London Buses route 132

132
Go-Ahead London Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV near North Greenwich bus station
Overview
OperatorGo-Ahead London
GarageBexleyheath
VehicleAlexander Dennis Enviro400EV
Night-timeNight Bus N21
Route
StartBexleyheath Shopping Centre
ViaBexley
Blendon
Blackfen
Avery Hill
Eltham
Kidbrooke
EndNorth Greenwich bus station

London Buses route 132 is a Transport for London contracted bus route in London, England. Running between Bexleyheath Shopping Centre and North Greenwich bus station, it is operated by Go-Ahead London.

History

Preserved London Transport Daimler Fleetline in July 2011
Go-Ahead London Plaxton President bodied Volvo B7TL at North Greenwich bus station in December 2014
Go-Ahead London Wright Eclipse Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL in September 2017
Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV parked beneath the pantograph but not charging

On 24 January 2009, the route was extended westwards via the Greenwich Peninsula to North Greenwich bus station.[1][2] On 3 October 2009, East Thames Buses was sold to Go-Ahead London, which included a five-year contract to operate route 132.[3][4][5] On 7 November 2009, the allocation was transferred to Bexleyheath garage.[6]

Since October 2009, part of the route from Eltham to Bexleyheath has been covered at night by night bus route N21.[7]

During the London 2012 Olympics, the route was temporarily converted from single-decker to double-decker operation.[8] The route was permanently converted to double-decker operation in December 2012.[9][10]

On 12 September 2015, the route gained a 24-hour service on Friday and Saturday nights. At the moment, the 24-hour service on Friday and Saturday nights is suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[11]

In January 2020, the daytime frequency of the route was increased from a bus every 10 minutes to a bus every eight minutes.[12][13]

In November 2020, Transport for London announced that the route would be operated by electric double-decker buses.[14] On 9 July 2022, the route began converting to electric bus operation with BYD Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV vehicles.[15] To cater for these vehicles, a pantograph charger was installed at Bexleyheath bus garage to allow rapid charging to 'top up' the battery during the day.[16]

Current route

Route 132 operates via these primary locations:[17]

References

  1. ^ MP celebrates introduction of new bus route News Shopper 21 September 2008
  2. ^ Bexley: Changes aimed at improving bus routes News Shopper 28 January 2009
  3. ^ Go-Ahead Acquires East Thames Buses Archived 22 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine Go-Ahead Group 30 July 2009
  4. ^ Go-Ahead buys East Thames Buses Archived 24 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine Bus & Coach Professional 3 August 2009
  5. ^ East Thames Buses Archived 24 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine Go-Ahead London
  6. ^ Farages take on new routes Archived 25 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine BusTalk (Go-Ahead London) issue 1 December 2009
  7. ^ Duncan Borrowman welcomes proposed night bus changes Archived 1 July 2012 at archive.today Bexley Borough Liberal Democrats
  8. ^ "Bus services during the London 2012 games". Transport for London. Retrieved 20 June 2022.
  9. ^ Woods, Alan (15 March 2013). "Extra bus services added to serve Beths Grammar School in Bexley". This Is Local London. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  10. ^ "The 132 Bus". Mayor's Question Time. 9 December 2013. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  11. ^ Night bus changes from 12 September 2015 Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ "Greenwich Council to pay TfL £1.2 million for increased 132 bus frequency". Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  13. ^ "Route 132 Timetable". Transport for London. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  14. ^ "Four more London routes to go zero-emission double-deck". Route One. 23 November 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  15. ^ "Greenwich to Bexleyheath bus set to go electric on route 132". Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  16. ^ Lydall, Ross (26 October 2022). "Fleet of London buses get rapid charging tech". Evening Standard. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
  17. ^ "Route 132 Map". Transport for London. Retrieved 20 June 2022.