Route 207 originates from London United Tramways route 7 which ran between Uxbridge to Shepherd’s Bush. In 1936 this route was replaced by a trolleybus route 607 which ran until 1960. Route 207 was introduced on 9 November 1960 as part of the Trolleybus replacement program stage 8, replacing trolleybus route 607 between Uxbridge and Shepherd's Bush Green, using Routemasters. The route was twice converted to one person operation: in the 1970s it was operated with DMS Daimler Fleetlines, but reverted to Routemasters due to unreliability, finally in 1987 using MCW Metrobuses. An express bus route 607 began in 1990.[1]
The route, which runs along the entire length of the Uxbridge Road, was operated as two overlapping sections in the late 1990s, with a peak vehicle requirement of 35 double-deckers.[2] The proposed West London Tram paralleled much of the 207 route.[3]
Low floor buses replaced the MCW Metrobuses in 2001, along with six articulated buses which were on trial on the route for six months, running between Hayes By Pass and Shepherd's Bush Green, from Greenford Garage. The trial was a success and on 9 April 2005 the route was split into two sections; Shepherd's Bush Green to Hayes-by-pass section retained the number 207 and was converted to single deck bendy bus operation. The section between Uxbridge and Acton was renumbered 427 using double deck Tridents. A new base opened at Hayes for the 207; the Uxbridge and Acton allocations were withdrawn.[4]
In October and November 2004 the route was found to have the highest level of police callouts of any service in London.[5] Fare evasion following the conversion to bendy bus operation hasis also perceived to be a problem by local transport user group EPTUG.[6]
Route 207 was extended from Shepherd's Bush Green to White City bus station to serve the new Westfield London Complex in November 2008.[7] A month earlier, passengers' organisation London TravelWatch had claimed that the route carried more passengers than any other route in Europe, although this was disputed by some commentators.[8] In 2009 it was announced by new Mayor of London Boris Johnson that articulated buses would be replaced by the end of 2011; it was initially expected that the 207 would be converted to rigid single-deck operation.[6]
In February 2011 Transport for London confirmed that the route would be converted to double-deck vehicles in December 2011, and that the frequency of the route would be increased. Similar changes were planned for night bus variant N207. The proposals were criticised by local Liberal Democrat politicians for failing to increase the seating capacity of the route while increasing the number of vehicles on the Uxbridge Road.[9]
On 10 December 2011, route 207 was converted back to double deck using Scania OmniCitys.
File:London Bus 207.jpgRoute 207 using Mercedes-Benz Citaro articulated bus from 2005 to 2011
