Kingston United

On Saturday 30th June 2018, a number of contracts were either renewed or awarded to London United, part of the RATP group, in the Kingston area, with all four routes having brand new ADL Enviro200 MMCs introduced. A couple of old buses are clinging on, but generally speaking the conversions are pretty much complete for the routes in question.

London United DPS590 is seen at Cromwell Road Bus Station on route 216.

The only non-prefixed route which has received new buses is the 216. This service runs between Staines and Kingston, at a 20 minute frequency from Monday-Saturday, with a peak vehicle requirement for 9 buses. Fulwell (FW) garage continue to operate the route under the new contract, although the allocation is now much more strict than in previous years, where a wide range of types could be found. ADL Enviro200s were the most common vehicles, although Dart Pointers often made frequent appearances and until a few months ago, double deckers also ran the route regularly. However, due to residents questioning the safety of the extra deck, the Scania OmniCity vehicles at the garage have now been banned from the route, which is a shame as the 216 offers some really nice views from upstairs. It is actually a very interesting route that includes housing estates, dual carriageways, narrow villages, running through Bushy Park in Hampton Court and offering some beautiful views of the River Thames. However, the service under a single decker doesn't really look very satisfying, as buses are often crowded due to the low frequency. Generally speaking, the 216 is operated well, with service problems only occurring when traffic builds up along the course of the route.

London United DLE30220 is seen in Wood Street, Kingston.

This substantial batch of E200 MMCs ordered by London United first entered service on the 216, a few days before the contract renewal. However, as soon as the K3 vehicles hit the road, the two batches at this garage started to intermix, with the YX18-plate examples being that of the 216 and the SN18-plate buses being the K3 ones. Most of the time, the route is fully comprised of new buses, although sometimes there is the need to borrow an existing E200 from the 33 or 371. There were rumours surrounding the contract retention of the 216 that the route would be curtailed to Ashford Hospital, no longer serving Staines Town Centre, with these cuts being something which has become very common with cross-border services, although thankfully this one didn't go ahead, as otherwise it would've been detrimental for people living around Ashford who use this bus to access the shops. Overall then, this element of the change can be viewed as successful and as this was a contract renewal rather than an award, there hasn't been the usual drop in service levels during the "introductory period."

London United DE57 is seen on route K2 to Kingston Hospital.

There are five routes in London with the K-prefix, with all of them being single deck services generally providing local links around the area of Kingston. Three of these will be covered in this post, with the K1 and K5 having their ugprades at a later date. The K2 runs between Kingston Hospital and Hook, taking a rather indirect routeing via Surbiton, Berrylands and Tolworth, although it is the only route to serve the fairly large middle destination, which is why it is often a very busy service. This route has a peak vehicle requirement of 10 buses, which satisfy a 10 minute frequency from Monday-Saturday, with this dropping to 4 buses per hour on Sundays and 3 buses per hour during the evening. Being only seven miles in length, the K2 is shorter than your average London route. For the new contract, the K2 remains at Tolworth (TV), but the slightly worn 07-reg "classic" Enviro 200s and occasional Dart Pointers should no longer appear. Very occasionally, a single door bus from the K4 will appear on the service, although this is usually avoided at all costs due to the capacity downgrade. However, if you are not a fan of E200 MMCs, two of the older 07-reg examples are still in regular service, either on the K2 or the 265, although theoretically they could replaced as early as this week.

London United DLE30234 is seen at Kingston Hospital

Most of the new E200 MMCs entered service on time at Tolworth (TV) garage and predictably there has already been some intermixing with those already found on the 265, also operated from this base. In terms of service provision, the route is not perfect, with the fairly intense frequency for an SD service contributing to the bunching I often witness. This does result in some gaps of around 15 minutes fairly regularly, although with the often congested town centres of Kingston and Surbiton which this passes through, perhaps the slight deviations in service quality can be forgiven.

