Victoria Coach Station

Victoria Coach Station is the largest and most significant coach station in London. It serves long distance coach services and is also the departure point for many countryside coach tours originating from London. It should not be confused with the nearby Green Line Coach Station or the Victoria bus station, which serves London Buses. It is operated by Victoria Coach Station Ltd which is a part of Transport for London.

History
Victoria Coach Station was opened at its present site in Buckingham Palace Road, London, in 1932, by London Coastal Coaches Limited, an association of coach operators. The building is in a distinctive Art Deco style, the architects for which were Wallis, Gilbert and Partners.

It was originally managed by London Coastal Coaches Limited, a consortium of coach operators. In 1970 it became a subsidiary of the National Bus Company (UK) (NBC).

During the 1970s, Victoria Coach Station became the responsibility of the NBC subsidiary, National Travel (South East) Limited. In 1978, London Coastal Coaches Company was brought back to life and renamed Victoria Coach Station Limited.

In the 1990s major work was carried out:
 * Victoria Coach Station Departures Terminal (1990–1992) £4.1m
 * Victoria Coach Station Arrivals Garage (1991) £500K
 * Victoria Coach Station Arrivals Terminal (1993–1994) £330K

In 1988, following the privatisation of the NBC companies, ownership of Victoria Coach Station Limited was transferred to London Transport. In 2000 ownership passed to Transport for London.

In 2008 works were carried on the roof, the toilets and staff facilities costing £320K.

People
Rough sleepers masquerade as travellers waiting for a coach, so they can sleep indoors.

Travellers are offered help with their bags by luggage porters. They are licensed, but not employed by Transport for London. All of their income is in the form of tips from travellers.

Operation
Victoria Coach Station has separate arrival and departure terminals which are located on opposite sides of Elizabeth Street. The main departures building includes food outlets, shops, left luggage facilities and ticketing. The coach station accommodates mostly National Express, Eurolines, Oxford Express and Megabus. In 2012, iDBUS began serving VCS.

There are 21 departure gates and 26 coach bays and the site covers 3.3 acre. 10 million passengers use the station every year with services to 1,200 destinations in the UK and 400 in mainland Europe.

Future developments
The freeholder of the site, the Grosvenor Group has announced that it wishes to redevelop the site, and relocate the coach station elsewhere in the Capital.