Template:About Template:Infobox GB bus 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.[1]
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).[1]
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.[citation needed]
In the 1990s major work was carried out:[2]
- 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.[2]
People[]
Rough sleepers masquerade as travellers waiting for a coach, so they can sleep indoors.[3]
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.[3][4]
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 Template:Convert/acre. 10 million passengers use the station every year with services to 1,200 destinations in the UK and 400 in mainland Europe.[1]
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.[5]
Services[]
| Route Number | Origin | Intermediate stops | Destination | Provider |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 007 | London | Gillingham, Canterbury | Dover | National Express |
| 010 | London | Cambridge | National Express | |
| 021 | London | Maidstone, Ashford, Folkestone | Dover | National Express |
| 022 | London | Whitstable, Herne Bay, Margate | Ramsgate | National Express |
| 023 | London | Tunbridge Wells | Hastings | National Express |
| 024 | London | East Grinstead, Uckfield, Eastbourne | Hastings | National Express |
| 025 | London | London Gatwick Airport | Brighton | National Express |
| 027 | London | London Gatwick Airport, Crawley, Horsham, Worthing, Littlehampton, Bognor Regis | Chichester | National Express |
| 030 | London | Guildford, Portsmouth | Southsea | National Express |
| 031 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Aldershot, Alton, Eastleigh, Fareham | Portsmouth | National Express |
| 032 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Basingstoke, Winchester, Southampton, Fareham | Portsmouth | National Express |
| 032 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Winchester, Southampton, Lymington | Christchurch | National Express |
| 032 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Basingstoke, Southampton | Bournemouth | National Express |
| 032 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Basingstoke, Southampton | Salisbury | National Express |
| 033 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Andover, Salisbury, Gillingham (Dorset) | Yeovil | National Express |
| 035 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Southampton, Bournemouth | Poole | National Express |
| 035 | London | Bournemouth, Dorchester | Weymouth | National Express |
| 040 | London | Bristol, Weston-super-Mare | Burnham-on-Sea | National Express |
| 121 | London | Gillingham, Canterbury, Dover, Calais (France) | Paris (France) | Eurolines |
| 122 | London | Gillingham, Dover, Calais (France) | Paris (France) | Eurolines |
| 124/129 | London | Paris (France) | Eurolines | |
| 140 | London | Amsterdam (Netherlands) | Eurolines | |
| 163 | London | Hythe Stop 24 (Great-Britain) | Munich | Eurolines |
| 170 | London | Berlin (Germany) | Eurolines | |
| 402 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Newbury, Hungerford, Froxfield, Marlborough, Beckhampton, Devizes, Melksham, Trowbridge | Frome | National Express |
| 403 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Swindon, Chippenham | Bath | National Express |
| 404 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Reading, Chippenham, Bath, Bristol Airport, Exeter, Newton Abbot, Torquay, Paignton, Totnes, Plymouth, Liskeard, St Austell, Truro, Redruth, Camborne, Hayle | Penzance | National Express |
| 406 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Bridgwater, Taunton, Exeter, Plymouth, Bodmin | Newquay | National Express |
| 420 | London | Solihull | Birmingham | National Express |
| 420 | London | Coventry, Birmingham, Dudley, | Wolverhampton | National Express |
| 420 | London | Birmingham, Walsall, Cannock | Stafford | National Express |
| 420 | London | Birmingham, Telford, Shrewsbury, Welshpool, Newtown | Aberystwyth | National Express |
| 420 | London | Birmingham, Telford, Shrewsbury, Oswestry | Wrexham | National Express |
| 421 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Oxford, Stratford-upon-Avon, Birmingham, Stafford, Stoke-on-Trent, Chester, Ellesmere Port, Birkenhead, Liverpool, Preston, Blackpool, Lancaster, Penrith, Glasgow, Aberdeen, | Inverness, | National Express |
| 422 | London | London Luton Airport, Luton, Milton Keynes, Coventry, Birmingham International Airport, Birmingham, Dudley, Wolverhampton, Manchester Airport, Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Blackburn, Accrington | Burnley | National Express |
| 425 | London | Milton Keynes, Leeds, Harrogate, Ripon, Darlington, Durham | Newcastle upon Tyne | National Express |
| 426 | London | Milton Keynes, Doncaster, York, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees, Sunderland | South Shields | National Express |
| 440 | London | Milton Keynes, Leicester, Loughborough, Derby, Matlock, Bakewell, Buxton, New Mills | Manchester | National Express |
| 440 | London | Leicester, Coalville, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Swadlincote | Burton-upon-Trent | National Express |
| 444 | London | Reading, Swindon, Cirencester, Cheltenham | Gloucester | National Express |
| 447 | London | Peterborough, Grantham, Newark-on-Trent | Lincoln | National Express |
| 448 | London | Peterborough | Stamford | National Express |