Abellio London 8815 is seen in Kingston on route K3

The K3 is probably the most significant prefixed route in the Kingston area, with this being a long-distance service that also crosses the town centre, providing valuable links in both directions. From Roehampton Vale, there is a quick detour from the main road to serve the Robin Hood Estate in a one-way loop, although after this buses run directly via Kingston Hospital to the Town Centre. After following the mainstream corridor, through Kingston University to Surbiton Broadway, the K3 spends a good 30 minutes completely isolated from the rest of the TFL network, serving residential areas in Hinchley Wood, Claygate and Esher, which are actually outside of the Greater London Boundary. However, as the national rail services here do not accept oyster cards and the non-London bus services provided are infrequent, the K3 is a lifeline to people living in these areas of South-West London and seems busy enough to justify its extension into Surrey. The full route, from Esher to Roehampton Vale, takes just over 60 minutes during the day, with a peak vehicle requirement for 11 vehicles satisfying the 15 minute frequency - this is reduced to every 20 minutes on Sundays and half-hourly during the evening. Abellio London operated the K3 for five years, with a batch of 13-reg "classic" Enviro 200s based at Fulwell (TF) garage, although due to the flexible allocations there almost any type appeared on the route, including Dart Nimbus models and E200 MMCs from the 195 and R70. As the buses displaced from the K3 change are still fairly new, they are now being used on another five year contract for the H25. Friday 29th June 2018 saw Abellio bow out as the operator of route K3, with London United taking over the following morning.

London United DLE20243 is seen at Kingston Hospital.

The assumption of the K3 by London United has been recognised as a homecoming, given that the company operated the service only five years ago, with Abellio only running the route for one contract term. However, instead of returning to its former base at Tolworth, the K3 is run from Fulwell (FW) garage with its own brand new Enviro 200 MMCs. No other bus types have appeared on the K3 since the new contract. The reliability at the moment is starting to show some promising signs - Abellio ran the route decently, with a generally trustworthy service and occasional mishaps mostly involving curtailments. Over the first weekend, London United really struggled with operating the route, which was evident by the often imbalanced number of buses working the route in each direction, in addition to some awfully large gaps of over 30 minutes. However, especially over the past couple of the weeks, the route seems to be running even better than under Abellio and hopefully now that London United have settled into operating the K3, the route is in safe hands for the next few years.

London United SDE7 is seen on route K4 to Mansfield Park.

The K4 is probably the least significant route covered in this post, having both a low frequency and a short end-to-end journey between the two ends. It runs from the Mansfield Park Estate in Chessington to Kingston Hospital, via a pretty direct route through Surbiton along the main Southern corridor, with only one deviation at the top where the K4 serves housing in Athelstan Park instead of going past Kingston University. A 30 minute frequency is provided from Monday to Saturday, with this dropping to hourly in the evenings. The K4 does not operate on Sundays. This route has a peak vehicle requirement for four vehicles and Tolworth (TV) garage is where the K4 is based. As there are no other routes at the garage allocated 8.9m buses, in emergencies a longer bus has to be borrowed from the K2, but on the rare occasions where this does happen the bus curtails at Hook Parade due to the tight turns in Mansfield Park, where this route operates on a hail and ride basis. It was unsurprising that London United managed to retain this route, given that its not particularly difficult and generally speaking the buses seem to turn up on time, which is what matters for a low frequency service.

London United SDE20297 is seen at Kingston Hospital.

The K4 change is the only one which didn't happen on time, with no sight of its promised new vehicles on the contract date of Saturday 30th June 2018. Around two weeks later, two brand new 9.0m E200 MMCs entered service, although rather unusually the other three have disappeared which means that some of the older 08-reg "classic" E200s are still filling in the gaps. One of the older vehicles has also transferred to Epsom (EB) garage as a spare and can usually be found on the K5 or S3.  Whilst the new buses are, in my opinion, much nicer to ride on as a passenger, offering a much more welcoming environment, their entry into service has been controversial amongst drivers who prefer the older buses. This is because the E200 MMC is noticeably wider than their predecessors and as the Mansfield Park Estate is so narrow and bendy, the new buses seem to be getting stuck quite regularly. In terms of usage, the K4 is one of the quietest routes in London and bar maybe in the height of shopping hours or at peak times, not many people seem to actually use the bus from the sprawling Mansfield Park. However, the route can get really busy along the mainstream corridor into Kingston from Hook, if the 71 or 465 haven't turned up for a while and due to the limited capacity of these vehicles the buses can arrive into Surbiton and Kingston quite full. The route is fairly popular in Athelstan Park, but the K1 service also operates here and has a higher frequency. Overall, the K4 change has had both admirable qualities in terms of its consistent service, although whether the vehicles in question prove themselves on the challenging roads is another matter.

Thanks for reading and stay safe!

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