Trivia: Bus routes that have been downgraded from Double Deck to Single Deck operation

[Martin1988]

Can anyone think of any examples of bus routes that had previously been mainly operated by double deck vehicles but have subsequently been downgraded to single deck operation?

A few that I'm aware of are as follows:

5 Broadmead to Downend (Reverted to mainly single deck operation in early 2022)

36 Bristol City Centre to St Annes (Reverted to single deck operation in October 2022 following the removal of the St Annes to Brislington section of the route)

72 Temple Meads to UWE Frenchay Campus (This route has seemingly reverted between single deck and double deck operation a few times over the last 4-5 years).

38 Crewe to Macclesfield (former Arriva Service)

231/232 Bath to Chippenham (Route seemed to become single deck operated towards the end of 2009).

X7 Bristol to Clevedon (Happened in April 2022 due to a service rerouting via a low bridge near Nailsea and Backwell Station but the service has now been rerouted away from that bridge and double deckers reinstated)

Can anyone think of any other examples of such services?

 

[Ken H]

91 in Leeds. When a 44 before West Yorkshire Metro renumbering was always a double decker.
I don't know when it went single deck. It's an orbital route round Leeds.

The Keighley - Bradford was a double decker in West Yorkshire Road car days. I remember Lodekkas, then Bristol VRs on it.

I was going to say the M6 Burnley - Skipton but of the 3 boards today, 2 are Versas and the other a Wright Eclipse Gemini. Of course it used to be part of WitchWay, and before that it had Ribble White Ladies on the route. Both double deckers.

 

[Andyh82]

You’d probably want to specify a time period, as there will be thousands of services that were a decker in the 60s/70s/80s but are single decker now

 

[MotCO]

You’d probably want to specify a time period, as there will be thousands of services that were a decker in the 60s/70s/80s but are single decker now

Especially when omo* was introduced - only single deckers were approved for omo initially.

* At the time it was omo; now it is opo!

 

[Simon75]

Arriva 38 Crewe to Macclesfield. It was also a ' Sapphire premium route'

 

[Roilshead]

570-571 Bradford-Brighouse was single decked as 26/26A Bradford Hipperholme by Hebble and then as (5)70/(5)71 Bradford-Brighouse by HJOC/CJOC/WYPTE until diverted through Canterbury Estate in Bradford c1979 (to replace ex-BCT route), when it became double deck, has been single deck in its latest iterations - since Yorkshire Rider days I would guess - for many years.

 

[THC]

The absolute opposite of your question but the First Essex 300 (Chelmsford to Basildon) has recently been upgraded from single to double decker buses.

THC

 

[LiviCrazy]

Living in Eastern Scottish (and it’s predecessor’s) territory I marvel at how other areas have formal single and double deck duty. As long as I’ve been aware, SMT, First and McGill’s SE always seem to have gone with any bus on any route, there’s been limited exceptions with the Omnidekkas and Enviro400MMCs which I think were part funded by the council at the time and required to be on particular routes.

 

[Roilshead]

Any of the Metro routes in Belfast converted to Glider - actually they've gone from double-deck in BCT days, through conversion to single-deck in early Citybus days, then back to double-deck in Translink/Metro days, and now back to single-deck with Glider.

Mixenden, Illingworth, Highroad Well/Norton Tower, Brighouse via Hipperholme services of Halifax Passenger Transport - all now single deck First services.

All the Bradford-Baildon services once run by WYRCC, now run by First or TLC.

And . . . on . . . and . . . on . . .

 

[SSmith2009]

First Leicester used to run all double deckers on services 38/38A and 88/88A but since before covid they're now 100% single decker operated

 

[bussnapperwm]

In 2009/2010 the 6/37 (Birmingham to Solihull) routes were converted to Omnilink operation. In 2015 the 37 (now 4) got Enviro200MMCs, but now also sees deckers working it regularly. The 6 had a set of brand new electric E400 Cities in 2020 as well.

