Route 68 now served by New Routemaster buses

05 February 2016

Bus route 68 is the latest on the Transport for London (TfL) bus network to be served by New Routemaster buses.

There will be a phased conversion of the route, which is run by Go Ahead, starting on 6 February. It runs to West Norwood via Euston, Russell Square, Holborn, Aldwych, Waterloo, Elephant & Castle, Camberwell, Herne Hill and Tulse Hill. The service will be running entirely with New Routemaster buses by the end of April.

Mike Weston, TfL's Director of Buses, said: `We are pleased to be able to bring the benefits of New Routemaster buses to more of our customers. These green buses will make a significant contribution to improving air quality in London by replacing older, more polluting vehicles in the fleet. By end of July more than 800 will be in passenger service.'

During peak hours, 25 of these state-of-the-art buses will be in passenger service to carry the 20,000 people who travel on the route each week day. Night services on bus route N68 will continue to be operated with conventional double deck buses.

Route 68 will operate with the rear platform closed when the bus is moving, with large numbers of passengers able to quickly board and alight using all three sets of doors and two staircases at bus stops.

To date, 19 bus routes in London are operating with New Routemasters. The conversion of route 68 will be another step towards the delivery of over 800 New Routemasters on London's streets by the end of July, reducing CO2 emissions in the Capital by around 27,500 tonnes a year.

The introduction of New Routemaster buses is part of a comprehensive programme to reduce emissions from London's bus fleet, which includes 1,700 hybrids on the streets by the end of March, introducing ultra low emission Euro VI buses and retrofitting 2,000 older buses to reduce their NOx emissions by up to 88 per cent.
Ends

Notes to Editors:

  • Go-Ahead London comprises London Central, London General, Blue Triangle, Docklands Buses and Metrobus. It operates about 2200 buses and employs around 7000 staff operating from various sites in the Capital. The companies operate under contract to TfL with contracts being awarded for five or seven years via a rolling tendering programme. It provides nearly a quarter of the London's buses, which travel 80 million miles annually on over 150 day and night routes.
  • New Routemaster buses are manufactured by the family-owned Wrightbus company in Northern Ireland. The original order, for 600 vehicles, resulted in the opening of a new chassis plant in Antrim and the safeguarding of 220 jobs, including 18 apprenticeships and the creation of 50 new jobs.
  • The TfL Board approved the purchase of a further 200 New Routemaster buses on 5 November 2014. These buses improve the journey experience of passengers, enhance air quality, reduce vehicle noise and cut emissions with associated health benefits.