Metroline
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Metroline, owned by ComfortDelGro Corporation of Singapore, is one of many companies operating bus services in London under the management of London Buses.
Their main address is:
- Hygeia House
- 66 College Road
- Harrow
- MIDDLESEX
- HA1 1BE
Contents |
[edit] Company history
Metroline was founded in 1989 by London Buses Limited, privatised in 1994, and acquired by ComfortDelgro in 2000. It also incorporates the Metroline London Northern subsidiary, which was acquired from MTL London. Between 2004 and 2005, Metroline stepped up its expansion drive, purchasing two smaller London bus operators, Armchair and Thorpes. The latter two companies continued to operate under their former names until 6 January 2007, when they merged with Metroline. It is the first operator to order Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 buses, of which 28 entered service in early 2006 on cross-city route 24. On 14 and 20 November 2006 Metroline bus drivers staged two, one day strikes over pay. It was the first London bus drivers strike of its kind in the 21st century and was successful as management increased there offer from an initial offer of 3% to 5.75% on all elements of pay. It was accepted by drivers in December 2006.
[edit] Garages
Following the merger of Armchair and Thorpes, they now have 11 bus garages.
[edit] Brentford
Their address is:
- Commerce Road
- Brentford
- MIDDLESEX
- TW8 8LZ
As of January 2007, this garage holds 94 buses, and runs London bus routes 117, 190, 209, 237, E2, E8, and school routes 609 and 635.
[edit] History
Started operating as a bus garage in 1990 by Armchair transport initially to house its recently won route 260 buses. The base had previously been used as a coach operating base which at the time was Armchair's main business. Armchair was bought out in 2005 by ComfortDelgro Holdings, the parent company of Metroline, although it continues to trade separately under the Armchair name until 2007. Since the take over a number of buses from the Metroline fleet have operated on Armchair routes.
[edit] Bus types in use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Alexander ALX200 (DA)
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DP)
- Dennis Dart SLF 8.8m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (MDP)
- Dennis Trident 2 9.9m/Alexander ALX400 (DT)
[edit] Cricklewood
Their address is:
- 329 Edgware Road
- Dollis Hill
- LONDON
- NW2 6JP
As of January 2007, this garage holds 126 buses, and runs London bus routes 16, 32, 316, school routes 632 and 643, and 24-hour routes 139, 189 and 266.
[edit] History
[edit] Bus types in use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DLD)
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Marshall Capital (DML)
- Dennis Trident 9.9m/Alexander ALX400 (TA)
- Dennis Trident 10.5m/Alexander ALX400 (TAL)
- Dennis Trident 9.9m/Plaxton President (TP)
- Dennis Trident 10.5m/Plaxton President (TPL)
[edit] Edgware
Their address is:
- Approach Road
- Edgware
- MIDDLESEX
- HA8 7AN
As of January 2007, this garage holds 66 buses, and runs routes 107, 113, 186, 204, 240, school route 606, and night route N5, N16, and N98.
[edit] History
When Edgware garage was first opened by the LGOC in 1925 it had space for 24 buses, but there was plenty of room adjacent to the Underground station which had recently been built. In 1939 a new building was built next to the original building which was to become the new Bus Station, while the remaining open parking area was used to store vehicles for the trolleybus replacement program. In 1984 a new 100 bus garage was built on old railway land at a cost of £4.5 Million, However in 1992 Edgware garage was planned for closure, as Cricklewood garage was to become a fully functioning garage with new facilities. The outdoor parking area and the bus station then became a midibus base in 1993, with a new bus wash and light maintenance facilities provided in the yard. Then in 1999, London Sovereign, who had won some recent tenders in the North East London area, took on a 10 year lease on half of Edgware garage and invested in new maintenance facilities which was to replace its former base at Borehamwood. In late 2000 Metroline moved back into the other half of the garage, making it one of the few garages to be shared by two operators.