The 97 (Birmingham - Chemsley Wood) and 16 (Birmingham - Hamstead also got the "branded Omnilink" look in 2008, but got converted back to deckers in 2009

 

[Hullian111]

The 240 and the 246 from Hull to Hornsea, before September 2021, used to be ran by whatever double-decks were allocated to it. Come then, it gets split up and renumbered to EastRider routes 23, 24 and 25, and it's normal allocations are refurbished Plaxton Centro single-decks introduced from 2022 onwards.

By the looks of things, their reliability is incredibly spotty at times. Sometimes, in my experience, the odd B5TL EvoSeti creeps out onto the 24, making the whole exercise feel a bit useless.

 

[Martin1988]

Thanks to those that have taken the time to respond. Sorry I wasn't more clear about the time period. I was actually thinking of routes in the last 15-20 years or so but any historical information is good.
Of the various routes that have been downgraded from double to single deck I'm guessing the normal reason given is lack of patronage on a particular route resulting in the double deckers being transferred to other routes where there is greater need for them?

Other than the X7 Bristol to Clevedon route are there any other notable examples of a service being rerouted through an area with a low bridge, therefore necessitating the need for single deckers?

 

[borage]

Other than the X7 Bristol to Clevedon route are there any other notable examples of a service being rerouted through an area with a low bridge, therefore necessitating the need for single deckers?

As part of the Norfolk Bus Service Improvement Plan, the Sanders Coaches X55 (North Walsham – Norwich) was upgraded to single deck operation in January – they fit under a low bridge, which speeds up the journey time, and the frequency has been increased

 

[PeterC]

Arriva route 280 from Aylesbury to Oxford used to be strictly double decker operated but now seems pretty random.

TfL route 247 was converted to single deck operation in 1993 but reverted to DD in 2004

 

[Statto]

Most of TrentBartons routes, TrentBarton have had no double deckers in regular service in the fleet for 30 odd years, even though they're needed on some routes.

 

[richw]

Other than the X7 Bristol to Clevedon route are there any other notable examples of a service being rerouted through an area with a low bridge, therefore necessitating the need for single deckers?

St Austell to fowey was formerly decker operated, the current route which was multiple local routes absorbed into one passed under several low bridges.


On the opposite to the question buses of somerset has converted many services to double deck operation from singles in the last few years

 

[MotCO]

Metrobus's 358 Crystal Palace to Orpington used to be DMS operated, and worked via Bromley South. It was later diverted via Bromley North, and had to pass under the low railway bridge at Shortlands, so was converted to sngle deck Dart and increased in frequency.

Which is another reason for routes to convert from double to single deck - increased frequencies.
Another reason - loss of a schools contract which required double deck operation, but without that contract, there was insufficient custom for an inter-worked route which only needed single-deck capacity.

 

[TT-ONR-NRN]

Is it always a "downgrade" on less busy routes? Double-deckers can be really rather cramped compared to single-deckers with higher roofs.

 

[Cambus731]

Other than the X7 Bristol to Clevedon route are there any other notable examples of a service being rerouted through an area with a low bridge, therefore necessitating the need for single deckers

Maybe not quite qualifying as a direct answer, but the 117 in West London was converted from double deck to single quite some time ago. It's Eastern terminus used to be Shepherds Bush, but it got curtailed to Hounslow, then for a while extended to Brentford. For some time now it's Eastern terminus has been West Middlesex University Hospital for some time now which means it goes under a low bridge, meaning that it cannot be converted back to double deckers, which is a shame as it means that both routes between Hounslow and Feltham are operated by single deckers these days which get packed

 

[gka472l]

3/93 from Plymouth to Dartmouth, a fantastic route from the top deck, now Stagecoach E200's generally.....

 

[lxfe_mxtterz]

Other than the X7 Bristol to Clevedon route are there any other notable examples of a service being rerouted through an area with a low bridge, therefore necessitating the need for single deckers?

