London Buses route 88 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in

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 ...

, England. Running between

Parliament Hill Fields Hampstead Heath (locally known simply as the Heath) is an ancient heath in London, spanning . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band ...

and

Clapham Common Clapham Common is a large triangular urban park in Clapham, south London, England. Originally common land for the parishes of Battersea and Clapham, it was converted to parkland under the terms of the Metropolitan Commons Act 1878. It is of gr ...

, it is operated by

London General London General is a bus company operating in Greater London. It is a subsidiary of the Go-Ahead Group and operates services under contract to Transport for London. The company is named after the London General Omnibus Company, the principal ...

. The route used to be known as "the Clapham Omnibus" when it was run by London General with single-decker buses.

History

Route 88 was the first "Metropolitan" route to receive

AEC NS-type AEC may refer to: Organizations * Catalan Space Agency (Agència Espacial de Catalunya) * Ars Electronica Center, Linz, Austria * Art Ensemble of Chicago, US Governance * African Economic Community * African Energy Chamber * Alaska Engineeri ...

buses, running between Acton Green and

Mitcham Mitcham is an area within the London Borough of Merton in South London, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross. Originally a village in the county of Surrey, today it is mainly a residential suburb, and includes Mitcham Common. It ha ...

. Between 1993 and 1997, Volvos were used to run the route. For some time, the route was the only one to use the buses.

successfully retained route 88 with new contracts starting on 13 December 2003 and 11 December 2010.

New Routemaster The New Routemaster, originally referred to as the New Bus for London and colloquially as the Borismaster or Boris Bus, is a low-floor Diesel fuel, diesel double-decker bus operated in London, England. Designed by Heatherwick Studio and manufa ...

s were introduced on 22 August 2015. On 30 March 2019, the route was extended from

Camden Town Camden Town (), often shortened to Camden, is a district of northwest London, England, north of Charing Cross. Historically in Middlesex, it is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Camden, and identified in the London Plan as o ...

and re-routed between

and Great Portland Street Station to go via

Albany Street Albany Street is a road in London running from Marylebone Road to Gloucester Gate following the east side of Regent's Park. It is about three-quarters of a mile in length. History The street was laid out during the 1820s, and takes its name ...

and ultimately replace the C2, which ceased operation entirely.

Current route

Route 88 operates via these primary locations:Route 88 Map
Transport for London *

for ''

Hampstead Heath Hampstead Heath (locally known simply as the Heath) is an ancient heath in London, spanning . This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge, one of the highest points in London, running from Hampstead to Highgate, which rests on a band o ...

'' *

Kentish Town Station Kentish Town is a London Underground and National Rail station in Kentish Town in the London Borough of Camden. It is at the junction of Kentish Town Road ( A400) and Leighton Road. It is in Travelcard Zone 2. The station is served by the High ...

* Camden Town station *

Regent's Park Barracks The Regent's Park Barracks, commonly known as the Albany Street Barracks, is a British Army barracks located on Albany Street, London, near Regent's Park. History The barracks were constructed in 1820-1821 as cavalry barracks for the Life Guard ...

* Great Portland Street station *

Oxford Circus station Oxford Circus is a London Underground station serving Oxford Circus at the junction of Regent Street and Oxford Street, with entrances on all four corners of the intersection. The station is an interchange between the Bakerloo, Central and Vic ...

Regent Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash and James Burton. It runs from Waterloo Place ...

* Piccadilly Circus station *

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson commemo ...

for ''

Charing Cross station Charing Cross railway station (also known as London Charing Cross) is a central London railway terminus between the Strand and Hungerford Bridge in the City of Westminster. It is the terminus of the South Eastern Main Line to Dover via Ashfo ...

'' *

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A roads in Zone 3 of the Great Britain numbering scheme, A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea, London, Chelsea. It is the main ...

* Westminster station *

Tate Britain Tate Britain, known from 1897 to 1932 as the National Gallery of British Art and from 1932 to 2000 as the Tate Gallery, is an art museum on Millbank in the City of Westminster in London, England. It is part of the Tate network of galleries in ...

Vauxhall Bridge Vauxhall Bridge is a Grade II* listed steel and granite deck arch bridge in central London. It crosses the River Thames in a southeast–northwest direction between Vauxhall on the south bank and Pimlico on the north bank. Opened in 1906, it ...

Vauxhall bus station Vauxhall bus station is a bus station in Vauxhall, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is operated by London Buses and owned and maintained by Transport for London, and is the second busiest bus station in the city. The station, which is adja ...

for

Vauxhall station Vauxhall (, ) is a National Rail, London Underground and London Buses interchange station in central London. It is at the Vauxhall Cross road junction opposite the southern approach to Vauxhall Bridge over the River Thames in the district of ...

Vauxhall Park Vauxhall Park is a Green Flag Award-winning municipal park in Vauxhall, South London, run by Lambeth Council. It occupies an 8.5-acre site, and was created at a cost of around £45,000, following a public campaign led by the suffragist Millicent ...

* Stockwell station * Clapham North & Clapham High Street stations * Clapham Common station *

''Omnibus Clapham''

References

External links

*
Timetable
{{DEFAULTSORT:088, London buses route Bus routes in London Transport in the London Borough of Camden Transport in the London Borough of Lambeth Transport in the City of Westminster