses, taxis, motorcyclists, and cyclists. They help buses move faster and keep traffic flowing smoothly. Bus lanes are marked clearly with road signs and sometimes red paving. London also uses other ways to help buses, like traffic lights that change specially for buses, special bus-only lanes, and areas where only buses can stop.

The first bus lane in London opened in 1968 on Vauxhall Bridge. Over the years, more bus lanes were added to help buses and passengers. By 2021, all bus lanes in London worked all day, every day. This change made bus trips shorter and more reliable. London plans to add even more bus lanes in the future.

Bus and coach stations

Main article: List of bus and coach stations in London

There are about 50 bus and coach stations in London. They are found at places where many people travel, like town centers, shopping areas, and hospitals. The busiest coach station is Victoria Coach Station, where around 14 million people travel each year. Another important bus station is Cromwell Road bus station in Kingston upon Thames, which has the most bus stops in London.

Major accidents and incidents

Sorry, this section contains details about serious accidents and incidents that are not suitable for young readers. It includes descriptions of explosions, crashes, and injuries that could be upsetting. For this reason, we are not including the full details here. If you are interested in learning more about bus safety or how cities keep public transport secure, ask a trusted adult for age-appropriate resources.

Media

A new London bus was used to show the art of British artist Sir Peter Blake. In the Pixar movie Cars 2, there is a pretend Routemaster bus named Topper Deckington III. In the movie America: The Motion Picture, London buses look like characters from Star Wars.

Facts and figures

As of March 2025, London has a big bus fleet with 8,797 buses. This includes 3,776 hybrid buses, 1,951 battery electric buses, and 20 hydrogen fuel cell buses. The busiest bus route is Route 18, which runs between Sudbury and Euston bus station and carried over 16.6 million passengers in 2018/19. Route U9 is the fastest bus route, traveling at an average speed of 18.8 mph, while route 15H is the slowest at just 3.8 mph. Route SL7 is the longest bus route, stretching 24 miles from Croydon to Heathrow Airport.