I don't think the actual routing was changed, but I believe a modification of some sort to the railway bridge in Woking meant that double deckers could no longer fit underneath it, and therefore routes 34/35 between Guildford and Camberley had to move to solely single decker operation.

I remember back in Arriva days the 34/35 used to turn up with a double decker sometimes (usually a Volvo Olympian). Nowadays, it's run by Stagecoach with Enviro 200s and 300s.

 

[Magdalia]

Thanks to those that have taken the time to respond. Sorry I wasn't more clear about the time period. I was actually thinking of routes in the last 15-20 years or so but any historical information is good.

On this definition many of the London routes operated by "Bendy Buses" would qualify.

 

[JonathanH]

Reading Transport solely operated double decker buses for a while in the 1980s, yet have plenty of single deck routes now.

One interesting catalyst, not just in Reading, for a switch from double deckers to single deckers in the 1990s was that low floor single deckers came before low floor double deckers, so routes were 'upgraded' to single deck to allow passengers with buggies greater access.

On the subject of upgrading, I note that there are a number of operators who buy new single deck buses for their fleet but only ever operate second hand double deckers.

 

[Ken H]

Is there a big saving reverting to single deckers? Capex? Fuel? Maintenance?

 

[Cambus731]

Various First Essex routes radiating from Chelmsford used to have double deckers but are singles now, notably the 31 group of routes from Chelmsford to Maldon, extended to Burnham on Crouch in 1993. And the 351 to Brentwood. Curiously the 300 route to Basildon have regained double deckers recently having lost them in 1981, when the 152/154 to Grays via Basildon used to be worked by some of Eastern National's last Bristol Lodekkas.

 

[Simon75]

Various First Essex routes radiating from Chelmsford used to have double deckers but are singles now, notably the 31 group of routes from Chelmsford to Maldon, extended to Burnham on Crouch in 1993. And the 351 to Brentwood. Curiously the 300 route to Basildon have regained double deckers recently having lost them in 1981, when the 152/154 to Grays via Basildon used to be worked by some of Eastern National's last Bristol Lodekkas.

This mainly due to the low bridge at Duke Street, by the bus station, which won't fit modern double deckers

 

[LUYMun]

Stagecoach South's route 1 (Aldershot to Old Dean; currently Gold) had a history of 'stepping' between single and double deck allocated buses over the years. IIRC, in the 1990s and early 2000s it was usually run by Leyland Olympians before being down/upgraded (cross out) to ex-Selkent ALX200s, followed by Plaxton Dennis Darts, then Enviro300s when the 1 was upgraded to Stagecoach Gold status before receiving Enviro400 MMCs in 2016. Although, the 1 does seem to be a route where any bus would be allocated onto the route, so finding a banged-up Olympian on an otherwise Gold route was unsurprising.

I might also recall that when the 461 (Kingston to St Peter's Hospital) was momentarily operated by White Rose in the late 90s and early 00s, it used ex-London Metrobuses. I'm not sure what the allocated vehicle fleet was after the company's demise, but it's mainly Enviro200 MMCs these days with Falcon Buses.

 

[Cambus731]

This mainly due to the low bridge at Duke Street, by the bus station, which won't fit modern double deckers

That has certainly prevented routes from reverting back to double deckers without being rerouted, but the process started long before that. The 31 to Maldon (extended to Burnham in 1993) used to be a mix of VRs, Lynxes and Nationals, but has been virtually a single deck only route since about 2000,possibly earlier.
Some of the town services such as the 41A/B the 44A/B and the 55/56 used to frequently see double deckers until the early 1990s. Then all were either reorganised out of existence or simply went single deck.
The 11 to Southrnd was virtually 100& VR operated until about 1987, then went Iver to Nationaks, the disappeared in about 1995

 

[londonbridge]

I vaguely remember some years back TFL route 154 running as a double decker Monday-Saturday and as a hoppa on Sundays, IIRC it didn’t last very long before being put back to double deckers every day due to overcrowding on the hoppas. Can anyone confirm this and the time period?