[edit] Bus types in use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DLD)
- Volvo B7TL 10.6m/Plaxton President (VPL)
[edit] Harrow Weald
Their address is:
- 467 High Road
- Harrow
- MIDDLESEX
- HA3 6EJ
As of January 2007, this garage holds 58 buses, and runs routes 182, H12, 24-hour route 140, school route 640, and Night route N16.
[edit] History
Harrow Weald garage was opened in 1930 by the LGOC to replace the much smaller South Harrow garage. The new garage had to be extended over the forecourt just two years later to provide additional space. In its earlier years the garage was used by the LGOC to house its experimental vehicles including the Daimler CH6's and the first diesel bus (ST). In 1987 Harrow Weald was the base for the new Harrow Buses operation set up by London Transport which had won tenders for a new local network. The garage survived the collapse of Harrow Buses and passed to Metroline and in 1994 just short of 60 buses were based there. The garage also undertakes engineering work on buses based at North Wembley and Edgware garages.
[edit] Bus types in use
- Volvo Olympian/Alexander RH (AV)
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DLD)
- Dennis Trident 2 9.9m/Alexander ALX400 (TA)
- Volvo B7TL 10m/Plaxton President (VP)
Since all of Harrow Weald's buses are in a refurbishment programe, 6 Dennis Trident 2 10m/East Lancs Lolyne have entered the fleet for a temporary time.
[edit] Holloway
Their address is:
- 37A Pemberton Gardens
- Holloway
- LONDON
- N19 5RR
As of January 2007, this garage holds 187 buses, and runs London bus routes 4, 17, 603, C2, W5, and W7, 24-hour routes 24, 43, 134, 214, 271, and 274, night services on 24-hour route 390, school services on route 143, and Night routes N5 and N20. On the 10th November, Metroline is going to lose their contract to route 24 to London General.
[edit] History
Originally opened as Holloway Tram Depot in 1907, it was the largest of LCC's sheds with space for 336 trams. It was renamed Highgate in 1950 to avoid confusion with Holloway Bus Garage, and then back to Holloway in 1971 following the closure. The garage then had an allocation of 210 buses although that drifted downwards until 1993 when the closure of Chalk Farm and the transfer of 5 routes into the garage. Today the garage is almost at capacity levels with around 200 buses allocated in addition to the outstation at Kings Cross.
[edit] Bus types in use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DLD)
- Dennis Trident 2 9.9m & 10.5m/Plaxton President (TP/TPL)
- Volvo B7TL 10m & 10.6m/Plaxton President (VP/VPL)
- Volvo Olympian/Northern Counties Palatine 2 (V)
- Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 10.1m (TE)
[edit] King's Cross
Their address is:
- North London Freight Depot
- York Way
- LONDON
- N1
As of January 2007, this garage holds 50 buses, and runs London bus routes 46, 274, and day services on 24-hour route 390.
[edit] History
Opened in 2003 to take pressure off of the growing allocation at Holloway. The depot is a former railway goods yard just behind King's Cross station.
[edit] Bus types in use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer (DLD)
- Volvo B7TL 10.6m/Plaxton President (VPL)
[edit] North Wembley
Their address is:
- GEC Estate
- East Lane
- Wembley
- MIDDLESEX
- HA9 7NB
As of January 2007, this garage holds 46 buses, and runs London bus routes 206, 232, 245, and 251.
[edit] History
North Wembley was opened as a midibus base in 1994, and in latter years buses have been gradually been getting longer, although still single deck. NW has no maintenance facilities, and therefore all maintenance is carried out by Harrow Weald Garage.
[edit] Bus types in use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer (DLD)
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DLD)
- Dennis Dart SLF 8.8m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DLS)
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Marshall Capital (DML)
- Trainer (V)
[edit] Perivale (East)
Their address is:
- Alperton Lane
- Western Avenue
- Greenford
- MIDDLESEX
- UB6 8AA
As of January 2007, this garage holds 59 buses, and runs routes 90, 205, 297, 460, and school route 611. Metroline has just gained the contract of route E6 from Travel London and will be based at this garage.
