East London Transit (ELT) is a part-segregated

bus rapid transit Bus rapid transit (BRT), also called a busway or transitway, is a bus-based public transport system designed to have much more capacity, reliability and other quality features than a conventional bus system. Typically, a BRT system includes ...

, operated as part of the

London Buses London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL) that manages most bus services in London, England. It was formed following the Greater London Authority Act 1999 that transferred control of London Regional Transport (LRT) bus se ...

network. The East London Transit opened in phases between 2010 and 2013. The scheme for this system was developed by Transport for London to meet the existing and anticipated demand for public transport in

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

caused by the Thames Gateway redevelopment, and has been planned to allow for a possible future upgrade to tram operation. It connects National Rail, London Underground, TfL Rail and London Overground stations in the London boroughs of Havering, Redbridge, and Barking and Dagenham with major population centers, such as Barking Riverside, that are currently only served by bus routes. The first stage of the scheme opened on 20 February 2010. There are proposals for a variety of extensions.

History

The East London Transit (ELT) was developed by Transport for London as an integrated public transport system in conjunction with the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham and the

London Borough of Redbridge The London Borough of Redbridge is a London borough established in 1965. The borough shares boundaries with the Epping Forest District and the ceremonial county of Essex to the north, with the London Borough of Waltham Forest to the west, the ...

and other stakeholders. There are three routes in the East London Transit system. EL1 replaced the previous route 369 bus service and operated 24 hours a day, initially between Thames View Estate and Ilford, and has since been extended from Thames View Estate to Barking Riverside. EL2 operated over the whole length of the phase 1 route between Dagenham Dock and Ilford until March 2016, when it was amended to run to Becontree Heath after leaving Barking. EL3 replaced the previous route 387 operated between Little Heath and Barking Riverside, the route change through Barking Town Centre. As a result of these changes, route 179 was withdrawn between Ilford and Barking and was diverted to terminate at Ilford (Hainault Street) bus terminus. Each route operates five buses an hour on Monday to Saturday daytimes and three buses an hour during the evenings and on Sunday; this gives a combined frequency of ten buses an hour over the core route from Barking to Thames View Estate during the day.

Delivered phases

;Phase 1 * Ilford — Barking — Thames View Estate —

Dagenham Dock station Dagenham Dock is a National Rail station in the Dagenham Dock neighbourhood of Dagenham in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, east London. The station is on the Tilbury loop of the London, Tilbury and Southend line, located down th ...

Phase 1 commenced on 20 February 2010. ;Phase 2 *Barking — Thames View Estate — Dagenham Dock Construction of phase 2 began in 2011 and was completed in 2013. It received funding from the Homes and Communities Agency.

Extension to Barking Reach

In 2013 it was proposed to extend route EL1 from Thames View Estate to Barking Reach and a consultation was held. The extended service started on 7 September 2013.

Current routes

Route EL1 operates via these primary locations: * Ilford ''Hill'' * Barking station *Vicarage Field Shopping Centre * Creekmouth ''Waverley Gardens'' *

Thames View Thames View Estate is a large housing estate in Barking and Dagenham in East London, England. History Constructed between 1954 and 1960 by Barking Borough Council (municipal borough), Barking Borough Council, it features 2,000 homes rendering i ...

''Christ Church'' * Barking Riverside ''Riverside Centre'' Route EL2 operates via these primary locations: * Becontree Heath Leisure Centre *

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Forest ...

''Heathway'' * Becontree ''Avenue'' *Barking station *Vicarage Field Shopping Centre *Creekmouth ''Waverley Gardens'' *Thames View ''Christ Church'' * Dagenham Dock ''Terminus'' for

Route EL3 operates via these primary locations: * Little Heath ''Chadwell Heath Lane'' * King George Hospital *

Goodmayes station Goodmayes railway station is on the Great Eastern Main Line serving the district of Goodmayes in the London Borough of Redbridge, east London. It is down the line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between and . Its three-letter st ...

*Barking station *Vicarage Field Shopping Centre *Creekmouth ''Waverley Gardens'' *Thames View ''Christ Church'' *Barking Riverside ''Riverside Centre''

Vehicles

All services are operated by Blue Triangle using New Routemaster double-deckers. In February 2017, Blue Triangle commenced a new contract on routes EL1 and EL2 along with new route EL3 (which replaced the similarly routed 387). These routes gradually introduced New Routemasters.

Future developments

Proposed destinations

Early proposals for extensions have included Gants Hill for the Central line, Rainham, Barkingside, Romford, Elm Park and Collier Row and Harold Wood. Havering London Borough Council has voiced support for the extension to Rainham through London Riverside. In a bus network development paper from 2016, a new route EL4 was proposed between Barking Riverside and Becontree Heath bus station via Becontree Underground station. Additional proposals include services to Gallions Reach for the Docklands Light Railway,

East Ham East Ham is a district of the London Borough of Newham, England, 8 miles (12.8 km) east of Charing Cross. East Ham is identified in the London Plan as a Major Centre. The population is 76,186. It was originally part of the Becontree Hun ...

, Silvertown and Stratford.

Thames Gateway Transit

The East London Transit formed part of a plan for a much larger

Thames Gateway Transit The Thames Gateway Transit was the collective name of two planned segregated bus schemes planned and partially implemented by Transport for London (TfL) in the east London section of the Thames Gateway redevelopment zone in England. They were: ...

service, which would use the Thames Gateway Bridge to connect to the Greenwich Waterfront Transit on the south side of the River Thames. However, construction of the bridge and the Greenwich busway was cancelled in 2008.

References

External links

{{Transport in London Transport in the London Borough of Redbridge Transport in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Thames Gateway Guided busways and BRT systems in the United Kingdom