Wikipedia

London Buses route 68

London Buses route 68 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. Running between West Norwood and Euston bus station, it is operated by Transport UK London Bus.

68
Abellio London New Routemaster at St George's Circus
Overview
OperatorTransport UK London Bus
GarageWalworth
VehicleAlexander Dennis Enviro400EV
New Routemaster
Peak vehicle requirement23[1]
Former operator(s)London Central
Arriva London
London Regional Transport
Night-timeN68
Route
StartWest Norwood
ViaHerne Hill
Camberwell
Elephant and Castle
Waterloo
Aldwych
Russell Square
EndEuston bus station
Service
LevelDaily
← {{{previous_line}}}  {{{system_nav}}}  {{{next_line}}} →

It has a limited stop equivalent route; SL6.

History

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London Central Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B7TL in June 2008
 
Go-Ahead London Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL on Waterloo Bridge in April 2014

In the early period of motor omnibus travel, before World War I, number 68 was not in use as a route for the London General Omnibus Company, even though higher numbers up to 93 were active in 1912, for example.[2]

The route was active at the start of World War II, its usual peacetime lighting of a pale blue colour was removed because of the risk of aerial bombing, and the buses were blacked-out.[3]

By 1952, after the last trams stopped running, the route ran from the Earl of Eldon public house in South Croydon to Chalk Farm tube station in what is now Camden.[4] This was a long 15 mile journey via places such as Thornton Heath, Norwood, Herne Hill, Camberwell, Elephant & Castle, Waterloo and Euston station, which nowadays would require two changes of bus. The route started operating AEC Routemaster buses on Sundays in 1963 and switched to full Routemaster operation in 1970. The buses at this time were based in garages in Chalk Farm, Norwood and Croydon.[5]

On 25 October 1986, the route was split in two with route 168 introduced between Hampstead Heath and Waterloo. Route 68 now operated from West Norwood to Euston being converted to one man operation on the same day with Leyland Olympians.[6]

On 27 October 1986, a parallel peak-hour express service numbered route X68 from West Croydon bus station to Russell Square was introduced, running express from Waterloo to West Norwood.[6] It was renumbered SL6 on 31 July 2023.[7][8]

As part of the privatisation of London bus services, in January 1995 route 68 was taken over by Arriva London. Upon being re-tendered, on 1 April 2006 routes 68 passed from Arriva London to London Central with the southern terminus amended from Norwood bus garage to West Norwood station.[9][10] London Central operated it out of Camberwell bus garage.[11] London Central successfully tendered to retain the route, with a further contract commencing in 2011.[12]

On 5 February 2016, New Routemasters were introduced on the route.[13][14] When next tendered, it was awarded to Abellio London who commenced operating it out of Walworth bus garage on 31 March 2018.[15][1]

The journalist Peter Watts reviewed his experiences of the current service for Time Out. He traveled regularly from Herne Hill to Great Russell Street, near the Time Out offices in Tottenham Court Road. The journey takes between 40 and 90 minutes depending upon the congestion in traffic bottlenecks like Camberwell Green. Often, when the service is running poorly, it will terminate short of the final destination, unloading at a stop like Aldwych, or it will pass by Herne Hill without stopping, forcing passengers to take the shorter route 468 instead. Such incidents commonly occur three times a week and so cause him much frustration.[16]

Author and journalist Simon Jenkins on the other hand described the 68 bus as the "Queen of buses" for its stately progress through the bustling shopping streets of South London.[17]

Travelling on this bus route has been suggested as a cure for agoraphobia. Travelling for 2-5 stops during the day was considered a medium level exercise, while travelling from Camberwell Green to the Elephant & Castle alone during the rush hour, was considered the most challenging exercise - more terrifying than walking down the high street or shopping in a supermarket.[18]

In October 2021, the frequency of the service was reduced from seven or eight buses per hour to six.[19]

Notable passengers

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Current route

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Route 68 operates via these primary locations:[22]

References

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  1. ^ a b Latest tendered service awards Buses issue 750 September 2017 page 23
  2. ^ D.A.Ruddom (2007), Motor Omnibus Routes in London, vol. 2
  3. ^ David Kynaston (2007), Austerity Britain, Bloomsbury, p. 17, ISBN 9780747579854
  4. ^ Mike Harris, The 1952 Greater London Bus Map, archived from the original on 28 December 2010, retrieved 3 April 2010
  5. ^ Geoff Rixon (2008), "Route 68", Routemaster Omnibus, Ian Allan, ISBN 978-0-7110-3314-6
  6. ^ a b Wharmby, Mathew (2016). London Transport's Last Buses: Leyland Olympians L1-263. Pen & Sword. ISBN 978-147382-386-0.
  7. ^ First TfL Superloop bus route to start this weekend Route One 14 July 2023
  8. ^ Superloop Transport for London
  9. ^ Bus tender results Route 68/N68 Transport for London 12 August 2005
  10. ^ Route Alteration Transport for London 1 April 2006
  11. ^ Wharmby, Matthew (2021). The London Volvo B7TL. Pen & Sword. ISBN 978-1-52678-695-1.
  12. ^ Win, Win, Win Bus Talk issue 6 October 2010 page 1
  13. ^ Route 68 now served by new Routemaster buses Transport for London
  14. ^ TfL Route 68 next to get New Routemasters Coach & Bus Week issue 1226 2 February 2016 page 6
  15. ^ London Central loses out in tender round Coach & Bus Week issue 1303 8 August 2017 page 7
  16. ^ Peter Watts (14 January 2010), "I hate my X: the extraordinary life of the No 68 bus", The Big Smoke, Time Out, archived from the original on 15 April 2010, retrieved 3 April 2010
  17. ^ a b Simon Jenkins (1981), The companion guide to outer London, Collins, p. 45, ISBN 978-0-00-216186-2
  18. ^ Rosalind Ramsay (1 August 2001), Mental illness, Jessica Kingsley, p. 55, ISBN 9781853029349
  19. ^ "TfL cuts another 5 buses an hour from Waterloo Bridge". London SE1. 24 October 2021. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  20. ^ Ronald Seth (1974), Encyclopedia of espionage, Doubleday, p. 456, ISBN 9780385016094
  21. ^ West Norwood station Bus Talk issue 42 October 2016 page 10
  22. ^ Route 68 Map Transport for London
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