[edit] History
[edit] Bus types in use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer (DLD)
- Volvo B7TL 10m/Plaxton President (VP)
- Dennis Trident 2 9.9m/Plaxton President (TP)
[edit] Perivale (West)
Their address is:
- Unit 12
- Perivale Industrial Park
- Horsenden Lane South
- Greenford
- MIDDLESEX
- UB6 7RL
This garage holds 74 buses, and runs London bus routes 70, 143, 210, 326, and C11.
[edit] History
[edit] Bus Types In Use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Alexander Dennis Pointer (DLF)
- Dennis Dart SLF 9.4m & 10.2m/Marshall Capital (DML/DMS)
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer (DLF)
[edit] Potters Bar
Their address is:
- High Street
- Potters Bar
- HERTFORDSHIRE
- EN6 5BE
As of January 2007, this garage holds 108 buses, and runs London bus routes 82, 84, 217, 231, 234, 263, 384, W8, W9, school routes 626 and 634, and Night routes N20. It also holds buses for Hertfordshire bus routes 84X and 242.
[edit] History
Opened in 1930 at a cost of over £48,000 by the LGOC subsidiary 'Overground', it was nearly closed in the 1960s as it was too far north to be useful to the red bus network. It survived but soon faced closure again in the 1980s during deregulation. This time it was saved after crews accepted a revised pay agreement and the depot tendered for and won Hertfordshire County Council routes. During the Second World War and in the run up to the Festival of Britain the garage was used as a storage facility for buses. In 1952 the garage allocation consisted entirely of RT's with some 68 as a daily requirement. In 1973 the experimental FRM1 was allocated to the garage for single bus route 284 and lasted there until 1976. The garage has seen an interesting mix of buses over the years ranging from Ford minibuses and A class Dodges to Volvo Ailsa's and the route branded X43 Scania's when Finchley Garage closed.
[edit] Bus types in use
- Volvo Olympian/Alexander Royale (AV)
- Dennis Dart SLF/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DLD)
- Dennis Dart SLF/Marshall Capital (DMS/DML)
- Dennis Trident 2/Plaxton President (TP)
[edit] Willesden
Their address is:
- 287 High Road
- Willesden
- LONDON
- NW10 2JY
As of January 2007, this garage holds 112 buses, and runs London Buses route 52, 98, 260, 302, 24-hour route 6, and night route N52 and N98.
[edit] History
Opened in 1912 Willesden was used for major Chassis overhauls before Chiswick Works opened in 1921. During World War II it was also use to provide major body overhauls. Prior to the war its allocation consisted mainly of ST's and STL's whilst RT's and RTW's were the main allocation afterwards. Prototype RM (RML3) was allocated to the garage in 1958, and then ran the first production RM's on route 8 in 1959. These moved on for trolleybus replacement later that year but RM's reappeared in 1965 to replace the RTW's. Inprovements to the garage were made in 1975 to enlarge its capacity from 90-120 in order for the stonebridge allocation to be moved in, although the talk of providing staff housing on the site never materialised and Stonebridge work didn't move to AC, but to Westbourne Park (X). In 1994 Metroline became the first ex-London Buses company to expand when it bought Atlas Bus & Coach, regaining the 52 which it had earlier lost under tendering although it continued to be operated from Harlesden until 1995.
[edit] Bus types in use
- Dennis Dart SLF 10.2m/Plaxton Pointer 2 (DLD)
- Dennis Dart/Plaxton Pointer (EDR, trainer)
- Volvo B7TL 10.6m/Plaxton President (VP/VPL)
[edit] See also
| Companies operating buses under contract to London Buses |
|---|
|
Arriva London | Arriva Shires & Essex | Arriva Southern Counties | Blue Triangle | CT Plus Docklands Buses | Ealing Community Transport | East London | East Thames Buses First London | London Central | London General | Metrobus | Metroline | NCP-Challenger Quality Line | Selkent | Sullivan Buses | Transdev London | Travel London | Uno |
| Also, see Bus garages in London for operating codes. |
