Route 202 and 202^A

The inner-most single-deck route in London until the Red Arrows of 1966, the 202 served the then-busy industrial area of South Bermondsey. A series of route changes included (variously and confusingly) conversion to a circular route and temporarily splitting into 202 and 202^A. The first route to lose RFs in favour of Merlins.

Dates of RF operation

13 Dec 52 to 25 Oct 68

(total 15 years 11 months, all crew operation).

Route 202^A: 1 Jul 64 to 10 Mar 67

RF472 seen in New Cross on 20 March 1960.

Photo © Gerald Mead

Destinations

New Cross to Canal Bridge (13 Dec 52 to 10 Dec 57 daily, 1 Jul 64 to 10 Mar 67 daily, plus Sundays during operation of circular route)

New Cross and Rotherhithe (circular) (Mon-Sat: 11 Dec 57 to 30 Jun 64, 11 Mar 67 to 25 Oct 68)

New Cross to Canal Bridge (202 daily) and New Cross to Southwark Park Road (202^A Mon -Fri peaks and midday) (1 Jul 64 - 13 Aug 67)

Route 202 last night of operation, 25 October 1968 - RF 370 displays the informative display (for a circular route) New Cross Clifton Rise and stands at the first stop in Hawkstone Road just after Surrey Docks station. This road has not been used by buses since Canada Water station opened and the local routes were altered to run into the bus station.

Photo © Chris Stanley

Route history

Introduced as the 202 by independent companies G.H. Allitt & Sons Ltd and Robert Hawkins & Co Ltd ('Nil Desperandum') on 23 Jul 29 (initially only from New Cross to Rotherhithe Red Lion, but extended at the end of the year), the two operators were joined in 1931 by Renown Traction Co.Ltd (for 4 months, until their only bus caught fire) and E Puttergill ('Golden Arrow'). Between November 1933 and June 1934, the three remaining companies were acquired by the LPTB, operation from Old Kent Road garage (P) starting in January 1934.

In 1935, the Rotherhithe New Road terminus became known as 'Canal Bridge', whilst Clifton Rise was still known locally as Clifton Hill. In May 1936, the small ex-independent one-man buses were replaced by nine crew-operated side-engined 5Q5s, running every 5 minutes. The route was always single-deck operated because of low bridges in Trundleys Road, including one carrying the Bricklayers Arms goods yard line which descended at a shallow gradient for the very heavy goods trains. However, it was a very busy route, so whilst the Qs gave 15 years' good service, the route was an early priority for conversion to the new RFs in 1952, providing an extra 4 seats on each bus. Conversion was staged over the period 13 to 24 December as the new RFs were licensed.

Old Kent Road's Q152 in New Cross in about 1951. This is one of the batch that was originally green.

Photo © MGWebber, Paul Brophy collection

The Canal Bridge terminal working was changed for the RFs, to turn using Verney Road, but it wasn't until June 1954 that the stand moved from Rotherhithe New Road into Verney Road.

Once the market in Southwark Park Road was less busy, from 11 Dec 57, the route was changed for weekday working only to become a circular serving

St James's Road and Southwark Park Road. Uniquely (?), the same route number was used for the two different routes, with the Sunday service staying unchanged. The circular route operated both ways from and to New Cross.

Old Kent Road garage, which was very close to Canal Bridge, closed after 25 Nov 58 and New Cross took over the route. Rather than operate garage journeys at the other end of the route, however, they were operated from Canal Bridge along Old Kent Road and the schedules remained unchanged.

A weight restriction on the railway bridge in St. James' Road led to the severance of the circle and the consequent introduction of the 202^A on 1 Jul 64. The 202 reverted to its original working and the 202^A diverged from the 202 to turn up Galleywall Road with route 1 and terminated at the far end in Southwark Park Road. The stand was soon moved from Ambrose Street to Anchor Street.

In less than three years, from 11 Mar 67, the railway bridge in St. James' Road was rebuilt, the 202^A was withdrawn and the 202 reverted to its circular route on weekdays.

Such a short route was an obvious candidate for the new ideas of flat-fare one man operation, and on 26 Oct 68, a month after the Bus Reshaping Plan commenced, the 202 became the first red RF route to be replaced by flat-fare Merlins. The replacement ran as the P1 (anticlockwise, following the 202, Mon to Sat and as per the 202 Sun) and P2 (clockwise, but from Surrey Docks taking the Rotherhithe loop to Rotherhithe Station, rather than going to New Cross).

RF route in detail, with timing points

Canal Bridge service:

NEW CROSS (Clifton Rise), Clifton Rise, Woodpecker Rd, Trundleys Rd, Bush Rd, Rotherhithe New Rd, Rotherhithe Old Rd, Surrey Docks Stn, Hawkstone Rd, Rotherhithe New Rd, Verney Way, Verney Road, ROTHERHITHE Canal Bridge

Despite carrying a blind for the clockwise circular service from and to New Cross, RF432 is laying over at the Old Kent Road Canal Bridge stand in Verney Road, Rotherhithe, in this view. Perhaps this is a Sunday.

Circular route:

NEW CROSS Clifton Rise, Clifton Rise, Woodpecker Rd, Trundleys Rd, Bush Rd, Rotherhithe New Rd, Rotherhithe Old Rd, Surrey Docks Stn, Hawkstone Rd, Rotherhithe New Rd, Galleywall Rd, Southwark Park Rd, St James’s Rd, Rotherhithe New Rd, Hawkstone Rd, Surrey Docks Stn, Rotherhithe Old Rd, Rotherhithe New Rd, Bush Rd, Trundleys Rd, Woodpecker Rd, Clifton Rise, NEW CROSS Clifton Rise

Operated in both directions.

202^A:

Faretable

To view the faretable for May 1965, during the operation of the 202^A and including New Cross garage journeys, click here.

In this atmospheric view from 1965, the 202^A is clearly very well used - the service ran every 10 minutes in the peaks. RF 473 is outside the old Surrey Docks station in Rotherhithe Old Road, going towards New Cross - not Southwark Park Road, the blind has not been changed for the return journey. The bus has just turned out of Hawkstone Road. Paul Brophy remembers the area well: 'Up until the mid 1960's, buses used Hawkstone Road both ways on routes 1 and 202, then a one way system was introduced to the area and although Hawkstone Road was still two way for traffic, buses only used it towards London. Once Canada Water station opened all the bus routes in the area were altered to serve it and buses were withdrawn from the road altogether. The stop in Hawkstone Road where RF370 is standing was very busy in the mid 1970's onwards. The reason was that if you wanted to get a bus towards Central London. you had a choice of route 1 from Hawkstone Road (with buses either coming up from Bromley/Catford or from the Surrey Docks Stn stand in Rotherhithe Old Road), route 188 at the stop shown (coming from Greenwich or the stand at Surrey Docks Stn), or the 70 from the 188 bus stop. The 188 met the 1 at the Bricklayers Arms and ran parallel with it to the Aldwych, the 70 meet them at Waterloo. So at a M-F morning peak, there was a big group of passengers all on the corner of Rotherhithe Old Road and Hawkstone Road looking out for buses and then making a quick dash to ether the bus stop in Rotherhithe Old Road or the one in Hawkstone Road, all trying to get on a very full bus with a load of its passengers trying to get off to join the East London line tube. I think the bus crews hated those two stops.'

Red RF routes

Route 202 and 202A

Route 202 and 202^A