London Line routes 701 and 702 and Flight Line route 703, are

bus routes A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for ...

that run between

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

, and

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

History

In 2015,

FirstGroup FirstGroup plc is a British multi-national transport group, based in Aberdeen, Scotland.Bracknell Bracknell () is a large town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, the westernmost area within the Greater London Built-up Area, Greater London Urban Area and the administrative centre of the Bracknell Forest, Borough of Bracknell Forest. It l ...

. However, it was subsequently announced that the route would be retained. In December 2017,

Reading Buses Reading Buses is a bus operator serving the towns of Reading, Bracknell, Newbury, Slough, Windsor, Maidenhead, Wokingham and the surrounding areas in the counties of Berkshire, Oxfordshire, and Hampshire, England, as well as parts of Greater L ...

took over the 702 route from FirstGroup. For the first day of service on 24 December, passengers could board for free and various heritage vehicles were used on the route. First had previously announced it would withdraw the route as it said it had become unsustainable due to increasing costs of operation. On 8 May 2018, route 703 was introduced. Buses were branded as the "Royal Express" and painted in a gold and purple livery, coinciding with the

Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle was held on Saturday 19 May 2018 in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle in the United Kingdom. The groom is a member of the British royal family; the bride is American and previously worked as an ...

. At the time, the routes were operated using

Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC The Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC (sold as the Alexander Dennis Enviro400) is a low-floor bus, low-floor double-decker bus produced by the British bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis since 2014, replacing the Alexander Dennis Enviro400. The Envi ...

s. From 2 November 2020, some early morning and late evening 702 journeys started running via the M4 between Reading and

Slough Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...

. In January 2021 route 702 was suspended due to low usage as a result of the

COVID-19 lockdown Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of non-pharmaceutical interventions colloquially known as lockdowns (encompassing stay-at-home orders, curfews, quarantines, and similar societal restrictions) have been implemented in numerous countrie ...

. On 24 July 2022, route 703 increased the frequency to provide a half-hourly service between Heathrow Airport and Slough, as a result of the airport's partnership. This also now sees an improved hourly frequency between Legoland Windsor and Slough throughout the day. In February 2023, seven 76-seater

Alexander Dennis Enviro400 City The Alexander Dennis Enviro400 City is a low-floor double-decker bus produced by the British bus manufacturer Alexander Dennis since 2018, produced as an alternative to the standard Alexander Dennis Enviro400 MMC bodywork. The Enviro400 City is ...

s were ordered to upgrade routes 702 and 703. Delivery of these buses in June 2023 coincided with Reading Buses dropping the Green Line brand for both routes, with route 702 becoming the London Line and route 703 becoming the Flight Line.{{cite web, url=https://www.route-one.net/news/green-line-now-flight-line-and-london-line-for-reading/ , title=Green Line now Flight Line and London Line for Reading , work=routeone , date=16 June 2023 , access-date=16 June 2023

References

Green Line Coaches routes Buses serving Heathrow Airport Bus routes in England Transport in Berkshire