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London Buses route 11

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11
London General New Routemaster at Victoria station in September 2013
Overview
OperatorLondon General
GarageStockwell (SW)
VehicleAlexander Dennis Enviro 400 MMC 10.3m
Peak vehicle requirement26
Night-timeNight Bus N11
Route
StartFulham Broadway
ViaKing's Road
Parliament Square
Trafalgar Square
Aldwych
Bank
EndLiverpool Street
Length6.69 miles (10.77 km)
Service
LevelDaily
Frequency7–10 minutes
Journey time35–80 minutes
Operates05:15 until 01:30

London Buses route 11 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. Running between Fulham Broadway and Liverpool Street, it is operated by London General.

History

AEC Routemaster in June 1993
London General AEC Routemaster on The Strand in January 2003
London General Wright Eclipse Gemini bodied Volvo B7TL on Whitehall in June 2011

Route 11 was introduced by the London General Omnibus Company in August 1906, and is amongst the oldest routes to have operated continuously in London, although its route has changed on several occasions.[1] It was the first route operated by London Road-Car Co Ltd, running from Victoria to Hammersmith via Chelsea.[2] From 1916, LGOC B-type buses allocated to Old Kent Road garage were used until 1924, when it was allocated to Kingston garage.[3]

On 5 August 1922, Leyland LB (London Bus) type buses were introduced on route 11 by Arthur George Partridge and Christopher Dodson Ltd with chocolate livery and the fleet name "Express".[4][5][6][7][8][9] The first AEC NS-Type buses entered service on route 11 in May 1923.[10] On 5 September 1932, Q1 buses were used on this route which operated from Liverpool Street to Shepherd's Bush.[11][12][13]

In May 1949, Leyland Titan RTW buses were introduced on route 11.[14] AEC Regent III RT buses were in service on route 11 in the 1950s.[15] On 12 June 1959, the fourth AEC Routemaster in passenger service (RM14), entered service on route 11 from Riverside garage.[16]

The route starts at Fulham Broadway and operates via the West End and some of London's most famous landmarks to Liverpool Street bus station. The journey from the top deck is a cheap means of sightseeing in London.[17] It previously ran to Hammersmith until being replaced west of Fulham Broadway on 17 July 1993 by route 211.

In October 1996, London General buses operating on route 11 from its Waterloo garage switched to City Diesel.[18]

On 4 June 2002, Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Jubilee, the Metropolitan Police flagged down a Number 11 bus and used it as temporary transport for twenty-three peaceful anti-royalty demonstrators whom they had arrested after the demonstration, most of them in a nearby pub. The bus was used to take the protestors to various police stations for questioning. The protesters sued the police, and the Met settled out of court with an apology, an admission of unlawful detention, and a payment of £3,500 to each protester.[19]

The route has a cameo appearance in the 2006 film The Da Vinci Code, where the protagonists take a number 11 bus from near Temple Church to get to "Chelsea Library", though they get off at Westminster Abbey; this is the same route the bus takes in real life.

London General has successfully retained route 11 with new contracts starting on 30 October 2010 and 31 October 2015.[20][21]

New Routemasters were introduced on 21 September 2013. In September 2016, conductors were removed from buses on route 11 and buses now operate with drivers only and the rear platform closed.[22]

On 20 January 2020, The New Routemasters were replaced with brand new Alexander Dennis Enviro 400 MMCs

Current route

Route 11 operates via these primary locations:[23]

The bus route passes many tourist attractions including:[24]

It also goes near the Royal Courts of Justice, St Clement Danes, Aldwych Underground station, High Commission of Australia, Savoy Hotel, Nelson's Column, Admiralty Arch, Big Ben, Palace of Westminster and New Scotland Yard.[25] The Daily Telegraph called the route one of the "best routes for sightseeing on a shoestring".[26]. There is an e-book tour guide indicating the points of interest along the number 11 bus route and detailing connecting buses to other London tourist attractions[27].

References

  1. ^ Aldridge, John (February 1998). "On the 11...". Buses (515). Ian Allan Publishing: 12.
  2. ^ Graeme Bruce, J; Curtis, Colin (1977). The London Motor Bus: Its Origins and Development. London Transport. p. 3. ISBN 0853290830.
  3. ^ Graeme Bruce, J; Curtis, Colin (1977). The London Motor Bus: Its Origins and Development. London Transport. p. 16. ISBN 0853290830.
  4. ^ Berguer, David (2013). Under the Wires at Tally Ho: Trams and Trolleybuses of North London 1905-1962. The History Press. ISBN 9780750953535.
  5. ^ Hibbs, John (1989). The History of British Bus Services. David & Charles. p. 88. On 5 August 1922, A. G. Partridge drove his chocolate and primrose bus on Route 11
  6. ^ Berguer, David (2013). Under the Wires at Tally Ho: Trams and Trolleybuses of North London 1905-1962. The History Press.
  7. ^ Day, John (1973). The Story of the London Bus: London and its buses from the horse bus to the present day. London Transport. pp. 62. ISBN 9780853290377.
  8. ^ Graeme Bruce, J; Curtis, Colin (1977). The London Motor Bus: Its Origins and Development. London Transport. p. 33. ISBN 0853290830.
  9. ^ "1924 Leyland LB5 – "Chocolate Express"". London Bus Museum. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  10. ^ Reed, John (2000). London Buses: A Brief History. Capital Transport Publishing. p. 22. ISBN 9781854142337.
  11. ^ Reed, John (2000). London Buses: A Brief History. Capital Transport Publishing. p. 30. ISBN 9781854142337.
  12. ^ Graeme Bruce, J; Curtis, Colin (1977). The London Motor Bus: Its Origins and Development. London Transport. p. 65. ISBN 0853290830.
  13. ^ Day, John (1973). The Story of the London Bus: London and its buses from the horse bus to the present day. London Transport. pp. 71. ISBN 9780853290377.
  14. ^ Graeme Bruce, J; Curtis, Colin (1977). The London Motor Bus: Its Origins and Development. London Transport. p. 93. ISBN 0853290830.
  15. ^ Graeme Bruce, J; Curtis, Colin (1977). The London Motor Bus: Its Origins and Development. London Transport. p. 89. ISBN 0853290830.
  16. ^ Day, John (1973). The Story of the London Bus: London and its buses from the horse bus to the present day. London Transport. pp. 104. ISBN 9780853290377.
  17. ^ Gibson, Helen (11 April 2006). "Got a ticket to ride". Time. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
  18. ^ "Untitled". Petroleum Review. 51 (600): 121. January 1997. The same results have been reported from London General which operates Route 11 from its Waterloo garage and also switched to City Diesel last October.
  19. ^ Dodd, Vikram (5 February 2004). "The day the Number 11 bus became a prison for 23 anti-royal protesters". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
  20. ^ 2010 Bus Tender Result Transport For London
  21. ^ 2015 Bus Tender Result Transport For London
  22. ^ "London's New Routemaster buses cut 300 conductors". BBC News. 11 July 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  23. ^ Route Map Transport for London
  24. ^ Wittich, John (1997). London Bus-Top Tourist. Sigma Leisure. pp. 22–54. ISBN 9781850584308.
  25. ^ Porter, Laura. "Number 11 London Bus". About. Retrieved 2 January 2014.
  26. ^ Edwards, Rhiannon (29 April 2014). "Tube strike? See more of London by bus". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 29 April 2014.
  27. ^ Runcie The Number 11 bus tour of London
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