Bexleybus was an English bus operator. A subsidiary of

Selkent Selkent (an acronym of South East London & Kent) is a bus company operating in central and south London and some parts of north-west Kent. It is a subsidiary brand of Stagecoach London and operates services under contract to Transport for London ...

, it was established as a low cost operator. It operated services under contract to

London Regional Transport London Regional Transport (LRT) was the organisation responsible for most of the public transport network in London, England, between 1984 and 2000. In common with all London transport authorities from 1933 to 2000, the public name and operatio ...

from January 1988 until January 1991.

History

Bexleybus was formed by

as a low cost operator to operate tendered services in the

Bexleyheath Bexleyheath is a town in south-east London, England. It had a population of 31,929 as at 2011. Bexleyheath is located south-east of Charing Cross, and forms part of the London Borough of Bexley. It is identified in the London Plan as one of ...

and

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

areas. With London Buses having to tender for routes as part of the

London Regional Transport Act 1984 The London Regional Transport Act 1984 (1984 c. 32) was an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament which created the statutory corporation named London Regional Transport. It received royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monar ...

, low cost units were established with the hope that reduced costs would allow them to be able to competitively bid. Bexleybus commenced operating on 16 January 1988 operating 17 routes with 107 buses from a reopened Bexleyheath garage. Routes operated included 96, 99, 178, 229, 269, 272, 401, 422, 469, and 492. Buses included new leased

Leyland Olympian The Leyland Olympian was a 2-axle and 3-axle double-decker bus chassis manufactured by Leyland between 1980 and 1993. It was the last Leyland bus model in production. Construction The Olympian had the same chassis and running gear as t ...

s and reactivated

Daimler Fleetline The Daimler Fleetline (known as the Leyland Fleetline from circa 1975) is a rear-engined double-decker bus chassis which was built between 1960 and 1983. It was the second of three bus models to have a marque name as well as an alphanumeric ...

s and

Leyland National The Leyland National is an integrally-constructed United Kingdom, British high-floor, step-floor single-decker bus manufactured in large quantities between 1972 and 1985. It was developed as a joint project between two UK nationalised industri ...

s. However the operation was beset with industrial unrest, and in October 1988 routes 422 and 492 were transferred to

Boro'line Maidstone Boro'line Maidstone, previously Maidstone Borough Council Transport was a municipal bus operator in Maidstone and the surrounding villages. Maidstone Borough Council Transport was formed in 1974 from Maidstone Corporation Transport following l ...

. Bexleybus ceased after losing its routes when re-tendered in January 1991 with the garage passing to

London Central London Central is a bus company operating in South London. It is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group and operates services under contract to Transport for London. History London Central commenced operating on 1 April 1989 when London Buse ...

.Development of Organised Transportation in London
Transport for London January 2013

References

{{Defunct British Bus Companies 1988 establishments in England 1991 disestablishments in England Former London bus operators