| 448 | London | Peterborough, Sleaford, Cleethorpes | Grimsby | National Express |
| 449 | London | Peterborough, Spalding, Boston, Skegness | Mablethorpe | National Express |
| 450 | London | Milton Keynes, Nottingham, Mansfield, Worksop | Retford | National Express |
| 455 | London | Milton Keynes | Northampton | National Express |
| 465 | London | Nottingham, Mansfield, Chesterfield, Sheffield, Barnsley, Wakefield, Leeds, Bradford, Halifax | Huddersfield | National Express |
| 481 | London | Chelmsford, Ipswich | Felixstowe | National Express |
| 484 | London | Colchester | Clacton-on-Sea | National Express |
| 490 | London | Thetford, Norwich | Great Yarmouth | National Express |
| 497 | London | Newmarket, Bury St Edmunds, Lowestoft | Great Yarmouth | National Express |
| 500 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Exeter, Plymouth, Liskeard, St Austell, Truro, Redruth, Camborne, Hayle, St Ives | Penzance | National Express |
| 501 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Reading, Bridgwater, Taunton, Exeter, Newton Abbot, Torquay, Paignton | Totnes | National Express |
| 504 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Reading, Plymouth, Liskeard, St Austell, Truro, Falmouth, Helston | Penzance | National Express |
| 505 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Reading, Plymouth, Bodmin | Newquay | National Express |
| 508 | London | Chepstow, Bridgend, Neath, Swansea | Llanelli | National Express |
| 508 | London | Reading, Chepstow, Bridgend, Port Talbot, Swansea, Carmarthen, Tenby, Pembroke, Pembroke Dock | Haverfordwest | National Express |
| 509 | London | Newport, Cardiff | Swansea | National Express |
| 509 | London | Cardiff, Pontypridd, Merthyr Tydfil | Aberdare | National Express |
| 540 | London | Milton Keynes, Birmingham | Manchester | National Express |
| 540 | London | Manchester, Bolton, Blackburn, Accrington | Burnley | National Express |
| 540 | London | Milton Keynes, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale | Bury | National Express |
| 545 | London | Milton Keynes, Birmingham, Stoke-on-Trent, Chester, Prestatyn, Rhyl, Colwyn Bay, Llandudno, Bangor, Caernarfon, Porthmadog | Pwllheli | National Express |
| 550 | London | Birmingham, Stoke-on-Trent, Warrington | Liverpool | National Express |
| 560 | London | Milton Keynes, Chesterfield, Sheffield | Barnsley | National Express |
| 560 | London | Milton Keynes, Chesterfield, Sheffield | Rotherham | National Express |
| 561 | London | Milton Keynes, Leeds | Bradford | National Express |
| 561 | London | Milton Keynes, Leeds, Bradford, Shipley, Keighley | Skipton | National Express |
| 561 | London | Milton Keynes, Leeds, Harrogate | Ripon | National Express |
| 561 | London | Milton Keynes, Leeds | York | National Express |
| 562 | London | Milton Keynes, Doncaster, Scunthorpe | Hull | National Express |
| 563 | London | Milton Keynes, York, Bridlington, Scarborough | Whitby | National Express |
| 564 | London | Milton Keynes, Chesterfield, Sheffield, Dewsbury, Huddersfield | Halifax | National Express |
| 570 | London | Milton Keynes, Birmingham, St Helens, Preston | Blackpool | National Express |
| 570 | London | Milton Keynes, Birmingham, Preston, Lancaster, Kendal, Windermere, Keswick, Cockermouth, Workington | Whitehaven | National Express |
| 588 | London | Milton Keynes, Penrith, Lockerbie, Glasgow, Stirling, Perth, Pitlochrie, Aviemore | Inverness | National Express |
| 590 | London | Milton Keynes, Carlisle, Hamilton, Glasgow, Perth, Dundee | Aberdeen | National Express |
| 591 | London | Milton Keynes, Newcastle upon Tyne, Morpeth, Alnwick, Berwick-upon-Tweed | Edinburgh | National Express |
| 592 | London | London Heathrow Airport, Carlisle, Hamilton, Glasgow, Dundee | Aberdeen | National Express |
| 871 | London | Luton, Milton Keynes, Coventry, Birmingham, Holyhead | Dublin (Ireland) | Eurolines |
| 890 | London | Reading, Bristol, Pembroke Dock, Waterford (Ireland), Dungarvan (Ireland), | Cork (city) (Ireland) | Eurolines |
| 920 | London | Milton Keynes, Birmingham, Manchester, Carlisle, Dumfries, Stranraer, Cairnryan | Belfast | Eurolines |
| A6 | London | London Stansted Airport | National Express | |
| M1 | London | Coventry | Birmingham | Megabus |
| M2 | London | Winchester, Ringwood | Bournemouth | Megabus |
| M6 | London | Exeter, Plymouth, Newquay | Penzance | Megabus |
| M7 | London | Newport | Cardiff | Megabus |
| M10 | London | Newport | Cwmbran | Megabus |
| M11 | London | Manchester, Preston, Glasgow, Dundee | Aberdeen | Megabus |
| M12 | London | Sheffield, Leeds, Middlesbrough, Sunderland | Newcastle upon Tyne | Megabus |
| M14 | London | Reading, Swindon, Gloucester | Cheltenham | Megabus |
| M15 | London | Chester | Liverpool | Megabus |
| M16 | London | Birmingham, Manchester | Preston | Megabus |
| X90 | London | Marble Arch, Baker Street, Hillingdon | Oxford | Oxford Bus Company |
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Victoria Coach Station and Hitler. Celebrating 75 years of service. Transport for London. Retrieved on 2010-01-26.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Project List. EPSILON Management Services Ltd. Retrieved on 2010-01-20.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Template:Cite episode
- ↑ Station facilities. Transport for London. Retrieved on 2013-07-21.
- ↑ Template:Cite news
External links[]
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