The ‘Bakerloop’ bus, which traces the route of the proposed Bakerloo line extension, has been a resounding success, according to the latest data released by Transport for London (TfL), writes Frankie Hills…
Launched at the end of September last year this brand new express bus running between Waterloo and Lewisham has more than doubled the expected revenue it was projected to generate.
Data released by TfL revealed the BL1 Bakerloop service was used by passengers 367,000 times during its first 10 weeks in operation, generating £231,000.
A report produced by TfL in November 2024 projected revenue for the Bakerloop services to total £540,000 annually. This therefore means that the route has more than doubled its projected earnings of just £104,000.
The addition of Bakerloop services to the London transport network was introduced by London’s Mayor, Sadiq Khan, amid delays to the extension of the Bakerloo line, which would run between Elephant and Castle and Hayes.
Mr. Khan was able to get backing for funding to extend the DLR from Gallions Reach to Thamesmead last year, as part of the Autumn Budget, but faced setbacks in his plans to establish a ‘West London Orbital’ Overground line from underused freight track and the Bakerloo Line Extension.
Current projections for when the Bakerloo Line Extension will be operational is estimated to be by 2040, with construction set to start around the early 2030s.
However, with no announcements from the government the Bakerloop bus service has been established to act as a temporary stop gap to improve public transport in South East London. Mirroring the first part of the extension it runs between Waterloo, Elephant & Castle and Lewisham via Burgess Park, Old Kent Road, New Cross Gate, Lewisham station and Lewisham town centre.
The BL1 service runs every day of the week from 5am to 12.30am. Five buses run per hour from Monday to Saturday while four buses run every hour on Sundays.
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The decision to implement the Bakerloop was been deemed somewhat of necessity, with TfL willing to accept a substantial funding gap to run the new service. The contract awarded to run the service was for £4.93 million a year, meaning a £4.4 million shortfall still exists on profitability for the service.
However, if the Bakerloop line continues to remain as popular as it is, revenues are on course to reach £1m in its first year.
Moreover, Southwark Council’s development arm has allocated over £5m in funds for the Bakerloop, generated from developments in the Old Kent Road area.
As part of its consultation process in launching the new bus route, overwhelmingly positive feedback was received from respondents. 82% of people said the new bus route was more convenient, whilst 79% thought it would decrease journey times.
