East Thames Buses

East Thames Buses was the name used by a company that helped run buses in London. This company was part of a bigger group called London Buses Limited, which worked closely with Transport for London. Transport for London is the group that plans and manages most of the public transport in London, including buses, trains, and other services.

In 2009, the company that ran East Thames Buses was sold to another big transport group called Go-Ahead London. This change meant that Go-Ahead London took over the job of running these buses in the area.

Buses are very important in London because they help millions of people get around the city every day. East Thames Buses played a part in making sure people could travel safely and easily on these busy streets.

History

East Thames Buses started in 1999 to help run bus services after another company, Harris Bus, stopped working. Sometimes, when other bus companies could not run their routes, East Thames Buses stepped in to help. For example, in August 2002, they helped run routes like route 42 and route 185 after another company, London Easylink, stopped working.

Later, on October 3, 2009, Transport for London sold East Thames Buses to Go-Ahead London.

Garages

When East Thames Buses started, it used garages from London Forest and Kentish Bus, including Ash Grove and Belvedere. On October 13, 2005, Ash Grove was closed, and operations moved to Mandela Way in Southwark.

Mandela Way - West opened in late 2005. It served bus routes 1, 42, and 185 until it closed on April 30, 2010. After closing, most of its bus routes were moved to other garages.

Belvedere garage was used by East Thames Buses from 1999. It served routes 180, part of route 669, and N1. Route 244 was added in January 2011. Belvedere closed in 2011 and had limited maintenance facilities.