London Buses route 97 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 Chingford station and

Stratford City bus station Stratford City Bus Station is located on Montfichet Road, adjacent to the main entrance of Westfield Stratford City. It opened on 13 September 2011 as part of the new shopping centre. An entrance to Stratford station is located adjacent to t ...

, it is operated by

Stagecoach London Stagecoach London is a major bus operator in Greater London. It is a subsidiary of Stagecoach and operates services under contract to Transport for London mostly in East and South East London as well as some services into Central London. It i ...

History

London Transport bus T664 (NUW 664Y), 1982 Leyland Titan B15, Chingford station, route 97, 30 March 1985 cropped

On 31 January 1981 Route 97 was introduced to replace the northern leg of Route 69 between Leyton and Chingford, replacing Routemasters on that section. It was withdrawn temporarily between June 1987 and November 1988 when it was covered by the 69 again. The 97 was operated by

London Forest London Forest was a subsidiary of London Buses that operated services between April 1989 and November 1991. History London Forest was formed as one of the eleven operating units of London Buses in readiness for privatisation. It commenced op ...

until 1991, when that company was wound up. The route passed to

Capital Citybus Capital Citybus was a bus operator in London operating services under contract to London Regional Transport. History Capital Citybus was established on 29 December 1990, with the purchase of the London tendered bus services of Ensignbus by the ...

on 23 November 1991. Route 97 was included in the July 1998 sale of Capital Citybus to

First London First London was a bus company operating services in east and west Greater London, England. It was a subsidiary of FirstGroup and operated buses under contract to Transport for London. It was formed in the late 1990s through the acquisition o ...

. Upon being re-tendered, it was retained by First London with a new contract commencing on 26 February 2000. When next tendered, it passed to Stagecoach London's Leyton garage with a new contract commencing on 5 March 2005. Stagecoach London commenced a further contract on 6 March 2010. On 10 September 2011, route 97 was extended from Leyton to

to coincide with the opening of

Westfield Stratford City Westfield Stratford City is a shopping centre in Stratford, east London, which opened on 13 September 2011. With a total retail floor area of , it is the largest urban shopping centre in the UK by land area and the 4th-largest shopping cen ...

. On 31 August 2013, the route was diverted to serve the new residential precinct around the

Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is a sporting complex and public park in Stratford, Hackney Wick, Leyton and Bow, in east London. It was purpose-built for the 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, situated adjacent to the Stratford City developm ...

. Sister Route 97A operated from 1981 and 2000 between Chingford and Walthamstow Central with various extensions to Leyton, Hackney and latterly Whipps Cross. It was replaced by Route 357.

Current route

Route 97 operates via these primary locations:Route 97 Map
Transport for London * Chingford station *

Chingford Mount Chingford Mount is an area of Chingford, east London, England, located in South Chingford. The name refers to the shopping area located around A112/A1009 crossroads (OS Grid Reference ), though it is also used for the hill leading north from th ...

Walthamstow Market Walthamstow Market, in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, is the longest (though not the largest) outdoor market in Europe. It occupies all but the last of Walthamstow's High Street. It is reputed to be a mile long, but in fact measures app ...

Walthamstow Central station Walthamstow Central is a London Underground and London Overground interchange station in the town of Walthamstow in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, north-east London. It is the northern terminus of the Victoria line following Blackhorse ...

Baker's Arms Bakers Arms is an intersection and arguably a district on the boundary of Leyton and Walthamstow, in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is named after a former public house which stood at the junction of High Road Leyton, Hoe Street (bo ...

* Leyton Midland Road station *

Leyton station Leyton is a London Underground station in Leyton, in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, East London. Located on Leyton High Road, adjacent to the A12, the station is on the Central line between two stations assigned to two fare zones � ...

Chobham Academy Chobham Academy is a mixed all-through school and sixth form which opened in September 2013. The school is located on Cheering Lane in the East Village of Stratford in the London Borough of Newham, England. It has 1,800 student places and h ...

Stratford International station Stratford International is a National Rail station in Stratford and a separate Docklands Light Railway (DLR) station nearby, located in East Village in London. Despite its name, no international services stop at the station; plans for it to ...

for

Stratford station Stratford is a major multi-level railway station which rates as the 5th busiest station in Britain, serving the district of Stratford and the mixed-use development known as Stratford City, in the London Borough of Newham, east London. It is s ...

References

External links

*
Timetable
{{DEFAULTSORT:097, London buses route Bus routes in London Transport in the London Borough of Newham Transport in the London Borough of Waltham Forest