London Buses route 81
| 81 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Overview | |
| Operator | Transdev London |
| Garage | Hounslow (AV) |
| Vehicle | B7TL / ALX400 B7TL/President Trident 2/ALX400 |
| Peak vehicle requirement | 14 |
| Night-time | No night service |
| Route | |
| Start | Hounslow |
| Via | Hounslow West Cranford Harlington Corner Heathrow North |
| End | Slough |
| Length | 12 miles (19 km) |
| Service | |
| Level | Daily |
| Frequency | About every 12-20 minutes |
| Journey time | 39-73 minutes |
| Operates | 4:48am until 0:35am |
London Buses route 81 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, United Kingdom. The service is currently contracted to Transdev London.
History
Route 81 is a long standing route, reaching the furthest west out of London to Slough. The 81 once stretched even further west, terminating at Windsor Castle on Saturday afternoons and Sundays, until 8 May 1963 when it was withdrawn between Windsor and Slough at all times. In 1963 it was extended on Sundays further into London, to Shepherds Bush Green, via Isleworth, although this only lasted until August 1969. On 18 April 1970, the route was converted from Routemaster crew operation, to single decker one person operation (using SM class AEC Swifts). From 1976 Leyland Nationals took over.[1]
There were three variations of route 81. These were the 81A which operated Mon-Fri peak hours from Hounslow to Langley; the 81B, a daily service from Hounslow to Heathrow Central; and the 81C, a short lived service between Slough and Heathrow Central.[1]
The 1980s saw the introduction by London Regional Transport of route tenders, the 81 being the first out of 12 routes to be put out to tender. The contract for the route was awarded to London Buslines, and passed to them from London Buses on 13 July 1985.[2]
Tendering saw the route move from Hounslow Garage to Lampton (later Isleworth, then Southall) and revert back to double deck, using yellow DMS class buses. These were replaced in 1987 by new Leyland Lynx single-deckers.[3] On 29 July 1995 the route was lost to Westlink and moved to Hounslow Heath Garage using DA class single deckers.[4]
Westlink was bought out by London United in 1999, and by 2000 the full allocation had moved back to Hounslow Garage, subsequently being converted to low floor operation. Contract renewal in July 2005 saw the route being retained by Transdev with Dennis Darts single deckers.
In April 2008 a Muslim bus driver on route 81 was reported to have stopped a bus at Langley to pray. London United stated that he was in fact on a 10-minute break having been told to terminate the bus in Langley owing to late running.[5]
From October 2009 the route was converted to double deck operation.[6]
The route has no dedicated night service, although night bus route N9 covers the section between Heathrow and Hounslow.
Current route
Route departing Hounslow
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Route departing Slough
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See also
References
- ^ a b Route 81 londonbusroutes.net
- ^ McLachlan, Tom (1995). London Buses 1985-1995: Managing The Change. Venture Publications. p. 27. ISBN 1898432740.
- ^ McLachlan p.84
- ^ McLachlan p.109
- ^ "Bosses defend Muslim driver who stopped bus to pray". Slough & Windsor Observer. April 6, 2008. Also available online at islamist-watch.org
- ^ TLB On-line (Greater London Route Developments) lots.org.uk
External links
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