Arriva wins London Bus contract for new routes

Arriva UK Bus has been awarded two new contracts to operate bus routes by Transport for London (TfL) in addition to retaining seven contracts as part of its existing London operations.

Arriva also plans to invest in 87 new electric buses, 76 double deckers and 11 single deckers, to join the London fleet and is currently converting its Thornton Heath garage in Croydon to become fully electrified, giving it additional zero-emission capability in South London for over 100 buses.  This follows the electrification of its Brixton Tramshed in November 2021, from where Arriva operates 35 fully electric buses.

Arriva has 14 depots across London which serve around 100 contracted routes on behalf of TfL.  With a growing fleet of electric vehicles, Arriva is accelerating its programme of electrification as part of the Mayor of London’s long-term vision for all bus transport to be zero-emission by 2030.

Early next year, Thornton Heath will be fully electrified, and work is underway for Enfield depot to be able to handle electric vehicle charging early next year and Tottenham will be able to do so from mid-2024.

Transport for London (TfL) awarded Arriva these contracts as part of its aim to make public transport in London more environmentally-friendly and to protect residents and visitors from road traffic pollution.

The two new routes will start operating from August 2024 and together with the seven retained routes, this latest batch of awards is expected to deliver over £200 million in revenue over the term of the contracts.

Jens Abromeit, Managing Director of Arriva UK Bus and Arriva Board member, said: “We’re incredibly proud to be part of the famous London red bus network and to have successfully operated it for many years.  Growing the number of routes we operate is a growth story for London and we can’t wait to welcome the new fully electric buses, growing the size of our zero emission fleet in London to nearly 230”.

Marcos Hart, Managing Director of Arriva London added: “The new vehicles represent a fantastic milestone on our journey to operate a greener bus network across London and it’s really exciting news for us as a business and for our customers.”

Arriva UK Bus is the third-largest provider of bus services in regional markets (outside London) with rural, urban and inter-urban services. In London it is one of the market leaders, operating around 17% of all bus services in the capital.

About Arriva Group:

Arriva is a leading provider of passenger transport across Europe, employing around 35,500 people and delivering around 1.5 billion passenger journeys across 10 European countries. With buses, trains, coaches, trams, waterbuses, bike-sharing systems, and on-demand transport solutions, Arriva proudly connects people and communities safely, reliably and sustainably, delivering these services in a better way, every day. The activities of Arriva are divided into four lines of business: UK Bus, UK Trains, The Netherlands and Mainland Europe. Arriva has operations in the Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom.